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30 January 2016

Family Discovery Day at RootsTech

Family Discovery Day Speakers and Guests

Family Discovery Day at RootsTech is the perfect place to discover and share family connections through technology. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced family historian, Family Discovery Day at RootsTech has something for everyone. 


Experience More at RootsTech 2016
RootsTech, the largest family history conference in the world, is happening February 3–6, 2016, at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. With inspiring keynote speakers, expo hall of hundreds of exhibitors, entertaining evening events with special guest performers, and more, RootsTech has something for everyone to enjoy. Registration is required for both Family Discovery Day and RootsTech. Passes start at just $29.


For more information about RootsTech 2016, visit RootsTech.org.    

29 January 2016

The Family History Library Announces Free Classes for February 2016

These classes and workshops are designed to help individuals and families find their ancestors and teach others family history techniques.


Feb 9 12:00 P.M. Spanish Records Indexing Workshop Webinar Indexing Tips and Tricks (1½ hours)
1:00 P.M. Cousin Research


Feb 11 10:00 A.M. Migration Routes Across America Webinar

Feb 16 12:00 P.M. Portuguese Records Indexing Workshop Webinar—Indexing Tips and Tricks (1½ hours)
2:00 P.M. Exploring Death Notices in Norway Webinar


Feb 17 1:00 P.M. Online Ortsfamilienbücher (Village Lineage books) Genealogy.net Webinar2:00 P.M. Using Metasuche or Metasearch on Genealogy.net Webinar

Feb 20 9:00 A.M. African American Series: Creating Documentary on Family History, Guest speaker Sanford Bryant10:00 A.M. African American Research and Indexing (2 hours)
10:00 A.M. Boy Scout Genealogy Merit Badge (1½ hours) To register, call 1-801-240-4673 at least one week before the workshop to find out which requirements should be completed before attending.


Feb 23 12:00 P.M. French Records Indexing Workshop Webinar Indexing Tips and Tricks (1½ hours)
1:00 P.M. British Resources on FamilySearch Webinar2:00 P.M. U.S. Burned Counties Research


Feb 24 1:00 P.M. British Resources on Ancestry Webinar3:00 P.M. Using the Full Scope of ArkivDigital for Swedish Genealogy Webinar

Feb 25 1:00 P.M. British Resources on findmypast Webinar6:00 P.M. Religious Migration History and Research Webinar


Webinars can be accessed by the following link:  https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Family_History_Library_Classes_and_Webinars#Monthly_Class_Schedules; scroll to find the desired class.

Family History Enthusiasts Worldwide Gathering in Utah for RootsTech 2016



SALT LAKE CITY, 27 January 2016—RootsTech, the largest family history conference in the world, is looking forward to over 20,000 visitors over four days with an exciting array of speakers and entertainers, over 250 interesting and informative classes, a huge expo hall with more than 160 exhibitors. There is something for every level of family history—from the beginner to experienced. The three-day conference begins on Thursday, February 4, and goes through Saturday, February 6. For more information go to RootsTech.org.

The keynote speakers and offerings reflect the growing influence of family history. Today multiple generations of all ages are engaging through family storytelling and sharing memories within families using social media and an expanding array of new technologies and mobile apps. The opening session on February 4 will begin with Stephen T. Rockwood, who is the managing director for the Family History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and President/CEO of FamilySearch International.

Also featured is Paula Williams Madison who is chairman and CEO of Madison Media Management LLC, a Los Angeles based media consultancy company with global reach. After her retirement in 2011, Madison started doing research on her family lineage. She wrote the book and produced a movie Finding Samuel Lowe: China, Jamaica, Harlem in April 2015 about her experiences. A free screening of the movie will be provided on Wednesday, February 3.

Bruce Feiler is one of America’s most popular commentators about contemporary life. He hosts the PBS series Walking the Bible and Sacred Journeys with Bruce Feiler. He wrote The Secrets of Happy Families containing best practices for busy parents from some of the country’s most creative minds. He has appeared on many television shows on NRP, CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, and others.

On Friday, February 5, David Isay, is a scheduled keynote. He’s the founder of StoryCorps, an award-winning organization that provides people of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to record, share, and preserve their life stories. 50,000 interviews have been archived and preserved at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. He has also written several New York Times bestsellers, including Listening is an Act of Love. He is a broadcaster and documentarian, and his research reveals ways to tell great stories for the family historian.

Also on Friday, Josh and Naomi Davis, popular family bloggers known as Love Taza, will speak. On their blog, they relate their life with their three children in bustling New York City. The blog has become a digital destination viewed by millions around the world. People love the inspiration about raising a family and the appreciation Naomi has for life’s simple joys.

On Saturday, February 6, Doris Kearns Goodwin is a world-renowned presidential historian and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. She worked with Spielberg on the movie Lincoln, based in part on her award winning Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln. She has written books about Frank and Eleanor Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson, and the Kennedys and shares her expertise and commentary on many television shows. She has a PhD in government from Harvard and was an assistant to Lyndon Johnson and has been a consultant in several PBS and History Channel documentaries.

Also on Saturday, Michael Leavitt, a three-term former governor of Utah, will speak. He also served in George W. Bush’s cabinet as an Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and Secretary of Health and Human Services.

The second annual Innovator Summit is a one-day event on Wednesday, February 3, for developers, entrepreneurs, and innovators from around the globe to explore, examine, and discover business and technological opportunities within the family history industry—a rapidly growing multibillion dollar industry. Innovators from around the globe and from all industries will be competing for a piece of the $100,000 in total cash and in-kind prizes. The keynote speaker for this event will be Ken Krogue, an entrepreneur who has taken his business InsideSales.com from a small beginning to a billion dollar industry. He will share his expertise about social media and how to use the different forms effectively.

Along with the keynotes, RootsTech attendees will be able to hear from the Crescent Super Band, featuring Ryan Inness, and Lower Lights, a popular gospel and folk band.

More information about speakers, entertainers, classes, and how to register at RootsTech can be found at RootsTech.org.

Global RootsTech Conference Announces Free Online Broadcast Schedule

29 January 2016—RootsTech, the world’s largest family history and technology conference held in Salt Lake City, Utah, February 4-6, 2016, announced today that 15 of its popular sessions will be broadcast live and complimentary over the Internet. The live broadcasts will give those unable to attend in-person worldwide a sample of this year’s conference content. Interested viewers can watch the live presentations at RootsTech.org. Saturday's Family Discovery Day sessions will be broadcast live on LDS.org

The streamed RootsTech sessions include the general sessions and a sampling of technology and family history presentations.  Following are the broadcasted sessions and speakers. All times are in Mountain Standard Time (MST):

RootsTech Streaming Schedule (RootsTech.org Thursday, February 4; Friday, February 5; Saturday February 6, 2016)
Time Length Day


Thursday Friday Saturday
8:30 a.m. 90 Minutes RootsTech General Session: Stephen T. Rockwood, Paula Madison and
Bruce Feiler
RootsTech General Session: Josh and Naomi Davis and
David Isay
RootsTech General Session: Michael Leavitt
11:00 a.m. 60 Minutes RT5352
7 Unique Technologies for Genealogy Discoveries
Mike Mansfield
GS3643
Innovator Showdown
(Starts at 10:30)
RT2449
Photos-Emerging Technologies in Photography
Jens Nielsen
1:30 p.m. 60 Minutes RT2390
Best Websites and Apps for Local
Amy Crow
GS2345
Proven Methodology for Using Google for Genealogy
Lisa Louise Cook
RT2560
Become a Master Searcher on Ancestry Anne Mitchell
3:00 p.m. 60 Minutes GS4310
What's New in Family Tree for 2016
Ron Tanner
RT7450
Finding Elusive Records on FamilySearch.org Robert Kehrer
RT1792
Homespun and Calico: Researching our Foremothers
Peggy Lauritzen
4:30 p.m. 60 Minutes GS2623
Virtual Family Reunions Joseph Richardson
RT1431
My Ancestors are from Britain-- What do I do next?
Myko Clelland
GS1532
5 Steps to Identify a Family Photo
Maureen Taylor

Family Discovery Day Streaming Schedule (LDS.org Saturday, February 6, 2016)
Time Length Session Information- English Session Information- Languages
1:00 p.m. 45 Minutes RootsTech Family Discovery Day Opening Session:
Elder Dale G. Renlund, Sister Ruth L. Renlund, Sister Ashley Renlund
RootsTech Family Discovery Day Opening Session:
Elder Dale G. Renlund, Sister Ruth L. Renlund, Sister Ashley Renlund
2:00 p.m. 45 Minutes Family History Discussion:
Sheri L. Dew and Sister Wendy W. Nelson
No Stream
3:15 p.m. 30 Minutes RootsTech Family Discovery Day Family Session:
Sister Rosemary M. Wixom and Brother Stephen W. Owen
RootsTech Family Discovery Day Family Session:
Sister Rosemary M. Wixom and Brother Stephen W. Owen
4:15 p.m. 30 Minutes RootsTech Family Discovery Day Youth and Family Session:
Taysom Hill and Britain Covey
No Stream

About RootsTech
RootsTech, hosted by FamilySearch, is a global conference celebrating families across generations, where people of all ages are inspired to discover and share their memories and connections. This annual event has become the largest of its kind in the world, attracting tens of thousands of participants worldwide.