Del Rio News Herald

October is Family History Month.

While unofficial celebrations began back in 1990 in California and Arizona, it was not until Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) pushed through legislation on 26 Sept. 2001 that October officially became Family History Month.

Are you ready to celebrate all things genealogical?

The Val Verde Genealogy Society invites everyone interested in discovering their roots to join the Society for their Open House meeting 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 6 at the LDS Family History Center located at 1315 Kings Way.

President Jim Butterworth has been working hard to make this meeting something really special. LDS Family History Center staff (Director Willie Braudaway, Tina Gonzalez, Albert Lopez, and Velma Lopez), Val Verde County Clerk Janie Ramon and City Secretary Susan Corp will all be on hand to share how they can help family historians.

Let me share Kimberly Powell’s “10 Ways to Celebrate Family History Month” found at http://genealogy.about.com/od/holidays/tp/family-history-month.htm

1. Get started tracing your family tree – that’s what Family History Month is all about.

http://genealogy.about.com/cs/beginnerscorner/ht/family_tree.htm

2. Create a family cookbook to preserve memories of favorite meals shared with family.

http://childparenting.about.com/cs/holidays/a/makemothersgift_2.htm

3. Record family stories to honor your older relatives and preserve family traditions.

http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/a/interview.htm

4. Uncover your family health history – a potentially lifesaving project.

http://genealogy.about.com/od/health_history/a/medical.htm

5. Take a trip back in time by grabbing a map and hopping in the car for a family adventure.

http://genealogy.about.com/od/research_trips/a/planning.htm

6. Scrapbook your family heritage to document your family’s history with photos and memories.

http://genealogy.about.com/cs/scrapbooks/a/family_history.htm

7. Start a family web site to serve as a digital scrapbook and meeting spot for everyone.

http://genealogy.about.com/od/publishing/a/online.htm

8. Preserve your family pictures in acid-free photo boxes or albums and even digitally.

http://genealogy.about.com/library/weekly/aa121000a.htm

9. Get the next generation involved by teaching your children to be ancestor detectors.

http://genealogy.about.com/od/children/a/detective.htm

10. Craft a heritage gift just in time for holiday or birthday giving.

http://genealogy.about.com/od/make_family_tree/a/gift_ideas.htm

Take advantage of using this month to bring your family together by turning your hearts to your forefathers and foremothers.

Celebrate all that makes your family a unique unit in the complex mosaic of humankind.

Willie Braudaway, a librarian who has gone into business as librarywillie research & consulting LLC, is happy to provide this information column weekly. For more information about this column, emaillibrarywillie(at)hotmail.com. As she says, “I know I can help you…I’m a librarian!”

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