LDS-WARD-CONSULTANT-L Archives

Archiver > LDS-WARD-CONSULTANT > 2009-03 > 1237845807


From: "Megan Smith" <>
Subject: Re: [LDS-WC] Which Utah temples accept FORs?
Date: Mon, 23 Mar 2009 15:03:27 -0700
References: <BAY111-W44A7CDA9174FC63B9ED554B0920@phx.gbl><80730003CC08444E85D6EA66BC80DD0D@JILLS0033000064><BAY139-W26A9EE5CB8E4E47509BC50CA920@phx.gbl><1913A7CD1A544CAE8ED5D64A28ADF70E@JILLS0033000064><BLU130-DS3DA0F35E2CA94E1C2C976AA920@phx.gbl><BAY139-W416B49AC4D0BE9E43F49EBCA920@phx.gbl><957FD5008FBF40AD835C0752A9988721@JILLS0033000064>


Amen, Jill. FYI - In the short time our district has had nFS, we have seen
an increase in the number of patrons bringing in small lists of names to get
started with their family's genealogy and Temple work. So that's good that
more people are getting involved - hopefully they will gain a testimony of
the work AND we will see an increase in Temple attendance. (Our Temple has
less patrons now than when we opened 19 years ago and Las Vegas has grown
tremendously.) The interesting thing is that the patrons who regularly
brought in disk after disk after disk of names seem to have disappeared. I
hope the "new" technology hasn't scared them away, but one sister, before
the change over, told me she dreaded not having Templeready. It's the
familiar ... I started out with PAF 2.31, then 3.0, then I hated 4.0 and
never installed it, now I have 5.2. I love nFS, but I haven't even tried
one of the add-on like FamilyInsight (and I loved PAFInsight) because I
haven't had the time to teach myself how to use it.

Megan Smith
Las Vegas, NV

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jill N. Crandell" <>
To: <>
Sent: Monday, March 23, 2009 2:36 PM
Subject: Re: [LDS-WC] Which Utah temples accept FORs?


> Ray wrote:
> A "someday" thing isn't going to get them moving.
>
> Ray,
> I understand your frustration with this, but no deadline is going to be
> announced because of the very real issues of dealing with each problem as
> it
> occurs. They cannot predict the problems--or they would be preventing
> them--but they can deal with them when they occur. That being the case,
> they
> also can't determine how long the solutions will take to program. Based on
> what I have heard, the Wasatch Front is going to give this system its very
> biggest challenge to date. If there are problems as it continues to
> roll-out, things will likely slow down or stop again. If a deadline is
> given, the complaints when that deadline is missed are FAR worse than if
> the
> people didn't know when it was coming and didn't know that they missed
> their
> target date.
>
> You have indicated that you think participation in family history work
> among
> Church members will greatly increase when the program is released in your
> area. Has anyone in the rolled-out areas had that experience? I would be
> curious to know. I assume that there is a brief time period of curiosity
> and
> learning about the new system, but has anyone seen a truly significant
> increase in long-term participation? I'm not trying to be negative here, I
> want to make a point. I don't believe any "tool" is going to generate the
> level of family history and temple work participation that needs to be
> occurring. I think making the process more user friendly is a definite
> plus,
> but it isn't a life changer. Missionaries don't convert, the Spirit does.
> Family History tools are fun, but they don't inspire testimony and
> commitment.
>
> When I started this work, my biggest concern in life was how on earth I
> was
> going to be able to afford a long-carriage typewriter! Before I had the
> money, PAF 1.0 was created. I started by submitting names to Salt Lake and
> waiting 6 months for approval, then we had TempleReady, and now we have
> New
> FamilySearch. I saw the IGI go from the CFI on microfiche to the current
> online system. There has been a steady increase over time in participation
> in family history, but as you mentioned, the current level of
> participation
> is still peanuts. The new tools released over the last 30 years have not
> been life-changers. It's my contention that no tool is going to bring the
> commitment and dedication needed to accomplish this work--without the
> testimony and conversion necessary to change our lives and the way we use
> our time.
>
> These tools are being created and will continue to roll forth as the Lord
> sees fit to reveal them to us. He is in charge, and He knows the roll-out
> schedule. I have been teaching family history through this entire process,
> and trust me, the tools are not what the students get excited about. The
> "life-changing event" is the testimony they gain of the work that gives
> them
> the desire to learn about and use the tools--whatever they are. I would
> suggest letting the roll-out schedule fall off your radar, and focus more
> on
> testimony and the doctrine. I know that's hard to do, but I truly believe
> you will have greater success with that approach. I have been asked to
> speak
> in Sacrament meeting in a few weeks, and I was asked if there was a
> particular theme I would like the meeting to focus on. I started laughing
> and asked if they really had to ask that question! I don't know about any
> of
> you, but our ward has certainly not had its one-third share of Sacrament
> meeting talks for this aspect of the three-fold mission of the Church!!
> :-)
>
> Just some thoughts,
> Jill Crandell
>
> Please send the one word message SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE to
>
> -------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
> with the word 'unsubscribe'
> without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>


This thread: