Change spelling of last name from "Gross" to "Goss"
I am a bishop in the Lincoln Heights ward in Spokane, Washington. A member of my ward, Lou Sereday, DOB 11 Jul 1949, has a son who is now deceased. His correct name was John Aaron David Goss, but on his membership record, it lists John Aaron David Gross. As a result, he isn't connected to his mother's family tree. He was born 10 July 1977 and died at age 23, date unknown.
Could you please help me help this sister get her deceased son's last name spelling corrected? Thanks!
Matt Weed
Answers
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Bishop Weed
This correction should be handled by your ward clerk. He should have access to records in Salt Lake and make the request for the change.
If this is not possible a letter could be sent to Church Headquarters Membership department. Please include a copy of the birth certificate and if possible the death certificate.
The mother can create a record on FamiliySearch for her son using the correct spelling and dates.. When the membership record is corrected then she can merge the two records. Please note that it takes time for the membership to be marked deceased and to become available for merging.
The Mothers record will be located in her private space which only see can access. The deceased son will be a public record.
The following article will give you additional information about private space.
https://www.familysearch.org/help/helpcenter/article/what-is-a-private-space-in-family-tree
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Hello Bishop @mattweed23.
We searched for John Aaron David Goss and John Aaron David Gross in Family Tree, with a birth year of 1977, but did not find a record for him. We suggest that your ward member add her son's name to her tree in FamilySearch Family Tree, along with his birth and death dates and places. That would be the first step.
Then, was John in your ward? If not, would it be possible to contact the ward clerk where he lived when he died? It sounds as if his membership record has not been marked as deceased. That ward clerk should be able to correct the spelling of the last name, as well. Once the membership record has been marked as deceased, the individual's name will appear in Family Tree, along with any ordinance information.
Also, your ward member may need to provide proof of death to support her request. Does she have a death notice of some kind? Death certificate, obituary, death notice?
We hope this information has been useful.
Here are links to knowledge articles that might help with the situation: https://www.familysearch.org/help/helpcenter/article/missing-ordinance-and-membership-information-in-family-tree
https://www.familysearch.org/help/helpcenter/article/solving-problems-related-to-ordinance-records
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