is Discover, Gather, Connect still the plan
Is Discover, Gather, Connect still the plan or has a newer one been added?
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I guess I've been around too long - all the "plans" seem to just blend together anymore. But personally, with the emphasis on "Remember" this year in RootsTech as well as in scripture study, I think working one-on-one with individuals and families, asking them questions that help them remember their ancestors and family history, and helping them find more details about them as real people rather than just names, dates, places, quite adequately covers whatever "plan" is put out for use, and particularly "Discover, Gather, Connect." It's all about helping people see their ancestors as extensions of themselves, or perhaps vice-versa, i.e. seeing self as an extension of all those that came before, and coming to know them by learning more and more details of their lives. Just my 2¢....
--Chris
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That is one reason I asked. I saw the Remember focus for RootsTech. I have seen Discover, Gather, Connect and Know used also. So much changes so fast with the Church and with FamilySearch. FamilySearch support told me yesterday it is still Discover,Gather, Connect. You phrased your response beautifully. As a pretty new Stake Consultant, I did not want to give any less than up to date info in a training for some New Ward Consultants we have. Thank you.
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It seems that a new "theme" associated with each year's RootsTech is seen by many as the "official" direction of the Church/FamilySearch. This year it was "Remember." Last year (2023) the theme was "Uniting." In 2022 it was "Choose Connection." In 2021 I actually haven't found a "Theme" statement, but they were going 120 mph to quickly retool the entire format of RootsTech from an in-person only conference to a virtual only conference. They did seem to celebrate cultures, traditions, etc., so perhaps that was the theme. But in 2020 the theme was "The Story of YOU." And for two years in a row (2018 and 2019) they had the same theme: "Connect. Belong."
I honestly think that perhaps too much is assumed with the various "themes" and focus statements. They're great for a quick catch phrase that tells people what some of the focus of RootsTech might be for any given year, but trying to keep track of a changing "theme" description from year to year my be somewhat wasted energy unless we see specific "HOW" steps that don't change from year to year, nor the "Why?" of why we do these things. Whatever happened to "Belong," from a few years earlier? Is that no longer important? Of course it is. But the real purpose has not changed since the Family History Department was established in 1894 as the Genealogical Society of Utah.
As stated in a previous post, I believe the most important things for us are already outlined in the Church Handbook with respect to responsibilities involved with each of our callings. This Community Group is specifically for consultants. Yet a stake T&FH consultant has different responsibilities than does a ward or branch consultant. The ward/branch consultant is specifically tasked with helping individuals and families find who their ancestors were, document those relationships in FamilySearch, and help people learn more about all of the things mentioned as "themes" in previous years' RootsTech conferences. Gradually we come to feel a sense of belonging within that larger family, many of whom are deceased, yet still important to who we are, what we believe, what we do, etc. And that has the power to change lives of living people, and sometimes even save lives by providing purpose and that sense of belonging. Formal studies have shown that the more a person knows about his or her family background, culture, etc., the more secure that person feels. Our youth, particularly, need that sense of belonging and understanding where and how they fit.
So I believe it's primarily important that we first focus on what we're supposed to be doing from day to day or week to week in our responsibilities pertaining to our positions within the work of family history and ultimately temple work. We help people learn how to accomplish the finding, verifying, and connecting activities. And the result is a coming together within family units, a sense of belonging, and a greater sense of mattering as an individual! A powerful video comes from the 2018 RootsTech Conference and is well worth watching from time to time - it's less than two minutes long:
Again, just my 2¢.... 😉
--Chris
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By the way (another 2¢) - the people answering the phones at FamilySearch Support are volunteers, doing the very best they can to keep up with a staggering amount of material. And at times even they occasionally provide less than complete or accurate answers. I'm not certain that the answer you got that "Discover, Gather, Connect" was technically still accurate for 2024. Yet all of them from various years or time periods are still actually quite accurate - they're all part of the same reason we do this work.
As a ward T&FH Leader, I hope you're also training those in that calling, along with the ward/branch consultants that report to him. The T&FH leaders are the ones that really need to have a good focus on what's most important, and how to further train the consultants in their wards and branches on an ongoing basis as they improve and enhance their understanding and skills. Remember - the ward/branch T&FH Leader is the one meeting with each of the consultants, a senior young man (who's an assistant to the bishop in the priests quorum presidency), a member of the senior YW class presidency, an EQ presidency counselor, and a RS presidency counselor on a regular basis. And those last two (EQ and RS) then report to their presidents who then sit on the ward/branch council where the larger decisions are made. Yours is a great opportunity to help your stake grow in effectiveness, if not even membership.
--Chris
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Thank you so much. All good points.
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