More than 200 people recently gathered in Apex for the Fourth Annual Apex Family History Conference. The theme for the event, sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was “Who’s In Your Family Tree.”
The conference featured 20 classes ranging from genealogy 101 for the beginner to busting through brick walls for experienced enthusiasts.
The conference is timely given the recent release of the 1940 Census. In March of this year the Federal Government released records of more than 130 million Americans in digital format, thereby giving people immediate access to the information.
Not surprisingly, instructors at the conference placed significant emphasis on using technology, emerging software, and web-based tools to help find, verify and document records of their relatives.
“Family is important,” said event organizer, Carol Everett. “We want to help people discover and connect with their ancestors. What once took genealogists months to research can now be accomplished in a matter of hours using these new technologies. “
Genealogical research is for old and young alike. Tisha Calhoun of Apex taught young people how they can actively engage in family history work.
“Young people can find courage and increased faith as they learn how their ancestors met and overcame significant challenges in their lives,” she said.
Tisha had several Apex High School students share what they had learned from some of their ancestors. For example, Dallin Suppes shared a Civil War flag that had been passed down for several generations and was impressed with the sacrifices his family members had made in helping shape our nation. Carla Calderon was pleased to discover a line of her family that came from France and Italy. Haylee Smith shared stories of a great grandfather who served in World War II. Both Carla and Haylee have served as volunteers in indexing the 1940 Census.
“We have found that members of our community have great interest in learning about their ancestors,” said Charlie Turner, a leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Apex area. “We have a wonderful family history center and many experienced family history consultants who are available to help anyone in our community with their family history research.”
The Apex Family History Center, located at 590 Bryan Street in Apex, is open to the public and is free of charge. The center is open for several hours on Tuesday – Saturday.
Please call 919-303-2013 for hours or to set up an appointment to meet with a family history consultant.
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