A new year and a new post

I can't believe the year has gone by so quickly. I have fallen off the wagon for posting to this blog. I am still active with my family history. I have been taking family history classes from BYU-Idaho for the last year and a half. It seems this has taken most of my extra time, that and two hours commuting to work and back each day. I think I have fallen into a rhythm with the assignments and classes. It is much harder than I first thought it would be.

This semester as part of my class work I am supposed to keep a journal to record my personal experiences with my lessons and my personal family history. This journal can be a part of my blog which I hope may benefit others. I am supposed to answer the following questions:

• What were your experiences?
• What did you learn?
• What obstacles did you have and how did you overcome them?
• What tender mercies or miracles did you witness?
• Do you have any helpful tips to share?
• What resources were most useful to you?
• In what ways did you receive "more than your own strength?"

The final question in in reference to a talk by Henry B. Eyring in April 2005.

"After you find the first few generations, the road will become more difficult. . . . You will be tempted to stop and leave the hard work of finding to others who are more expert or to another time in your life. But you will also feel a tug on your heart to go on in the work, hard as it will be. As you decide, remember that the names which will be so difficult to find are of real people to whom you owe your existence in this world and whom you will meet again in the spirit world. . . . Their hearts are bound to you. Their hope is in your hands. You will have more than your own strength as you choose to labor on to find them."

 I want to share as much as I can but materials from BYU–I and related sites may be protected by US Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S. Code). These materials are only for the use of students enrolled in this course for purposes associated with this course and may not be retained or further disseminated. I will share as much as I can while also trying not to violate the copyright agreement.

What were my experiences?


The first lesson was a review of things I already new and information specific about the class and the expectations from it. As part of my introduction to the other members of the class I was asked to read several different quotes from LDS church leaders about the work of family history and technology we use to do the work. I am familiar with each quote especially the remarks from Elder Bednar's October 2011 talk that refers to the the youth having been trained, "to text and tweet to accelerate and advance the work of the Lord."

What did I learn?
I did not learn from my class more than I mentioned above.

What obstacles did I have and how did I overcome them?

Luckily because of the first week I did not have any obstacles, besides finding time to complete the work. This seems to be a theme for me but not just for my class work. I also struggle to find time for a lot of other activities I try to do. I did accomplish getting my hair cut this weekend.

What tender mercies or miracles did I witness?

This week I spoke on the phone with a Steven Gomez, whose father served with my grandpa Trotter beginning at  at Camp McCall. Steven is part of the WWII Airborne Demonstration Team and jumps out of a P-57 that was used in operation Dragoon. Steven says there is a man named Fred Brown who lives in Port Arthur, Texas who was in the 460th B battery with my grandpa Trotter. Steven has been to several of the conventions and gatherings for the 517th over the years. He knows a lot about the 460th and their battles in the war. He asked if grandpa has told any stories about the war to me and I said very few. I told him about the interview my uncle Darce recorded with my grandpa and he said he would like to see it. He also said he had a photograph of the battalion with the names of each person that he would send me. I will share when I get it.

I also became reacquainted with the website for the 517th at www.517prct.org.

Do I have any helpful tips to share?

I do but noting new from this week. I have been in several meetings for this years RootsTech conference. I am excited for the opportunity to be involved with the team this year. I am assigned to the mobile app. I will know more about the app when more information is loaded to it but it is now available to download.

What resources were most useful to me?

Besides the 517th website I have been reviewing hints from FamilySearch and MyHeritage. I have also been trying to clean up my Legacy database and sources. It looks like I will be using RootsMagic more this semester so I will be reviewing the way I keep my digital files as well as learning more about using RootsMagic.

In what ways did I receive "more than your own strength?"

I am excited for the opportunity to learn more about the proper way to record my family history and resources I can use to do so.