Church Offers Genealogy Help at Museum Site

By Karen Vance The Cincinnati Enquirer DOWNTOWN—The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has made family genealogy a mission. And sharing thousands of records of births, deaths, and marriages with non-church members has been a part of that vision. In Cincinnati, the LDS Church is taking that a step further. Through a partnership with the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, the LDS Church has a FamilySearch Center—staffed largely by Mormons—at the museum. More than 1,500 people have used the center to find their family history. The number is climbing, with about 10 people each day researching, many of them drop-ins. "It's really groundbreaking and unique for the LDS Church to do this," said Darold Olson, public affairs director for the LDS Church in the Cincinnati area. "We saw an opportunity for us to volunteer and to share, to help the community." The LDS Church operates the largest genealogical library in the world, the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, as well as 4,000 family history centers, including ones in Norwood, Liberty Township, Symmes Township, and Lakeside Park. But the FamilySearch Center in the Freedom Center is the only one in the United States not connected to an LDS meetinghouse. Next weekend, the FamilySearch Center will serve even more people at the Freedom Center genealogy pavilion at the Midwest Regional Black Family Reunion at Sawyer Point. The Church's genealogical research has faith at its core. While the research serves a practical purpose for members because of the practices of baptizing ancestors by proxy and sealing marriages, sharing the research with nonmembers has its heart with the LDS Church's focus on family. "We know it's a universal desire to know our family, and family is very important to us," said Jim Ison, an LDS member who serves as the full-time volunteer director of the FamilySearch Center. "Many people have said it's a healing experience when they're able to see that they have family beyond the people they know," Ison said. "A lot of what slavery did was pull families apart. This, in a small way, allows us to help put those families back together." One database at the Church's disposal is the Freedman's Bank records, with personal and family information for more than 480,000 Blacks. "There's always been an assumption that for many African-Americans that because of the nature of slavery, it was almost impossible for Blacks to trace their roots," said Paul Bernish, chief communications officer for the center. "This center has really given people a sense of identity." Beyond the FamilySearch Center, the LDS Church has deepened its partnership with the Freedom Center by assigning four missionaries to serve as conductors in the Freedom Center museum. "It's such an amazing opportunity; we're one of the first missionaries to do this kind of work," said Ashli Sherman, from Roy, Utah. "It's very important work to be done, and it's very rewarding." The FamilySearch Center is free to all Freedom Center visitors and by appointment at (513) 333-7737.