Not long ago I had a very interesting experience working with a patron in the Oakland California Family Search Library. He had never been on FamilySearch before and was eager to see what we had for him on Family Tree.  He had been on other big sites for a couple of free days in the past and wanted to further his search for his great grandparents. He is a 71-year-old African American man; let’s call him Frank for purposes of this story. He was interested in finding more information on his ancestors who were slaves in Arkansas.

Frank started his FamilySearch/Family Tree by adding his information. When we went to view his pedigree he was extremely disappointed that his tree did not begin to populate across the page. I explained that we needed to do a little research to find the next person or two in his family, but he was resistant to the idea. I then took him to The Family History Guide and showed him where we could look for possible records that might help him. We opened the Countries page and clicked on United States and then Arkansas. I showed him the African American page as well, in the Ethnic link of the Countries drop-down menu.

We found one set of records in Arkansas that could possibly help, but Frank became frustrated when the years he was looking for were not available online. In about 15 minutes from his first look at the pedigree, he was done. He was thinking that he had given his information to Family Search and gotten nothing in return, so he started packing up to leave. He was an intelligent man, quite computer savvy, and very nice and apologetic about his impatience. I realized that he might have watched too many TV commercials and one-hour programs that show simple solutions to complex genealogical challenges.  He did not expect to have to work for his answers, or to have to spend much time at it. What a shame.  I gave him the link to The Family History Guide Guide website and my contact information.

As he stood to leave, we talked a little longer about how he just wanted his great grandchildren to know about who they are, because he loves them. I realized that Frank needs to be a “builder” now and not just a seeker of his ancestors. He is not ready to research, but he is ready to share his story and record his voice telling stories about himself, his parents, and his  grandparents. He is a great-grandfather who could leave stories and vital information for his young great-granddaughters. He knew their 2nd and 3rd great-grandparents, and he knows their parents and others that will be important to those little girls as they grow up.

Frank’s attitude about family history changed in just a few minutes, before he reached the doors to leave the library. He will come back, and he will proceed with his family history as a builder for now. I’m pretty sure once he does that, he will be fully invested in seeking his ancestors.

The best part is he will have The Family History Guide to help him with his efforts. On the website he can learn how to gather and upload his documents and photos in the Memories Section of Family Tree. The Family History Guide is surely a game changer for people. As trainers or mentors, it is so important for us to ascertain exactly what people want and need before we jump right in with solutions for them. If we are beginning our own family history, it is also critical to figure out what the desired outcome of our work is in the beginning. Whether we are a learner or a trainer, the same basic principles apply. Of course that initial vision can change over time but what is it we want in the beginning?

I have learned that when records are scarce in a given locality it may be time for the person to gain a mindset shift to beginning as a builder instead of a seeker. Frank left the library a happy man because he could now recognize what he really wanted to accomplish and how to do it.  He left with a new vision where he could be successful and leave a personal legacy for his great granddaughters.  He realized this was more pressing for him right now than adding to his pedigree of the ancestors in Arkansas.  His success will create in him a desire to more on to that once he has accomplished his first priority.