Sharing your GENEALOGY

So after you've done all the research to find as many ancestors as you can, what's next? Well, first of all your genealogy is never done-there are always more sets of parents to discover unless you have ALL your lines back to Adam.

Part of FAMILY HISTORY is gathering histories and photos for as many of your ancestors as you can OR writing a history of them. (My first attempt to write a history was of my stepfather who fought in WWII. See cover on the left.)

Compile your PEDIGREE CHARTS and FAMILY GROUP SHEETS into some kind of notebook or scrapbook to look at or publish them online. More and more people are doing that. A WEBPAGE or BLOG is a perfect place to share your findings with others worldwide who could be interested. Depending on how computer literate your family is, you may need to publish online and in a paper format also. When I compile or write family histories I like to print them in paper format and also make a pdf file that I can save on a DVD or CD so others can read it on their computers. These self published collections can be given out at family reunions or family holiday celebrations and events.

Leaving all your research in file cabinets or folders is wasting all the efforts you've put into doing this work. DONATE a copy of your history and photos to local libraries or University libraries. There are many places just waiting for more contributions. The LDS Family History Library in SLC is one. So send them a paper copy and/or digital CD of what you've compiled. Guess what you are becoming a real FAMILY HISTORIAN, preserving your ROOTS and helping others in their searching.

Other creative OPTIONS for sharing your family history research are making a shadow box or photo collage of an ancestor or a decorated pedigree chart. (Above is a sample of a fan pedigree chart framed and decorated by Mary, a friend of mine. Check out her blog if you are interested in her work.) There are so many options-quilts, cross stitch, paintings, calligraphy, etc.