Recently, I have found myself asking if we fully comprehend how fortunate we are to have access to a FamilySearch Center in our own neighborhood. I can’t help but wonder if we are treating it the way we should be. Do we give it its proper place in our lives?

Often, the easier something is to access, the less time we take to ponder the significance it should hold in our lives. We all know how blessed we are by the many temples that dot our valley. I’m sure we all have friends and know people who must make great sacrifices to participate in temple ordinances. And while there aren’t as many FamilySearch Centers accessible to us, we are among the most fortunate to have one in our own neighborhood.

FamilySearch Centers can bless our lives in so many ways. They provide helpful guidance to individuals researching their ancestors. While it is true that there is much family history work that can be done in our own homes, FamilySearch Centers can provide help and resources for those just beginning, or those needing additional help in their journey of discovering their family history.

I have found the consultants at the Granite FamilySearch Center to be incredibly kind, patient, and helpful in my own journey to discover and explore my ancestors. Our consultants are incredibly knowledgeable and extremely willing to help and assist in whatever issues may arise. If you have a particular roadblock, or if the trail has gone cold, stop by our Center and let our experienced consultants see if they can assist you through a particular challenge. They can often help us in our efforts to further the work of salvation in our own families.   

The Granite FamilySearch Center gives each of us the opportunity to invite our friends and neighbors who are not of our faith to participate in this work and feel the Spirit associated with seeking out our deceased relatives. There is a Spirit that confirms the importance of this work as we begin participating in it.

I often feel bad for those who drive by our building without ever taking the opportunity to stop and enter and feel the Spirit that exists within its walls. I hope we will all open our mouths and invite our families, friends and neighbors who may have not yet experienced for themselves the joy of learning from those who came before us.

There exists natural ties that bind families together. All we must do is to put forth the effort to discover our family’s heritage and we will feel the love and uniting force that brings us together! FamilySearch Centers are a resource available to everyone in our community, regardless of Church membership status. Everyone is welcome to use our Center.

I encourage you to ponder how you can use the FamilySearch Center in the work of salvation. As you do, I promise you that you’ll find specific ways this Center can help you in your day-to-day responsibilities to help the people you love and the people you are assigned to serve.

Let us never take this for granted. Let us show through our actions that we value this sacred building that offers each one of us so much!

– Doug Nielsen, Director, Granite FamilySearch Center