Despite all the hullaballo with RootsTech that Leland had to deal with, the 27th annual Salt Lake Christmas Tour was a huge and resounding success! First off, there was no snow and the days were sunny and bright (but cold). Of the 94 people attending most found new ancestors and certainly they found new cousins and new friends.
The 2011 tour was both the worst and the best tour ever. It was the worst ever because the husband of an elderly New Jersey couple suffered a heart attack in the mens’ room of the cafeteria and passed away. It was the best tour ever because of what I said above. Here are some of the comments gleaned from the tour critiques filled out at our Farewell Social….
Where both Alan N. from Iowa and Melonie L. from Washington won a free 2-night stay gifted by the Plaza Hotel!!
“The Christmas Tour is the best! I filled in gaps in many of my families! The professionals gave me insights to new roads of research. I loved the cheerfulness early in the morning. I finally learned FamilySearch and the WIKI. I loved all the choices at breakfast! The daily bulletin board (that Donna has in the hotel lobby) kept me on track. As a newbie, I was so impressed with the dedication of everyone who helped to make the week a blast for me. I made a 30-year breakthrough! My week’s highlight was having my sister with me. The classes introduced me to new sources. I’m related to Louis VII of France! I learned how to research in a whole new area. Thanks for all the organizing, enthusiasm and great ideas. I went to four of the expert helpers and got more homework that I had time for. I went back several generations on my mom’s side. My husband became interested in genealogy!! I loved Thomas’ classes and learned so much from him. I learned that FamilySearch is really a goldmine for research. The highlight of my week was finding my ancestor in Germany. I really enjoyed being able to use all the subscription databases there in the Family History Library. Thank you, Arlene Eakle, for your help!
Posted by a grateful Mother Hen, Donna
I have a suggestion for everyone. “In case of emergency” put the number that you would like called under ICE and number. Emergency people know to look for that number in your cell phone. That,
along with putting that information on your tour information.