For Madame Josefa A. Puentevella, wife of Bacolod City Mayor Monico Puentevella, the invitation to speak during the opening ceremony of the Family History Exhibit of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints brought back fond memories of visiting the Church’s Family History Center. She recalled how she visited the center several years ago to search for ancestors’ names in preparation for a family reunion.
She remarked, “The Church has a very good collection of genealogy. I was very happy to have visited your Family History Center because I was looking forward to knowing more about my relatives. I was also preparing for two other family reunions. I am very glad to know that after 10 years, we will be seeing a more modern version of that.”
Indeed, times have changed. Searching for one’s ancestors could now be done online with more than a billion digital images and indexes of records from all over the world available through FamilySearch.org. These records include government and church records for births, marriages, and deaths; censuses; probate records, land records, draft cards; and so forth. Millions of new records are published on a weekly basis.
With a firm commitment to helping people learn more about their family heritage, the three stakes (dioceses) of Bacolod City held a three-day family history exhibit at SM Mall on May 22-24, 2014.
Atty. Benjamin Candari, stake (diocese) president of Bacolod Stake, welcomed visitors to the opening and ribbon cutting. Guests who graced the affair included Councilor Ana Marie Palermo, Co-Chairman of the Local Council of the Filipino Family; May Castro, Public Relations Manager of SM Mall-Bacolod; and David Rey Villanueva, Area Family History Manager based in Cebu.
Ms. Palermo talked on the importance of families and linking the past to the future. She explained how families serve as the backbone of society. "There are so many threats now to family and society. This activity would somehow encourage and promote the strengthening of families,” she added.
Ms. Castro, PR Manager of SM, noted how the mall shares the Church’s focus on families. “This exhibit is something that is close to our hearts because it is about the family. We can find out more about our roots and ancestors and who knows, everyone here could be related! We are very happy to host this exhibit at SM-Bacolod.”
More than 100 volunteers offered their time and resources in setting up the exhibit, touring guests and teaching each visitor how to register to FamilySearch and know of its different features. Many were able to log in to FamilySearch and gather information about their ancestors.
Media was also in attendance to cover the event. GMA featured the Family History Exhibit in its local news program.
