The convention is amazing, in case you were wondering. We learned about everything from DNA testing to cleaning headstones. The presentations were phenomenal, and both of us came back with a renewed interest in family history.
We relied on the kindness of family to be able to attend. Our parents took turns taking care of the girls while we were gone, and we stayed at my aunt and uncle's home in South Jordan.
Ancestry had a booth where you could pick up a pin featuring the name of a random geographical location and try to find someone else with the same place name. If the two of you went back to their booth, you got to spin the wheel and pick a prize. Both Andrea and Seth found their twins and got prizes, but the really exciting part was that I received Pomerania for my area, which is exactly where my Wirkus relatives come from. You were supposed to return the pin when you got your prize, but I talked them into letting me keep it if I promised not to play the game again.
We met up with my old Scrollie friend Taralyn Parker for lunch on the first day.
The assigned "excited selfie" we were supposed to take and post as per the emcee's instructions during a main stage event.
Seth and his grandma's cousin, Reed Bartlett, at the FamilySearch booth. The Roots Tech app let you see which attendees you were related to at the conference.
Andrea eating lunch on a wall.
Andrea's entry for the Photo + Story competition was featured in the video recap shown during the final main stage event. The photo shows Grandpa Wirkus, his brother, his sister and his parents on the ship they sailed on to emigrate from Germany.