Ward Plan for 2026, etc.

I am saddened by the passing of President Jeffrey R Holland. His talks have always touched my heart in a special way. I will miss that. But he has been freed from the burdens of a failing body, and he has moved forward to join his beloved wife Pat in his new field of labor.

Temple Service
During 2026, let's take a fresh look at what we can do to help redeem the dead. We have a house of the Lord close to most of us. Let's reflect on the Psalmist's words "I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." (Psalm 23)

And what can we do to help others do eternal work in the temple too?

Temple and Family History Plan for 2026 
Each Ward or Branch Council should have a simple plan, to guide your efforts during 2026.
Maybe revise the plan you used in 2025 or create a new one.  (Link to the General Handbook)
Try to focus on helping specific families and individuals to progress rather than just numbers.
And use it in the agenda of your regular Temple and Family History Coordinating Meetings.
Please submit a copy to your High Councillor.

Members Submitting This Year
We encourage each person to print their own cards for temple ordinances. Why not just use cards printed by the temple or by a friend or relative? (Actually this accomplishes the same work, but changes the statistics. The Family History Activity Report uses these statistics to report how many members of the ward or branch are doing temple work during the current year. So, if Grandma prints 100 baptismal cards and gives 10 to each grand child, the statistic shows one person as doing temple work, rather than 10. This does not change the actual number of people doing temple work, just a convenient statistic that leaders may be using.)

Please register for RootsTech if you have not already done this.
Rootstech 2026, March 5–7, 2026 is the Church's big annual Family History Conference, co-sponsored by commercial partners such as Ancestry, My Heritage and Findmypast. We can attend online or in person. 
There are tons of classes and activities, so there is something for everyone. Meet Elder and Sister Rasband: https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/topics/latter-day-saint-sessions?icid=FS-00055635

Thank you for the invitation

Recently, some good friends invited me to come to the temple with them on the following Friday. I had not planned to go that week, as I drive very little, and the roads were bad, with snow and ice. I appreciated their kindness, and I followed-up on their invitation.

I used Ordinances Ready, which invited me to be proxy for Robert Neilson of Beith, Ayrshire, Scotland. He is my 7th Great Grand Father! I don't get many opportunities to be proxy for a direct-line ancestor. 

I was excited by the prospect.

On FamilySearch.org, I used the Temple menu to reserve a place in the 11 am endowment session. 

Our trip to the temple gave me time to visit and exchange stories with my friends, which I enjoyed. 

At the temple, I felt the Spirit as I was proxy for Robert, and I prayed that he would have the faith to accept my offering on his behalf.

After the session, I was greeted warmly by cherished friends that I see all too seldom. They expressed their love and appreciation for my late wife Judy, which touched my heart too.

Friends, thank you for your kind invitation to come with you to the House of the Lord. 

Bless you!

 - Bill Buchanan, Stake Temple and Family History Consultant

Sorting boxes and fixing old photos

 I am adjusting to life without my wonderful wife, who passed into Paradise on December 5, 2025.

I have been sorting boxes of old photos and documents, deciding what to do with the contents. These are things that we have kept, because they are attached to precious memories. Judy has sometimes joked about me being a "packrat" who keeps things that are no longer needed. But I suspect that she has said the same thing to her reflection in the mirror many times. 😀

Judy said that her career was to be a fulltime wife and mother. But Judy's family was more than her "career ", it has been her "purpose" and her "mission". I feel that way too. Our children's experiences have also been our experiences. As the children have grown up and left home, we have kept their ribbons and certificates and other awards and honors. And we have boxes of old photos. What will become of these when I move to the spirit world? 

My family history research can be found on various websites, but by far the most complete is at FamilySearch.org.

I will upload the best photos and documents to FamilySearch Memories where they can be enjoyed by future generations of our family.

I am somewhat of a photo fanatic. And I have been amazed at how easy it is to fix photos at MyHeritage.

Church members can get a free account with myheritage.com by using this link 
https://www.familysearch.org/en/access/myheritage (if they don't already have one), and use the link https://www.myheritage.com/incolor to quickly colorize black and white photos or restore the color of faded or discolored photos. And after doing this hundreds of times, I just discovered that the Enhance feature can often sharpen blurry photos to make them better. 

Maybe give it a try.

What are your plans for the special photos and documents that you have?

(NOTE: I am not sponsored by MyHeritage or any other commercial site.)

My wife Judy passed away on December 5th

 This is copied from the 8 December posting on my other blog: Bill's Genealogy Blog.

My wife Judy passed away on December 5th

My wife, Judy passed away on Friday December 5th. It is hard to lose someone who has been your sweetheart and best friend for 57 years. But I feel that my loving Father in Heaven has been preparing me for this time.

On April 21, Judy suffered a stroke and could no longer live at home. I have been able to ask for her suggestions to prepare meals, do cleaning, laundry, dishes, and so forth.

Every day I have tried to visit her for an hour or two. The amazing thing is that we have drawn closer during these visits than spending the whole day living in the same apartment doing our separate activities. Our marriage for time and eternity has become increasingly precious to us.

In recent weeks her health has declined, and on Monday December 1, she was transferred from continuing care to the Misericordia Hospital.

When I visited her on Wednesday December 3, she said "Let's go over my funeral program." So I took notes as she told me what hymns she wanted, and who should offer the talks and prayers. 

As I was driving home from visiting her on Friday December 5, I had a phone call from the hospital saying that Judy might not survive, and to notify the family.

I did this, and Laurel and Chris invited me to ride to the hospital with them.

Blaine was the first to visit Judy; followed by Andrew's family; then our granddaughter and her children; then James; Laurel, Chris and me; then Evelyn and her children; and Rob and his daughter.

James asked Judy if she was in pain and she said "No. I am at peace." I asked if she would like a priesthood blessing and she said "Yes" I asked who she would like to anoint and she said "James", I asked who should seal the anointing, and she said "You." In the blessing I asked Heavenly Father to help her in her transition to the spirit world, whether now or at a later time.

Her eyes flickered open occasionally but, usually she seemed to be asleep.

We visited among ourselves for a while and then left.

Before we reached home, I had a phone call from the hospital saying that Judy had passed away peacefully about 8 pm.

Each of us will die sooner or later, I am glad that in Judy's case it happened peacefully in her sleep. And in her final minutes here, she was surrounded by her family expressing their love for her. And I am grateful for the tender mercies of God that I have personally experienced over my lifetime.

Through the grace of Jesus Christ, I look forward to spending eternity with this amazing woman who has been my friend and companion through most of my life.