I visited the Family Discovery Center and made a great new discovery

When Larry and I went to Salt Lake City for RootsTech 2015, we arrived 2 days before the conference started. That gave us time to visit relatives and gave me time to shop at Deseret Book and attend a tour of the new Family Discovery Center that FamilySearch has built in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building east of Temple Square. 

As I waited for the tour to start at 10 am that Wednesday morning I was greeted by Shari Mehling Stone and her friend. It was coincidence that Shari was there at the same time. I met Shari at last year's RootsTech. Her great granduncle's daughter Mary Mehling married my great grandfather, George Koleber in 1931.  

Shari Mehling Stone is 3rd from right in the green sweater.

Shari is reviewing the Mehling information provided at this
display in the Discovery Center. 

After Shari and I visited awhile, another guest arrived for the 10 am tour. We recognized each other from Facebook! I met my new friend Michelle Ganus Taggart. 

I observed as Michelle visited a room that showed historical events about the locations where her ancestors lived.

As Michelle and I continued our visit in the Center, as all curious genealogists do, we shared information about our ancestral families. I told Michelle where I was living in Colorado and she told me her father's Ganus family had lived in Manassa, Colorado around the turn of the 20th century. This map shows the proximity of Manassa to my current residence of Canon City, CO.  

She was surprised to learn that my husband had ancestral connections to Manassa, Colorado too. This 1900 census below for Manassa, CO shows residents Aaron Hawkins and family.

This chart shows my husband's relationship to Aaron Hawkins.

Aaron Hawkins and Larry Jamison are 2nd cousins,
3 times removed.

It's so cool that I was able to personally get acquainted with Michelle in the "Discovery Center" and discover our family connections.