How to Find Family Names to Take to the Temple Using Tools in FamilySearch

This post is designed to help individuals and families prepare family names to take to the temple using Family Search. For a great video overview of the process of preparing names for temple ordinances, click here.

The rest of this post provides details on two of the more basic ways you can find family names to take to temple.

METHOD ONE - Using FamilySearch to find names that are already in your immediate tree.

Step One: Log into FamilySearch. (Click the following link to learn how to create your FamilySearch login.)

Step Two: Click on the "Temple" tab at the top of the screen and select the "Opportunities" option from the pull-down menu. You will be taken to a new page and after a few minutes the website will update the numbers at the top of the screen to show all of your temple work currently in process.

If FamilySearch finds any temple ordinances in your family tree within your first five generations of ancestors, they will show up under the "Opportunities". (Note the 7 Opportunities shown in the above screen capture.) Click the "Opportunities" tab to display a list of all the names in your family tree that are all ready for you to take to the temple.

Step Three: Click the following link for detailed instructions on what you need to do to reserve those names and prepare them to take to the temple.

Method One shows the easiest way to find the low-hanging fruit already waiting in your family tree. If you were not able to find any opportunities using this first method, don't despair. Try the next method to see what names may already wait for you in more distant generations of your family tree.

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METHOD TWO - Using FamilySearch to find names beyond the first five generations of your ancestors.

The previous method only provides opportunities in your family tree looking back five generations from the individual logged into your family tree. Use this method to look for opportunities that are all ready for you to take to the temple that don't automatically show up in the previous method.

Step One: If you haven't already done so, log into FamilySearch. (Click the following link to learn how to create your FamilySearch login.)

Step Two: Click on the "Family Tree" option from the top of the page and select the "Tree" option to display your family tree. You should see your family tree with the starting point set for the person who is currently logged in to FamilySearch. (I like using the landscape mode option as highlighted in green in the following screen shot.)

On the right side of the displayed family tree there are gray arrows that indicate additional ancestors. Clicking on any of these arrows will expand the family tree to reveal the next two generations of ancestors from that couple (if additional information is available).

Step Three: Pick any line and expand your family tree looking for any green temple icons towards the right side of any displayed couple.

Note: The initial view of the family tree shows the root individual (their kids, if any, are on the left) and their parents and grandparents are on the right. Counting the root individual, the parents, and the grandparents make up 3 generations. Clicking on any of the arrows shown on the right will reveal two more generations (for a total of five generations). Any individual up through the fifth generation of ancestors should have shown up automatically using Method One stated previously.

Step Four: Click on any green temple icons you find to show any temple ordinances that may need to be completed. - Click the following link for detailed instructions on what you need to do to reserve those names and prepare them to take to the temple.

Note: As shown in the following chart, the different colors of the temple indicate different levels of progress. You are looking for opportunities highlighted by the green temple icon (shown in #2 below).

Note: Depending on your how familiar you are with FamilySearch, you could easily follow the yellow temple icons to provide additional information, rule out potential duplicated efforts, or research other options to convert many of the opportunities indicated by the yellow temple icons. Doing so would turn these yellow icons green and would create additional names you could take to the temple. However, it is beyond the scope of this post to provide any additional instruction on how to turn names highlighted with yellow icons into green opportunities.

If you were not able to find any opportunities using this first two methods, don't give up yet. There is another fairly easy approach to finding family names to prepare for temple ordinances. The next approach uses a sister-program of FamilySearch called Puzilla and is sure to uncover the names of many of your ancestors who are still waiting for their temple work to be completed.

Click the following link to learn how to Find Family Names for the Temple using Puzilla.org.