What would it look like for a family to remember its story for over 600 years? I often hear family history stories and meet people who care deeply about their ancestors. At RootsTech, I met a member of the extended Karippaparambil family from Kerala, India. The earliest ancestor they have found is Valiaveetil Thommi. He settled in the Kanjirappally area in the 14th century. Since then, the family has kept a strong sense of identity. They have carefully tracked their descendants and built an...

Keerti's tree on Ancestry With the smell of her mom’s spices in the background, we met Keerti, an energetic teenager who is going places. She was interested in her family’s history, and we made a date to get her started. She set up a free Ancestry account and began building her tree immediately. She has plans to travel to India in a few months, so we did some brainstorming on what she could do to maximize her time with relatives there. App hints: Get the framework of the tree set, add photos...

A daughter has the forethought to ask her father about his life.