Church Gifts British Prime Minister with Personal Family History
From left to right: Elder Clifford T. Herbertson, Area Seventy; Elder Patrick Kearon, Europe Area Presidency; Prime Minister David Cameron; David Rutley, MP; and Craig Whittaker, MP.
Article Highlights
- Elder Kearon of the Europe Area Presidency presented Prime Minister David Cameron with his personal family history.
LONDON
United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron received over six generations of his family history, together with detailed historical background, from representatives of the Church during a meeting at the Houses of Parliament on February 4.
David Cameron is one of several distinguished world leaders who have been given personalized copies of their family history. Previous government heads to be honored include U.S. President Barack Obama, former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, and previous president of Germany, Johannes Rau.
Making the presentation on behalf of the Church, Elder Patrick Kearon of the Europe Area Presidency said, “We are so pleased to be able to put together this family history record and present it to the prime minister and his family. We hope they will enjoy learning more of their heritage.” Elder Kearon was accompanied by Elder Clifford T. Herbertson, Area Seventy.
The meeting was also attended by David Rutley, MP, and Craig Whittaker, MP, who are members of the Church.
The carefully researched documents were prepared by specialists from the Church’s Family History Department, which administers the most extensive collection of genealogical records globally, including more than 5.7 billion names and 1.1 billion historic records available for free public access online via FamilySearch.org and through nearly 4,800 family history centers worldwide. Patrons can also build, share, and preserve their own family trees, photos, and stories online at the site.
From left to right: Elder Clifford T. Herbertson, Area Seventy; Elder Patrick Kearon, Europe Area Presidency; Prime Minister David Cameron; David Rutley, MP; and Craig Whittaker, MP.
There are 112 family history centers in the United Kingdom, all open to the public. The largest is located alongside the National Archives at Kew, West London.
David Cameron’s genealogy includes information about his ancestors who fought in the First World War, reflecting the Church’s work on World War I records, which includes computer indexing of millions of military documents.
The Church now has a membership of almost 190,000 in the UK across 334 congregations.
From left to right: Elder Patrick Kearon, Europe Area Presidency; Elder Clifford T. Herbertson, Area Seventy; and Prime Minister David Cameron.
