My Danish Family History

As Glen and I were preparing to serve this mission to Denmark we had many challenges and trials during the process of getting ready to go.We figured that was to be expected as trials and challenges often arise when our intentions are good and we truly want to serve the Lord in a better way.  We just kept getting ready, though due to visa timing, we had a few more months wait than originally expected.

During one particular interview with our bishop, James Mitton, I was given a blessing to help me be more calm and reassured that everything would be ok while we were gone.  He reminded me that the blessing was from the Lord, that the mission call to Denmark was from the Lord, and that the Lord was pleased with our desire to serve.  Bishop Mitton pronounced many specific blessings upon me that have been a great strength to me while we have been gone this past year, but one particular part of the blessing has been on my mind the past couple of months:

     "Your father and family on the other side of the veil want you to serve in Denmark...and you will continue to help family on the other side of the veil..."

This part of the blessing definitely sounded like family history, but we wondered how that would be fulfilled!

Before my father died, he mentioned a few times that there was "work" needed on his mother's side of the family.  Both his father's and mother's families were Danish and had immigrated to America after joining the Church.  I loved my father dearly, and always remembered him telling me that his mother's line needed work.  He wanted us to remember that after he was gone.  As we began to learn about Family Tree, it appeared that much more work was done than expected, but things just didn't "feel right,"  and the Andersen and other family lines we were tied to didn't appear to be correct. As things have slowed down with some of our assignments for the summer, we wondered if and how we might get help with this while we were actually in Denmark.

The Lord brought Lise Ravn-Petersen, our ward Relief Society President to our rescue!  One evening after visiting with her and her husband, Ole, in their home, we mentioned that my family was Danish and we were trying to do a bit of family history while we were here, but had found some serious errors and didn't know how to proceed.  She asked for a couple of family names, and then went to work without  us even knowing it!

Lise has been wonderful in helping us learn about how to do research using the actual Danish records, and she quickly found records to get us connected to the correct lines of family to work on, and it has been a wonderful experience.  We have felt the Spirit guiding us forward, and though it has been frustrating and confusing with many of the errors we are trying to correct, it has been a blessing that we can truly feel.  Lise has found many names for us, and has helped find records that we would never be able to read in "Old Danish!"

Lise Ravn-Petersen bottom right, Danish Family History EXPERT!

My father, Alfred Westenskow

My father's father, Hans Westenskow, Jr.

My father's mother, Ane Christine Andersen

Ane Christine's father, Hans Andersen

Ane Christine's mother, Ane Chatrine Hansen

Ane Chatrine Hansen & Hans Andersen

My new hobby - My Danish Family History!
Elder Parker is way ahead of me on working with Family Tree, but he is a pretty good tutor, and we are always together, so he is readily available...  I am just glad he is also enjoying working with My Danish family history...

My Office, Kitchen Table

Elder Parker's Office, Bedroom Corner