September 15th, 2025, 12:00 PM MDT
Participants at the 2025 Scotland Convention in Pleasanton, California had the opportunity to learn more about their ancestors through family exploration while enjoying the festival.
According to the club’s website, the annual Scotland Convention is hosted by the Caledonian Club of San Francisco, “purposes to encourage and disseminate ancient customs, costumes, games, Scottish literature, music and art.” The club’s Scotland game, which began in 1866, is the oldest in California.
This year’s game took place at the Alameda County Fairgrounds from August 30th to 31st. And among the traditional music, dance and food was the family search booth.
FamilySearch is a family history website sponsored by the Latter-day Saints Church of Jesus Christ, offering billions of genealogy records and resources free of charge. Over two days, 45 volunteers spent dozens of people downloading the FamilySearch app to their phones, looking at family trees, and conducting on-site ancestor research.
Additionally, FamilySearch Booth provided a “Scottish Games relative” and participants were able to communicate with their relatives in the game as well.
Special guests in the game included Clanker Michael’s Chief Andrew Car Michael. He extended the invitation by email to all participants to participate in the “Scottish Convention’s Relative.” Consul Core Representatives of the UK, Ireland and Canada.
Lee Green, an advisor to the local temples and family history, said when someone is invited to learn more about the Savior’s work, the light of Christ will burn in the soul of that person, whether they accept the invitation or not.
“In this very meaningful sense, pure invitations will never be wasted,” Green said. “When volunteers spoke to visitors yesterday, I saw a lot of burning yesterday.”
Green and his predecessor, Bruce McLeod, reported many positive interactions with visitors to the Family Search booth.
“This whole event may be about FamilySearch, but I think it’s a lot more,” says McLeod.
“Frenzy support”
FamilySearch previously took part in the 2019 Scotland Games after Alan Smoot, the mobile engineering manager at FamilySearch, who connected with Elder John McClellen at a local synod.
Elder McClellen and his wife, sister Jessica McClellen, are currently missionaries of public and international affairs in San Francisco, California. Elder McClellen said he spent seven years as treasurer for Clan McClellan and was involved in the Scotland match throughout that.
When he and sister McClellen began missionary service, they proposed that FamilySearch be involved in the 2025 Scotland game.
From there, the Livermore California stakes and the Oakland Family Search Center were involved. “FamilySearch support was essential,” Elder McClellen said.
Rudy Wolf, who coordinated logistics support such as tickets and parking, added that the “great young missionaries” for the California San Jose Mission will also be helpful. Six sets of missionaries volunteered to greet and support FamilySearch Booth visitors throughout the two-day event.
“They made the work beautiful,” Wolf said. “They added young people (and) energy and were total joy.”
