Tech Forum

I would appreciate getting feedback on an issue that I know must plague many wards. In reviewing the list of our Young Single Adults, our Relief Society President has pointed out several she understands have moved out of the ward. These individuals are members of inactive families, so the ability to get their new address/phone information has been difficult (and yes, the leadership has tried).

To this point, we've left the membership records of these individuals with their families. This poses a dilemma with the organization leadership, as they have names on their rolls they feel accountable for, but have no way of contacting. This also has them wondering what to do each quarter when reporting attendance.

Under normal circumstances, these membership records would simply be transferred out of the ward with an unknown address -- I'm concerned that action may result in unecessary efforts by the church that would simply result in the records coming right back to our ward. I'm trying to identify what would be best for both the member and organization in this situation, and will appreciate thoughts on how others have dealt with this.

ericb wrote:Under normal circumstances, these membership records would simply be transferred out of the ward with an unknown address -- I'm concerned that action may result in unnecessary efforts by the church that would simply result in the records coming right back to our ward. I'm trying to identify what would be best for both the member and organization in this situation

I'd say follow the "normal circumstances". If there's a comment area, add comments that the member is no longer in the ward and the parents will not divulge the address. Hopefully this will minimize the number of them that come back.

Unless you think the member may return, or the parents will be cooperative in the future, I see no point in retaining the membership records in your ward. It's not benefiting the ward, the church and most of all it's not helping the member.

You may want to jot down the membership record number and name in case you do get some good information in the future.

RussellHltn wrote:If there's a comment area, add comments that the member is no longer in the ward and the parents will not divulge the address. Hopefully this will minimize the number of them that come back.

Thanks for the feedback - including comments when moving out the record is a good thought.

RussellHltn wrote:You may want to jot down the membership record number and name in case you do get some good information in the future.

Since the son/daughter membership info is available on the parent's membership information, we would have that reference available if needed.

ericb wrote:Since the son/daughter membership info is available on the parent's IOS information, we would have that reference available if needed.

You may want to verify that before moving them out.

ericb wrote:Since the son/daughter membership info is available on the parent's IOS information, we would have that reference available if needed.

No, not from the IOS. But, the bishop or ward clerk could obtain the information from the actual membership record.

lajackson wrote:No, not from the IOS. But, the bishop or ward clerk could obtain the information from the actual membership record.

Sorry, that's what I meant...I corrected my previous post.

RussellHltn wrote:I'd say follow the "normal circumstances". If there's a comment area, add comments that the member is no longer in the ward and the parents will not divulge the address. Hopefully this will minimize the number of them that come back.

Unless you think the member may return, or the parents will be cooperative in the future, I see no point in retaining the membership records in your ward. It's not benefiting the ward, the church and most of all it's not helping the member.

You may want to jot down the membership record number and name in case you do get some good information in the future.

While I agree in general with Russell on this, you should consult with the Bishop on each of these cases on an individual basis.

There have been times in our ward where, even when the new address was known, the records stayed with the parents at the bishop's request. Personally, I didn't always agree with this decision, but it's the bishop's call.

Greggo wrote:There have been times in our ward where, even when the new address was known, the records stayed with the parents at the bishop's request. Personally, I didn't always agree with this decision, but it's the bishop's call.

Actually, it's not the bishop's call. According to the Handbook, for records to be in a ward that is not the ward of residence (other than temporary situations, of course) requires far more approval than just the bishop. I don't have a handbook handy to give you the page number, but it's easy enough for the bishop to look up.

Alan_Brown wrote:Actually, it's not the bishop's call. According to the Handbook, for records to be in a ward that is not the ward of residence (other than temporary situations, of course) requires far more approval than just the bishop.

I think such a request actually works it way up to the First Presidency.

But either way, keep in mind that by sending the records to Church Headquarters without a forwarding address isn't the worst thing in the world. The Church has a whole fleet of employees and service missionaries dedicated to finding members who have landed in "Address Unknown." These people have much more contact information at their disposal than you ever could as a ward clerk to find where these people currently are. They will contact parents, siblings, children, aunts & uncles, grandparents, etc., until someone knows where they are.

It is most definitely not a shame to pass the burden on to them if you've done all you can and need to focus on other local matters.

One more thing to consider. In the MLS help file it says "If the member will be gone less than three months, do not move the record."