Moving membership records without complete address

Is there a way to move a record with only knowing the address. I know the city but do not have an exact address. My feeling is that ward would be best able to locate the member. We have tried all the steps but have been unable to get the complete address. Is there a way to do this?

Also, we have a member we heard moved to the Philippines but that is all we know. Any thoughts as to researching a member in another country? Thanks.

I would suggest performing the steps for "Address Unknown" and see if there isn't a comments field where you can add that information. Unless there is family who are members of that ward, I don't know as they would have any better luck finding them.

jensky wrote: My feeling is that ward would be best able to locate the member.

There are 5 wards in my little town which ward do you think would be best able to locate the member.

Apologies up front - this one touched a nerve...

I used to really hate it when I was ward clerk and a ward took the lazy way out and dumped membership records in our ward with no phone number, no street address, only a city. What did they expect us to do? Knock on 40,000 doors looking for someone who may or may not live here? Send the record out per the address information known. If you don't know where they moved to, follow the process to document the efforts and let CHQ sort it out - they have access to much more information (relatives contact information, etc) than the ward does.

That said, it is equally lazy to just check the boxes and not actually do the steps requested. I created an excel checklist that I now give to the HT when they report someone is no longer living in our ward and ask them to check off all their efforts before we pass it along to the new ward clerk.

davesudweeks wrote:What did they expect us to do? Knock on 40,000 doors looking for someone who may or may not live here?

In this day and age, I don't know as the new unit has access to any resources that the old ward does not. In most cases, all they can do is check with directory assistance. (And hope they have a land-line.) But the old ward can do that too.

There might be exceptions - perhaps if the member is known to be attending a certain school or stationed at a specific military base. But only if that information survives the trip though CHQ to the new ward.

russellhltn wrote:There might be exceptions - perhaps if the member is known to be attending a certain school or stationed at a specific military base. But only if that information survives the trip though CHQ to the new ward.

Well, that would narrow it down to seven wards in two stakes around here! [grin]

The key is to do everything you can do at the current location, then send any information you have with the record as you send it out without an address. I have not done it in a long time. Is there still a comment box?

I have two members both brothers.
I have attempted to move their records to their corresponding locations; Lejune and Okinawa USMC
If I remember correctly their is only one ward at each location.
Do we have a military liaison which can help us move their records.

Look up the ward using the meetinghouse locator. Or call the military relationship office.

From what I've been told, it's no longer possible to move someone out to another ward without an address. If true, then knowing the ward isn't enough.

Russell my guess would be that all Stan has is a PO Box especially if these guys are single and live in a barracks or in the case of the one in Okinawa it would only be an PO Box in the base post office. It may also be at this point all he has is a Base and unit name. So he is trying to get it to the correct military ward in the area. Once there the ward can chase them down through the PO number. If they are active members then the ward where they are will request their records which would be best if at all possible. It may be best for Stan to just wait a couple of months and see what happens, especially if they are just moving.

Thanks Gary and Russell,
I too was in the USMC and was stationed in and out of the Barracks of 8th & I SE DC. I realized in reflection, I wish I'd have been more proactive for these young Marines. For some, The Marine Corps has a way to cause much pondering. I hope to be able to reach these two Marines prior to their enlistment is up. I know I was very excited to meet fellow Marines most higher in rank, but it help calm my nerves and provide better insight and direction for me.

Do either of you know how to contact a LDS Military liaison ??

Have you looked at CDOL to try to identify the units that would be responsible for these members? Searching CDOL for Okinawa yields some pretty obvious choices. You might need to do a little more digging to find that appropriate unit for Camp Lejeune. An email to the leaders of the appropriate unit will probably help you solve your problem.

Another option it to call the records department at Church Headquarters. The maybe able to provide you contact information for these serviceman's parents who you could contact to get their addresses. Due to privacy information you may only be able to find out what unit the parent's records are at. In which case, you could contact the ward clerk in that unit to help you get their information. Having been a clerk in a military ward it can be tricky but if you think out of the box you will find a solution.

stanbutler wrote:Thanks Gary and Russell,
I too was in the USMC and was stationed in and out of the Barracks of 8th & I SE DC. I realized in reflection, I wish I'd have been more proactive for these young Marines. For some, The Marine Corps has a way to cause much pondering. I hope to be able to reach these two Marines prior to their enlistment is up. I know I was very excited to meet fellow Marines most higher in rank, but it help calm my nerves and provide better insight and direction for me.

Do either of you know how to contact a LDS Military liaison ??

An e-mail address for the Military Relations department is available here: https://www.lds.org/callings/military-r ... s?lang=eng
You don't need to log in to see this. If you cannot find what you need through the other suggested methods, this might help.
Before I deployed to the Persian Gulf last year, I could not figure out from LDS Maps who handled the LDS members on base - this is how I got my answer and they provided the current deployed Branch President for me to contact with questions.