Another caregiver role: Recording family histories

Over the years, my 91-year-old father has recounted quite a few interesting stories of family history and his life. I thought they were worth preserving, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to remember and recount them accurately – so about 10 years ago, with the help of my daughter Amanda, I set about recording them. I bought Pops a little cassette recorder, showed him how to use it, and then told him to just sit down and talk into the tape recorder whenever the mood struck him. With Pops, the best stories have always rolled off his tongue without prompting. An interviewer is extraneous, unnecessary and a positive hindrance. Every week or so, I would get the full cassette from him and give him another blank one. Amanda helped by transcribing the tapes on the computer. Eventually we had an accordion folder labeled “Pops Speaks” stuffed full of tape cassettes and transcribed stories. As with just about everything else, there’s now a Web site to complicate this process. It’s sponsored by a not-for-profit organization called Project StoryKeeper (storykeeper.org). The organization offers “storykeeper” training via downloadable video modules and one-year access to something called the Legacy Vault in the Treasury of Family Heritage (I assume it’s an online repository for family histories). There is a required $65 donation for individuals to access these resources, and you also can spend up to $29 to buy a “StoryKeeper Kit.” Each kit includes a list of sample interv...
Source: Caregiver Notes - Category: Caregivers Authors: Tags: Caregiver lifestyle Caregiver's role Caregiving support Senior Health Alzheimer's disease blog blogger caregiver blog family history Great Depression jeff muise parents pops recording history storykeeper.org Source Type: blogs