Sharing Sources: Life Journeys Media: A Legacy Resource
Life Journeys Media: A Legacy Resource
Embarking on legacy projects with clients is often a very rewarding aspect of working as a doula. The telling and recording of stories can bring people who are dying much joy at their end of life, as well as preserve their experiences and memories for their loved ones. But the project can feel overwhelming to some people. Recognizing this through her years of leading life storytelling workshops for elders, Naomi Grossman, CEO of Life Journeys Media, decided to create a product that would make it easier for people to preserve their legacies in a book and pass that on to other generations.
The LifeStory Challenge is an online guide that walks a person through a series of 36 questions, organized by chapter, that results in a beautiful life story book. The questions can be accessed through reading or listening, enabling those with sight limitations to participate. The six chapters are organized by life stage (birth and early years through to today) with six questions each. Users can upload images that correspond to prompts for each section. The final chapter, My Answers to Life’s Big Questions, encourages insights into a person’s ideologies.
“Capturing and sharing life stories is an incredibly powerful experience that deeply connects people, renews an elder person’s sense of importance, and empowers them to truly see their life for the amazing journey that it is,” Naomi says. As the book is created, a private webpage is also established for each person’s story. This can be shared with friends, family, and loved ones who may want to contribute elements. When the questions are completed, Life Journeys prints a bound book, and the site stays live after the book is published.