A fresh take on online memorials

It may now be possible to add digital data to a traditional cemetery marker, but that’s not necessarily the same as creating a full-fledged online memorial. Aiming to enable the latter, 1000Memories provides a place for friends and family to gather and remember deceased loved ones. To create an online memorial, users of 1000Memories begin by customizing a homepage for the deceased, including a full-screen photo. They then invite family and friends to the site, where a dedicated page allows everyone to see all the activity there so far. Stories and memories about the deceased are easily shared on the site, as are photos from a variety of sources. An online guestbook, meanwhile, lets all visitors leave a brief note to share their thoughts and feelings. 1000Memories even allows users to start a project in someone’s honour or direct donations to a favorite charitable cause. While the field of online memorial services is a crowded one, many of those sites were clearly created in the early days of the web. With its fresh design and more current feature set, 1000Memories sets itself apart and could attract a sizeable audience. Using 1000Memories is currently free, and it appears that’s not likely to change: ultimately, San Francisco-based Hampshire St. Experiment—the startup behind the site—is considering creating and selling print books of the content on individual sites, according to a report on TechCrunch. Who will step up as partner to help make that happen…? (Related: From online baby blogs to printed baby books.) Spotted by: Margarita Barry