A Great App In The Works –

Storied: Capture & Share Family Stories

Here is a portion of a letter I received from Kathleen Larson, one of our readers.  I thought it was worth passing along to all of you to check out too!

My father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s over three years ago. Long before his diagnosis, he and I would spend hours together poring over old photos and he would tell me stories about them. Last year, when his Alzheimer’s took a significant turn for the worse, I chose some of those photos and used them to make a photo book/mini-memoir to give to him for Christmas. My hope was that it would help him keep a grasp on some of his special memories. He loves his book, and sharing it helps him to participate in conversations, even now, when the disease has made that very difficult.

My brother-in-law, Eli Woolery, saw the effect the photo book had on my father, and he used the idea as a jumping-off point to develop an app for the iPad that makes it easy to record, right on the spot, the stories (and photos that go with them) that get told when family and friends get together and start looking at photos. He’s devoted his work this year to developing the app to help others who might be looking for ways to help their loved ones hold on to their memories.

The basic app—which is fully functional, but without the option of fancy background soundtracks and such—is going to be free, and Eli and his partner, Rylan Peery, are working hard to get it out this fall. The video on their Kickstarter campaign page can give you an idea about what the app is, and how it works. In addition to using it as a sort of reminiscing aid, it can also be used in other digital storytelling projects and presentations.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/elijahwoolery/storied-capture-and-share-family-stories