I love mother

In preparation for this week’s Family Photo Friday, I was going through my archival box of stuff to scan and found this tiny little scrap of paper. It was given to me by my sister. It was found among my Aunt’s things after she passed away.

This priceless treasure is a piece of a penmanship lesson my father did when he was a very small child. You can see his name is at the top, Joseph Barabino, then he proceeds to write “I love mother” several times.

This precious little scrap of paper is over 80 years old; my father would have been 90 this year.

I hope you will participate in my efforts to preserve these priceless pieces of family history by making a point to scan one photo from your collection every Friday. Share it, if you like, on my facebook page. If you are too private to share, please take part in any way you like to preserve your family history. It is so important.

Family Photo Friday

I am starting a little project in the hope that I can save some of you from the sorrow of lost family histories.

Those gorgeous old family pictures on paper are disappearing.

This morning I discovered, to my horror, that one of my favorite pictures of my precious dog Candy and myself when we were babies together was faded away, almost beyond repair. I rushed to my computer and discovered that I had another version already archived. (the image on the right) Thank goodness!
However, this does not make me much happier about the print that is now in need of major photoshop-ing.

This is happening all over, and I can guarantee it. In your home, your mother and father’s home, your grandparent’s home. We are all busy snapping the digital pictures and are forgetting that there is a treasure trove of family history fading away in a shoebox in a closet. (Actually they are a little bit safer there than in a frame on a shelf exposed to light, which is where my beloved Candy picture stood for years.)

I have an app called Shoebox by 1000 Memories that I have not used yet because I just pop my pics in the scanner. But for anyone who is scanner-less and Photoshop challenged, this is the ticket.

Don’t let these precious pieces of history disappear. Take a minute every Friday to scan an old family photo to preserve and share. I welcome you to join me on my facebook page and post your pictures. I will be putting one of my own up tomorrow morning.

I am REALLY looking forward to seeing those images. Don’t be embarrassed if they are not perfect; that is not the purpose of this project. The purpose is to use the technology we have available to ensure that our family history is preserved. Scan your old documents also…just don’t post those on facebook – too much info for crazy people to use improperly.

If you tweet, use this hash tag #FamilyPhotoFriday
See you tomorrow!