A recent article from Forbes shows how one new company is aiming to keep family legacy alive through recorded storytelling, something that was once only available through recollection of past generations. Alok Deshpande started the company called Umenta and is the Chief Legacy Officer. Overcome with regret for not asking his late grandfather more questions about the significant moments of history that he had lived through, Alok set out to record the stories of our elders.
Family has become an ever important subject in the fast paced world we live in today, Umenta has merged the old fashioned custom of storytelling, with the new-age medium of communication–mobile apps. The app is called StoryCall, it works by asking questions to those who have a story to tell, to coax them into divulging details. Once the audio is recorded the “biographer” edits the clips into sound bites that family members have access to through a smart medium (smartphone, tablet, etc.).
Alok’s inspiration for this app? The National Public Radio StoryCorps project that features amazing storytellers on their Morning Edition. The interview process is often very emotional when families start opening up their history to their loved ones. The app is not live yet but it can be forthcoming. With this unique idea, many will want to interview the elders in their family, to get the juices flowing try asking some of the questions below.
Did you have chores to do as a child? What were your favorite and least favorite?
When was the first time you drove a car?
Who did you see when you went to your first concert and where was it?
What was the stylish things to wear when you were in school, how did you dress?
How were your beliefs and values different from your parents?
What did you see as social injustice in our society, did you protest or address them?
What was it like when your parents and grandparents aged?
Do you have any regret, if so, what?