www.archden.org 108 Years of Service to the Gospel Volume LXXXIII – No. 15 APRIL 16, 2008

POPE PASSION

PHOTO BY JAMES BACA/DCR

UNDER the benevolent gaze of Pope Benedict XVI, Good Shepherd School fifth-graders, from left, Steven Tointon,Natalie Vermeyen, Caroline Landry and Tommy Coughlin look at a book about the late Pope John Paul II. The stu-dent’s have been studying about the Church hierarchy and the papal office. Read “Fifth-graders reflect on PopeBenedict XVI’s typical day, duties” on Page 3.

Happy Birthday B16

Welcome, Benedict XVI

A pope of historic vision

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SENIOR RESOURCE DIRECTORY

Saving history,one person ata time

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SPECIAL RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Special people shine at annualMass with Archbishop Chaput

LETTERS

Grandparents are precious resource for families, pope says

PAPAL VISIT

Pope says he wants tobring amessage ofhope to theUnited States

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200 faithful from archdiocesetraveling to see the pontiff

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Denver seminarians journey inhope to see Pope Benedict XVI

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Cardinal Stafford: BenedictXVI’s reflections should helpAmericans during elections

PHOTO BY ROBERT LINN

ARCHBISHOP’S SYMPOSIUM

NUMEROUS CHALLENGES FACE HEALTHCARE OF ELDERLY, EXPERT SAYSPAGE 2

BULLETIN BOARD

Denver Catholic Medical Association Mass & Meeting; Annual ModestyFashion Show; Lecture: Pope Benedict and Islam; Marriage Encounter

Weekend; Seminarian Play: ‘A Man for All Seasons’ PAGE 13

NICHOLASCOMMERFORDof St. ThomasMore Parish isthanked byArchbishopCharlesChaput, O.F.M.Cap., for a giftpresented tothe prelate bythe SpecialReligiousEducation community.

CNS PHOTO/ALESSIA GIULIANI, CATHOLIC PRESS PHOTO

PHOTO PROVIDED COURTESY MEMOIRS BY DESIGN

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WEIGEL

BY NANETTE RANDALL

Most of us have warm memoriesof stories we heard when we wereyoung. Spun by the voices of ourspecial loved ones—father, moth-er, grandparent—we often tookthem for granted. We thought wewould hear the voice, the story,and the tempo forever. Such is thecase when we think of a loved one’sface, smile and scent, so clearlyetched in our minds.

Suddenly 20, 30 or 50 years pass.Ever so quietly and without warn-ing, we realize that we are nolonger able to hear or rememberthe details of who said what. Timehas stolen the memory and clarityof the voice and the stories.

How might we recall treasuredstories and family history as inthe days of our youth? The an-swer—document the story beforeit is gone.

Every day, the voices of lovedones are silenced by disease, ill-ness and death. Sometimes the si-lence is premature; other times,the silence seems as if it has beenthat way for decades. Voices, oncevibrant and alive, quickly morphinto lost life statistics. Even withtoday’s technology, unrecordedstories are buried stories.

Think of life as an open treasurechest. Suddenly, without warning,the chest closes, locked and key-less. It gives us just a small sense oflosing a family’s legacy. We canchange the course of history, pre-serving family stories and memo-ries, when one individual—anadult child, a grandchild, afriend—realizes the power of thestorytelling process and begins theprocess. When a generous story-teller leaves his memoirs, then thehistory, the knowledge and experi-ences remain.

Before deciding to write yourstory, consider signing up for amemoir writing class or ask a fam-

ily member to help you, especiallyif you have worries about time orability. Decide whether to write inchronology or short story chap-ters. Find old letters and recipesand write what you recall. Think ofold stories passed down and writewhat you recall. Extract picturesand memorabilia from scrap-books. Most important, work onyour project with humor and love.

If genealogy interests you, dosome basic research by visitingthe Web site: www.cdc.gov/nchs(National Center for HealthStatistics) or www.family-search.org. Dig up old photosand use them as memoryprompts at family gatherings.Record what you hear and whateveryone says. Typically, whenone person reminisces, othersjoin them. Hire someone tovideotape the recordings.

When a finished book is whatyou seek, hire a professional in-terviewer and writer to do it withand for you. A memoirist has ex-pertise in developing the perfectquestions and specializes in storysharing and recording. Look forsomeone who makes the inter-views comfortably conversation-al. Expect to devote a few hoursor longer working together. Buildtrust. Keep the timeframe openfor sharing. Seek expert help intranscribing, story writing, edit-

ing and printing. Find and in-clude old photographs. Realizethat an individual’s story is likeleaving a bit of inheritance aheadof time. See it as a family heir-loom that, once organized andtranscribed, will become an un-believable story treasure.

Like every life, each person’s spinon life is uniquely different andwonderful. Not surprisingly, thestories and testimonies fromCatholic men and women providecaptivating inspiration to theirfamilies. Life memoirs give fami-lies insight about how a loved oneovercame hardship or loss. Theyspeak about perseverance and joy.They speak to the ways that chal-lenges, grace, and learning devel-op strength and courage. Theyspeak to our humanity. In somestories, there are detours. In oth-ers, faith never wavers. Faith car-ries people through storms, trials,and tribulations. Family membersare often emotional after reading alife memoir, but are grateful tohave such a treasure.

Nanette Fimian Randall is an ex-perienced interviewer and writer,specializing in oral histories andstories. She provides transcription,writing, photography, editing andbookbinding services and may becontacted at 303-885-3790 orwww.memoirsbydesign.com.

DENVER CATHOLIC REGISTER l APRIL 16, 2008 SENIOR RESOURCE DIRECTORY l 9

Saving history, one person at a time

PHOTO PROVIDED COURTESY MEMOIRS BY DESIGN