By Cathie Clarence
Families carefully save photographs, but we often forget to preserve the ordinary voices, stories, expressions and personality behind those pictures. A simple recording today can become something extraordinary decades from now: a child may one day be able to hear a great-grandparent laugh, tell a family story, say their name, or simply speak in their own voice.
That idea began for me with #finddadsvoice and has now grown into #findtherevoice™.
EVERY PLACE.
EVERY FACE.
EVERY RACE.
WORLDWIDE.
The message is simple: record the people you love. Save ordinary conversations. Ask parents and grandparents to tell their stories. Record family traditions, jokes, memories, advice and the sound of someone saying your name. Back those recordings up and share copies so they can travel safely through generations.
The idea has also grown into my family-memory and memorial-animation work. Families can send me a still photograph of someone they love, and I create a short remembrance video that gently brings the image into motion. My bigger vision is to help families preserve not only faces, but voices, stories and personality—so future generations can feel that they truly know the people who came before them.
I believe this message can connect with families in Malawi and around the world. I’m available for a remote interview from Canada and can provide photographs, examples and additional background.
Contact: iamcatclarence@gmail.com
Cathie Clarence
Orangeville, Ontario, Canada
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