Audio Journals Bring Memory to Life

Massachusets Lowell Sun - November 4, 2008 - Heather Hill

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but sometimes it's nice to capture those words as well. A new service called LifeOnRecord offers up a simple way to preserve everyday stories and special memories, right from your phone.

Working as a sort of voicemail for personal sentiments, the LifeOnRecord service provides users with a toll-free number to which they -- and/or their friends -- call in and share their stories. As recordings are captured, the account holder may play the pieces online or via iTunes and select those they wish to keep. Recordings may then be downloaded to a computer, or bundled by the service onto a keepsake CD.

"I created LifeOnRecord because I felt like there was a need to preserve the day-to-day stories of my family's life," says founder Alaa El Ghatit. "I was a busy professional with four young children. Although we would bring out the digital camera for birthdays and holidays, I felt like my family was really defined by their daily interactions and the resulting stories. These poignant moments weren't being captured, and to me they conveyed much more than a photograph or a few minutes of video taken here and there."

For a flat rate of $49.99, the LifeOnRecord Events package allows any number of callers to phone in for up to 30 minutes at a time, sharing memories, funny stories or family history. Subscribers create a personalized message for callers, explaining the recordings' purpose with suggestions to get them started. Callers phone in on their own time at no charge and have the opportunity to approve or re-record their missive. Requiring no technical expertise other than dialing the phone, the service is doable for callers of any age wishing to commemorate a birthday or anniversary milestone from anywhere in the U.S. or Canada. Downloading is free, or you may opt to be mailed a CD for $14.99.

The wedding package offers all of the above, three keepsake CDs, and the promise of replacement CDs should the originals become lost or damaged. The company pitches this option (at $84.99) as a unique alternative for more creative RSVPs, or a way to include others in private ceremonies or destination weddings.

Those wishing to capture the day-to-day happenings can opt for monthly chronicling in the form of audio journals. Prices begin at $9.95/month. Journals are kept private and password-protected.