I feel very fortunate to live in a county where the people are very interested in History and genealogy. Our county has provided a room in the court house to house an archives of county records. Some money is provided but all of the help is volunteer. They are striving to clean and preserve all of the old records in acid free folders and provide copies that can be copied rather than so much handling of the old documents. There are volunteers who are entering into the computer all of the marriage bonds and license. Many of the records have been microfilmed and copies can be made from the film. The library is growing and this is a good solution for the county because the volunteers answer all of the inquires, letters and phone calls coming in from researchers. Naturally, the volunteers are interested in genealogy and history and the importance of sharing the same. I am sure that no one in our county would offer an original copy to anyone. The point that I am trying to make is that it is possible to save our heritage when the county and Genealogical societies and Historical societies all work together for a common good. I do know that there are efforts being made in the state of Tennessee to train volunteers in the preservation of old records. It just takes interest, and public evolvement. Hopefully, this idea could catch on all over the country if enough effort is made. Pat Hoffman