Just in time for Memorial Day! You can now immortalize your loved ones with your own loving tribute to them -- and know that it will be read so long as man can capture words from Cyberspace! USIGS - the United States Internet Genealogical Society -- is making space available in its Library for a memorial collection. To see what others have done, go to http://www.usigs.org/library/memorial/ or go to the USIGS home page (newly updated) -- http://www.usigs.org -- and trace its links, not only to the Memorial page but to other sites of interest. The Memorial Tribute Collection came about when a member was startled to find his local newspaper would charge $1000 for a picture and a memorial obituary of his father in law. He found that this charge may be high for those in smaller towns, but that newspapers generally charge from $45 to several hundred dollars for this service. USIGS will "publish" the tribute (including a picture) for a small fee of $25. A brief obituary may be posted for $5, an additional $10 for a picture (either black and white or color.) A newspaper is read today and discarded tomorrow, but an MTC page is planned to last in perpetuity, just as cemetery upkeep. Funds collected for the memorials will go into a designated fund, interest on which will be used solely for upkeep of the Memorial site. Think what a wonderful source the MTC will be for genealogists of the future! There, under each person's name, will be bits and pieces of the fabric of their lives, as remembered by their families -- the stuff that we all would be delighted to find today about our ancestors. This site is not just for the newly dead. You may remember anyone in your family -- here is where to remember what great stories Grandpa used to tell, what great cherry pies Granny baked. Here is where to point out that Dad had only an eighth grade education but he founded a business with 1082 employes. that Mom taught Sunday School for 28 years and made little ceramic figurines and dressed Barbie dolls. Here too can be remembered the youth who pitched Little League ball and was so proud of his new car that he was paying for by flipping hamburgers at MacDonald's until --- Well, you get the idea. This is not a place for family trees, although family members may be named. This is for personal recollections about someone who was once a living, loving person, not just a name on a family chart. It is a Memorial Tribute to your loved ones, as only you can make it. Check out the site today and start thinking about what you want to write. All the details and instructions are on site. And hey, let us all know when you have your story