Blog

–Bradshaw

My friend Wendy recently gave me a copy of a cookbook put together by members of their old church when her mom and dad were alive. It contains recipes shared by her mother and other members of the congregation–including Wendy herself. I was flipping through the book and commenting on how it was like visiting these people from years ago–discovering dishes they more than likely made decades before they shared them. It made me wonder how many copies of the book ended up in the back of a closet, as this one had. How many families were unaware that these recipes existed in one place? Probably not many. It made me think of the possibilities of using a platform like Heiroom and how functional it could be for a church group to be able to do exactly what Wendy’s family did with that cookbook.

It sparked a lot of conversations about the people involved who are no longer here, like the amazing buttercream frosting a beloved member of the church always frosted her cakes with, or the songs the congregation used to sing every Sunday before they shared fellowship over some of these very desserts. Those are conversations that the owners of the book can't hear or interact with...but they could be, if they were shared on Heiroom. It's like having a memento that never stops…and can only continue to grow with each generation. 

It could be your grandparents’ 100th wedding anniversary and you’re thinking of making a meal to honor the many meals they shared together on special occasions. You can easily access the dessert your grandmother loved as a child when her mother made it - the recipe is right here in Heiroom, along with your grandfather’s favorite meal your grandmother used to make. No matter how many years pass you’ll have the ability to share these traditions with your children…and eventually their children. Books can get lost or damaged. Heiroom is forever. A living, interactive collection of mementos. 

Do you remember those warm sunny days when you might spend Sundays with your grandparents and they would take you to church with them? You got to go to bible study and have ice cream after. These were memories to be cherished for sure. Now you have children of your own, and those days seem like eons ago. You remember your grandmother used to have a weathered cookbook, its tattered pages freckled with handwritten notes and thumbprints from countless batches of cookies. The binding is conditioned by years of memorable moments created in her kitchen. You don’t know who ended up with that book or if it was thrown in a box for donation. 

You remember some of the desserts that would show up at church socials and even some of the people who brought them. You just can’t remember the recipes or what some of the dishes were called. You may have tried Googling each recipe but still came up short handed. Some of these recipes haven’t been made since the 1950’s. Remember authentic buttercream frosting made from scratch? Sometimes you can close your eyes and imagine yourself sitting next to your grandmother at one of the church picnic tables. You can feel the warmth of the sun, hear the chatter of conversation, and you can almost taste that buttercream frosting!

Heiroom is the catalyst for capturing those moments in time and preserving them in one place where they can continue to grow and be accessed by your family even long after you’re gone. Not only will the recipes be there, but the stories and photos that accompany them will make those moments feel alive to the families of the people who lived them. A true collection of living mementos.