ABOUT ONE PHOTO, ONE STORY
It began with my own family’s stories.
THE BEGINNING
The names and stories behind the photos
Before my father died, I sat down with him and went through his collection of photographs. I asked who the people were and lightly wrote their names in pencil on the backs. I’m so grateful we had that time. Without it, many of those faces might have remained a mystery to me.
I became the keeper of my parents’ photographs, documents, and keepsakes. I felt a responsibility to protect them, but also to share them with the rest of our family. The names my father gave me were a start. I wanted to preserve the stories and my own childhood memories too.
That’s why I began building our family website.
A website gave me a way to bring those materials into the digital world and share their meaning with my family. I can add a story when I remember it, move a section when I find a better way to organize it, and keep building as new pieces come to light. I can also choose to keep the site private and share access with family members.
My hope is to pass it on to my children. They’ll have more than a collection of files: they’ll have the stories I was able to tell about them, with room to add their own. It was also a way to have a second layer of protection if the original documents are lost or destroyed.
Why a website?
THE FORMAT
Why I started this work
THE STORY BEHIND ONE PHOTO, ONE STORY
I’m Wallis Alviar, a writer, video producer, editor, and former TV reporter who has spent years shaping stories through words and images. Building my own family website showed me how meaningful it can be to preserve the memories behind the photographs and keepsakes already in our care.
That experience grew into One Photo, One Story. In small, in-person workshops, I guide people as they begin building family story websites of their own. One photograph, letter, or memory is enough to begin.
I also work with people who would like me to create the website for them. Through interviews, I gather their stories, scan and organize selected photographs and documents, and build the site with their input. I can also photograph and document a personal collection.
Reporting for KRON the NBC affiliate in San Francisco .
Interested in working with me?
Whether you’d like to create or join a workshop, have me create your family story website, or document a personal collection, I’d love to hear what you have in mind.