A
family photo album that’s been passed
down for generations. Your grandparents’
naturalization records. An 8mm film of
your wedding. You have been meaning to digitize
the items — but you don’t have the right equip-
ment, and the companies that do this
work are expensive. So, you ignore
that box of family history and prom-
ise yourself “soon.”
If this story sounds familiar to
you, then soon is now! The Joan
Meyers Jampel Center for Michigan
Jewish Heritage is holding its annual
Community Digitization Day on
Sept. 23 from 3-7 p.m.
In an effort to help the Detroit Jewish com-
munity preserve their family legacy, the Jampel
Center has created a Community Digitization
Station (CDS) that is open to the public and free
of charge. The CDS provides equipment that will
help you digitize materials from documents and
photographs to VHS and cassette tapes, 8mm
and Super 8 film, audio reels, vinyl records and
more. While the CDS is open year-round, users
must have knowledge to use the equipment
independently.
But not to worry! On Community Digitization
Day, users can sign up for a one-hour appoint-
ment with an archivist to assist them
in using the CDS. “Our hope is that
with a lesson, the user can then
come back and use the CDS on their
own,” says Laura Gottlieb, director of
Cultural Resources at Temple Beth
El and partner in the Jampel Center.
“It is like the saying ‘teach a person
to fish’ but on Community Digitization Day it is
teach them how to digitize!”
It’s a win-win for both the users and the larger
community. As a condition of using the CDS,
the Jampel Center is allowed to maintain a dig-
ital surrogate of any digitized item, if it fits into
the collection policy of preserving the history
of Jewish Michigan. “Not only do users get to
ensure their family history is safe, but we are
also able to grow our collection and add pieces
to the puzzle of this incredible community,”
Gottlieb says.
Spots are limited, so registration is required.
To view the guidelines for using the CDS and
register, visit jlive.app/events/8667.
To learn more about the Joan Meyers Jampel
Center for Michigan Jewish Heritage, visit
mijewishheritage.org.
Robbie Terman is director of the Leonard N. Simons Jewish
Community Archives.
Jampel Center’s Community Digitization Day returns Sept. 23.
Gather Your Family Archives!
Laura
Gottlieb
Robbie
Terman
Special to the
Jewish News
OUR COMMUNITY
24 | SEPTEMBER 5 • 2024
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COURTESY OF FEDERATION