In lieu of flowers,
gift memories
Start a Lifeweb as a gift to a family, you can’t imagine its impact
Right after a loss, families can be overwhelmed by all the planning and people around. Starting a LifeWeb for their loved one means you can begin collecting memories on their behalf that they can then appreciate, when they are ready, as a beautiful gift.
This is a more of a gift than you can possibly imagine. Families cherish and deeply appreciate the memories shared on their person's LifeWeb, it's the closest thing to making a new memory with their person. They also deeply appreciate not being asked to play a major role in the process of getting the word out about the LifeWeb and curating it, at least until they are emotionally ready to do so. Starting a LifeWeb for them and allowing them to just take in the love and memories shared with nothing else to do is an immeasurable gift.
“Seeing all the stories from my husband’s co-workers has been an incredible gift, not just for me but also our young daughter. That was a big part of his life that we didn’t get to see.”
3 ways to give…
Start their lifeweb
Anyone can start a LifeWeb to honor someone in their life - a friend, co-worker, family member - there is no stopping the love. In fact, many LifeWebs are started by a friend or extended family member who are not busy with funeral planning logistics, or who have the emotional energy to kick things off.
GIFT ADDED SUPPORT
Gift a Premium Plan, which includes added features like a slideshow, a dedicated customer support person for the entire community sharing memories, and a year of personalized, text-based grief support for the gift recipient + 4 people to support them. You can purchase as a gift to the family or have many people chip in to participate in the gift. See FAQs below for more details.
Create a Memory Book
LifeWeb Memory Books are a gift that can be cherished and appreciated for generations to come. Work with your dedicated LifeWeb designer to create a beautiful book that captures and preserves your person’s legacy, then have it sent directly to the gift recipient. You can even have a handwritten note packaged alongside your gift.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I “hand off” the LifeWeb page to the family later?
Definitely, you can add as many admins as you’d like to help manage the LifeWeb page. Many people choose to start a LifeWeb for a friend or co-worker, begin collecting memories, and then eventually add an immediate family member of the person being honored as an admin for the page when they feel the time is right. Being an admin means having control over the privacy settings and customization of the page, like adding a welcome message, but does not come with additional work.
What privacy settings would you recommend?
You can choose from two different privacy settings. (Don’t worry! You can always change settings later, too.)
Community Mode: Anyone can view and post memories. LifeWeb names & obituaries will appear on Google and Bing so they’re easy for everyone to find!
Invite-Only Mode: Only people invited by an Admin can view and post memories. LifeWeb names and obituaries will not appear on Google and Bing so the pages remain private.
Community Mode is by far the most popular choice because it encourages more people to share memories as they can see the contributions from others to guide the way.
If you’re not sure, consider starting the LifeWeb in Invite-Only Mode, gathering memories, then inviting the family to view the memories and let them determine at that point if they’d like to switch to Community Mode.
Can multiple people chip in for this gift?
Definitely, this is a beautiful idea and very popular approach among the LifeWeb 360 community! Many groups have done one of the following options to allow many different people to contribute money towards a LifeWeb 360 gift. You can either:
Pay for your purchase and then collect payment from others that would like to participate in the gift via a peer-to-peer payment tool like PayPal or Venmo, or
Contact our team and we’ll set up a custom listing for you to allow different people to contribute towards the cost of the gift and track the overall amount raised
Can I purchase a gift certificate?
Absolutely! Any LifeWeb 360 gift can be purchased as a gift certificate to be redeemed by the family when they are ready, including LifeWeb Premium. Just note that your purchase is a gift when in checkout.
I’d like to talk with the family first, how do I explain what LifeWeb 360 is?
You can share this letter from our CEO Ali, which explains more about LifeWeb 360.
Resources & ideas to support a grieving friend
Watch this 4-minute video from Refuge in Grief on how to help a grieving friend.
Read this article on how to reach out to a grieving friend during social distancing. Starting a conversation with a grieving friend can be difficult on the best of days, and then, of course, enter COVID. Read this helpful guide from grief support guru Alica Forneret with considerations and tips on reaching out when you're stuck inside, "whether you jump right into the grief talk or just want to send along a few emojis."
Read this article 10 Ways You Can Support Someone Grieving During The Coronavirus Crisis from the Huffington Post.
Love big, you can’t go wrong.
Help make their loved one’s LifeWeb a success
Add 5 photos to their LifeWeb - We've found it's easiest for others to share vivid stories when they can first see something to jog their memory. If you can, take a moment to find the photos you have of their person. It's easier than you think! Instructions here to quickly find digital photos you have on Facebook, Google Photos, and how to scan printed photos.
Add at least 1 story to the LifeWeb - It's helpful to others to see examples of what types of stories they can share in the memorial scrapbook. From big life moments down to funny things they said, we want to encourage people to share any and all memories. You can demonstrate this to others by sharing a memory first to guide the way. If you're not sure where to start, try writing a memory about the person that makes you smile.
Find your cheerleaders to help you spread the word - Identify all the different "circles" of life that the person was a part of - work, hobbies, friends, etc. Try to identify a "captain" in each circle and ask them to spread the word to others in that circle.
Share the link to the person’s LifeWeb widely - Share via text, email, or Facebook with all those who may have a special memory to share. See sample messages for sharing via text or email here and on Facebook here.
As COVID-19 continues to disrupt daily life, some ideas on how you can strengthen connections during social distancing. Even though our norms surrounding grief have been upended, we still have ways to support and connect with the people in our lives.
Above all, remember that “social distancing” means practicing physical distancing, but not giving up our social connections. Let’s navigate this new life together.