February 1999
The Director - Features
Online Memorials
The Wyoming FDA's Web site provides an alternative to newspaper obituaries
The Internet has allowed funeral service professionals to provide a new kind a service to their families. In addition to traditional newspaper obituaries, many funeral homes now offer to post online memorials on their Web sites. This new technology has allowed people who may be thousands of miles away to not only learn about the death, but to also express their sympathy to the family. And unlike newspapers which are quickly discarded, online memorials can be posted indefinitely.
Online Memorials—The Wyoming FDA's Web site provides an alternative to newspaper obituaries discusses why the Wyoming FDA, one of the first state associations to establish a Web site, decided to add online memorials to its site. The article explains how the association has enhanced its online memorials by adding register books, which allow visitors to "sign" their name and leave a message that goes directly to the family via e-mail.
The article was written by Curtis Rostad, CFSP, executive director of the Wyoming FDA. You can visit the Wyoming FDA's Web site at www.wyfda.org.
