Would you like obituary listings in The Cascadian? Here’s how

Greetings from your lead editor! I know I’ve been quiet – nose to the grindstone and all that. Please know I love all the stories you are sending us. And I love the comments that very often bring interchange and not just conflict.

I haven’t asked for volunteers lately because I’ve still been trying to figure out this platform. Before I make a plea, here’s job one for The Cascadian: Please, if you know of a viewpoint or news that should be shared, let the source know how to get the information to us: https://thecascadian.com/share-your-story/ We love the voices we’re getting, and we’d like more.

OK, so let’s do a check-in. I’ve settled into a routine. I read through many dozens of posts and make changes as needed. Sometimes I need to ask followup questions or seek things out – usually that has to do with content that doesn’t have all the needed elements, or simple gaps like that.

But the volunteer editing time adds up.

So that’s my way of saying, I need some help if we’re going to have some features of The Cascadian. One of those is obituaries.

To gather obituaries for our area, one has to monitor 13 websites. I have the list, courtesy of the awesome Suburban Times publisher Ben Sclair. He used to publish the name of the deceased, with a link to the funeral home or other entity with full information.

Ben was a big believer that our new platform should automate as much as it can, so no one burns out. That’s why we use the wonderful content form I just reminded you of. But obituaries are different, with those 13 different websites that need consistent visits.

I’ve looked at how we could try to automate the process using Internet scrapers and AI. I’m concerned that any solution will take as much time for me to proofread and correct as it would to just get the right information in the first place.

I’m looking for 1-2 people who would be willing to check the sites and just list new people relevant to our area. We would just list the names; the actual obituaries appear on the funeral home sites.

It’s not rocket science, but the gathering would take commitment and time. I would really prefer to not start publishing obituaries and then have to drop them a month later, though I guess that’s better than nothing.

If you’re interested, drop me a line at [email protected], and I could share next steps.

If no one steps forward, that will tell me obituaries aren’t a community priority right now for us. And that’s okay. But if they matter to you, and you’d like to see them here, this is your chance to make them happen.

So please consider stepping up if you can commit to unpaid but real community journalism. Let me know if you’re interested!

Full obituaries always welcome

I should add – if you know someone who’s passed away, and you’d like an account of their life to appear in The Cascadian, I sure hope you know what to do. Because we’ve shared this link like 4000 times! https://thecascadian.com/share-your-story/

And you can share an obituary, with a photo, every bit as much as you can share a club activity or news event. We love content about local people.