Community Storytelling · Hoboken, New Jersey

Voices of
Hoboken

The stories of our city.
Told by the people who lived them.
A Proposed Community Pilot  ·  Presented by Memoir
Memoir
Independent proposal by Memoir. City participation subject to approval.
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The Story Behind It

Some stories disappear
before we think to ask.

My mother passed away before I recorded a single conversation with her. Not because I didn't want to — I always meant to. I just kept putting it off, assuming there was more time.

I built Memoir from that feeling. The one every family knows — usually too late.

I had spent years creating DOGTV, a channel for dogs watched in millions of homes. But this felt more urgent: a way for anyone to sit down with a digital biographer on their phone, and finally tell their story.

"The people who hold our oldest stories won't be here forever.
Memoir exists so their voices don't have to disappear."
Ron Levi  ·  Founder & CEO, Memoir  ·  Hoboken, NJ
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Meet Memoir

A conversation with
a digital biographer.

Memoir connects people with a digital biographer on their phone — asking the right questions, drawing out the stories, and turning the conversation into a professionally produced audio story in their own voice.

"Built in Hoboken. Created to preserve
the voices that matter."
memoir.audio
How it works
01
Meet your digital biographer
On their phone, they're introduced to a digital biographer who guides the whole conversation — no preparation needed.
02
Share your memories
The biographer asks the right questions, drawing out stories — childhood, family, work, the neighborhood over the years.
03
Receive your audio story
A professionally produced chapter, in their own voice, to keep and share with family.
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The Community Idea

Help Hoboken's stories live on.

Invite to participate
  • Longtime residents
  • Seniors
  • Veterans
  • Local business owners
A potential collaboration with the Hoboken Historical Museum and the Friends of the Hoboken Public Library — presented here as potential partners, pending their interest.
Story themes
Growing up here.
Arriving here.
Building a business.
Serving the community.
Watching the neighborhood change.
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Memoir's Holiday Gift to Hoboken

100 stories.
By the end of the year.

The offer
  • 100 Hoboken residents, fully produced at no cost
  • One professionally produced audio chapter each
  • A conversation with a digital biographer on their phone — no equipment needed
  • A private copy for each participant and their family
  • Optional public excerpts, shared only with explicit separate permission
What Memoir asks in return
  • Help identifying and reaching the right residents
  • A channel to invite participation — senior centers, libraries, community boards
  • A listening event to close the year, if interest warrants it
Memoir covers all production. This is Hoboken's holiday gift — from us to the city.
Deadline
100 stories produced and delivered to Hoboken families before December 31.
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An Invitation to Explore

Let's preserve Hoboken,
one voice at a time.

Memoir
The digital biographer, the conversation platform, audio production, and participant support throughout the pilot.
Potential Community Partners
Help shape the project, invite residents, and explore a listening event or optional public collection.
The City
Help connect the appropriate people and explore suitable outreach channels to reach interested residents.
Suggested next step
A 20-minute conversation with the appropriate city, library, museum, and senior-services representatives — so we can begin before the holidays.
Ron Levi
Founder & CEO, Memoir
memoir.audio
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