An interview station can preserve voices, expressions, and memories that a family tree cannot. It should feel like a welcoming conversation, not an interrogation or a public performance. Plan for consent, comfort, sound quality, file ownership, transcription, and access before pressing record.
Create a calm and accessible space
Choose a quiet room away from speakers, food service, and children's activities. Provide comfortable seating, water, large-print prompts, and enough time for breaks. A phone on a stable stand with an external microphone can outperform expensive equipment in a noisy ballroom.
Use a two-person interview team
One relative should lead the conversation while another monitors sound, file names, consent, and timing. Record a short test and listen through headphones before the first full interview. Schedule twenty- to thirty-minute blocks and leave transition time between guests.
Useful prompts include childhood homes, family sayings, work, faith communities, recipes, migration, military service, neighborhood changes, celebrations, and the relatives who influenced them most.
Get meaningful consent
Explain what is being recorded, who may receive it, whether excerpts may be shown publicly, and how the person can withdraw permission. Offer choices such as family-only archive, reunion playback, or public historical use. Do not treat attendance at the reunion as recording consent.
Name, back up, and return the stories
Use a consistent file name containing the interviewee, date, and interviewer. Make two backups before leaving the venue. Create a transcript, return a copy to the interviewee or their household, and document any corrections. Preserve the original recording even when an edited highlight is created.
List interview appointments in the GatherKin itinerary and use an optional family question to identify relatives willing to participate before the reunion.
Frequently asked questions
What equipment is needed for reunion interviews?
A modern phone, stable stand, quiet room, power bank, headphones, and an optional external microphone are enough for a strong first project.
Do we need written consent?
Written or clearly recorded consent is strongly recommended, especially when recordings may be shared outside the immediate family.
How long should each interview be?
Twenty to thirty minutes works well at a busy reunion, with an option to schedule a longer follow-up later.