Care Services Presents New Series

ALS United Greater New York proudly unveiled our new series, “Conversations With…,” earlier this year with two episodes. This series delves into the hard decisions and personal experiences of living with ALS. It is designed to address topics that are often sensitive and deeply personal that might not come up in regular support groups but provoke profound thought and questioning.

In our first and second episodes, hosts Nancy Brenner and Debbie Schlossberg introduce the theme of legacy storytelling, a powerful tool for preserving and sharing personal narratives. Their first guest, Natalie Bauman, is the owner and oral historian of The Digital Mosaic. She has dedicated her career to helping individuals, families, and organizations explore their histories, values, and legacies through storytelling.

Natalie shares a profound insight from her years of experience: “People rarely think their stories have value. I really can’t think of more than two or three people that I’ve interviewed over all these years who have not said, ‘Oh, well I don’t know who is going to watch these. It’s not that important.’ But time and time again, when we’ve lost some of the people we’ve interviewed, their family members treasure those videos almost more than anything. It becomes their life legacy. It becomes the story that future generations who never knew them will be able to tell their kids about.”

Founded in 2014, The Digital Mosaic has worked with numerous organizations and families to capture and preserve stories, ensuring that invaluable life lessons are passed down to future generations. Natalie’s work underscores the importance of storytelling in creating a sense of continuity and connection, particularly for those facing the challenges of ALS.

“Conversations With…” aims to provide a platform for discussions in areas that can be hard to talk about. We hope to bring to light important topics in planning for medical choices, end-of-life concerns, and challenges, while also offering support and empowering our community. We invite you to join us in this journey of discovery and connection.