I had the privilege of helping a senior gentleman move from one Bay Area assisted living location to another. We moved his furniture, clothing, artwork and books. The most important thing we moved was a person, who was not present. We moved the things around Hugh that reminded him of his wife June. June Stoddart was a daughter, a wife and mother, and she had many roles in local theater productions. Her story lives on through her family and through a collection of 42 poems that I had the privilege of scanning and preserving for her family.  I have permission from June’s daughter to publish some poems by June Stoddart on my website. June signed some her poems with the name Joon Stoddart.

This experience with June and Hugh Stoddart and their family speaks to some of my core values and the reasons why I find organizing homes, offices and moves so satisfying. Scanning and preserving documents and photographs can give people more confidence that they have control over important information, especially if they have adequate data backups.

My philosophy was phrased so nicely by Alan Alda: “Listening is the ability to be changed by the other person”.