CherishFamily launches Abuela Story Challenge for Hispanic Heritage Month

CherishFamily is asking families to record one grandmother’s story in her own voice before Día de los Muertos on Nov. 1-2. The push taps Hispanic Heritage Month and aims to preserve family memories before they are lost forever.

Why it matters: - Families risk losing personal history when stories, voices and memories are never recorded. - The campaign is timed to Hispanic Heritage Month and the approach of Día de los Muertos on Nov. 1-2. - CherishFamily is framing the challenge as a way to preserve a grandmother’s voice, not just her words.

What happened: - CherishFamily announced the Abuela Story Challenge on Sept. 29, 2026. - The challenge invites families to record one story from a grandmother in her own voice, in English or Spanish. - The prompt encourages families to capture a recipe, a childhood memory or the story of how the family came to the U.S. - Families can join at cherishfamily.com.

The details: - Co-founder David Santulli said the mission is personal because his mother died when he was 14 months old and he does not remember the sound of her voice. - Santulli said his 96-year-old father shares stories about growing up as an Italian American during the Great Depression. - Santulli said the company was built so families would not lose those voices forever. - Santulli also pointed to October’s Italian American Heritage Month as another reminder for families to ask an elder one question and record the answer. - CherishFamily was founded by Santulli and his son Tristan. - The platform lets parents, grandparents and other relatives record stories through video, audio or writing. - CherishFamily supports English, Spanish, German, French and Portuguese. - All content is encrypted and shared only with invited family members.

Between the lines: - The campaign blends cultural heritage with a broader message about family memory and digital preservation. - By centering an abuela, CherishFamily is using a familiar family role to make the challenge feel personal and easy to act on. - The multilingual and private design positions the platform for families that want to preserve stories without making them public.

What's next: - CherishFamily is encouraging families to take the challenge before Día de los Muertos. - The company is also signaling a broader push around heritage months and intergenerational storytelling. - Families can use the platform to record stories in the language that feels most natural to the speaker.