Audio Heirloom

Your family’s stories deserve to be heard.

Professionally produced, private audio recordings that capture the voices and memories that define your family for generations to come.

What is an Audio Heirloom?

An audio heirloom is a professionally produced audio story that captures the voices, memories, and moments that define your family. Think of it as your family's own personal, private history podcast! A polished keepsake that preserves not just what was said, but how it was said, with all the warmth, humor, and emotion that makes your story uniquely yours.

These stories create a lasting connection across generations. It's the sound of your grandmother's laugh, the wisdom in your father's voice, the memories that shaped your family—preserved beautifully so they can be shared and treasured for years to come.

Services

Voice Portrait: When one person’s story deserves the spotlight.

  • One professionally produced 45-minute episode featuring one family member.

  • Who is this for?

    • Choose a Voice Portrait for one story from one person who needs the full spotlight—a professional legacy at retirement, a grandparent's wartime service, or the experience that shaped everything else in their life. This service goes deep rather than wide.

Gift of Voices: A milestone gift, made entirely of the voices that matter to them.

  • A curated audio gift featuring voice messages from the friends and family closest to your honoree, condensed and curated into one cohesive keepsake recording.

  • Who is this for?

    • Choose a Gift of Voices when you're planning a surprise for someone's birthday, anniversary, retirement, or another milestone worth celebrating. Ideal for gifters who want to quietly gather memories and well-wishes from the important people in someone's life (parents, siblings, old friends, coworkers, anyone who matters) and turn them into a single unforgettable gift the honoree will treasure.

Family History Series: Your family’s full story, told across five episodes.

  • A comprehensive audio documentary series with up to five 20-minute episodes.

  • Who is this for?

    • Choose the Family History Series when you're ready to preserve your family's complete story across generations. Ideal for families who want to document how their lives unfolded—interviewing parents, grandparents, and siblings to create a comprehensive audio archive that connects the past to the present.

Want something else? Let’s talk.

  • Every family has a story worth preserving, and sometimes that story doesn't fit neatly into a standard format.

  • Let’s design something that fits your family’s story.

    • Audio Heirloom's custom projects are designed around your vision. Whether you need more episodes, specialized interview approaches, or a unique format entirely, we'll work together to build a service that honors your family's particular story.

How it works

Discovery & Consultation

We start with a conversation about your goals—what story needs to be told, which memories matter most, and most importantly, who should be part of the recording.

Recorded story sessions

Each participant joins me for one or more recorded interview sessions. These conversations are designed to surface the memories, details, and moments that make your story meaningful.

Production & Delivery

I craft the raw interviews into a polished audio story—weaving together voices, themes, and narrative into something intimate, yet professionally produced. You'll receive the final episode(s), and unedited interview audio.

Timeline

The timeline for each service varies, and largely depends on everyone’s availability for interviews. Please see the FAQs for more information.

About me

Sam Zachar

I’m a journalist and podcast producer based in Brooklyn, NY, with a passion for storytelling and story preservation.

The combination of my background in journalism, podcast production, women’s and gender studies, and mental health advocacy gives me the ability to effectively and thoughtfully collect and preserve human-centered stories in an audio format. I’m a passionate storyteller, capable writer, and empathetic interviewer, creating content that is meaningful, centered on lived experience, and engaging for each family I work with.

My own family’s story

I captured my family’s stories in a podcast series, Shattered Glass, available wherever you listen. My own experience interviewing my older relatives reinforced the importance of not waiting to get loved ones “on the record.” There is so much to learn by asking the right questions, in a comfortable environment.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Audio Heirloom is a professional audio storytelling service that preserves your family's stories through recorded interviews and podcast-style production. I help capture the voices, memories, and experiences of your loved ones in a polished audio format that can be shared and treasured for generations.

  • Audio preserves the person behind the story. Your grandmother's warmth comes through in her laugh. Your father's thoughtfulness lives in his pauses. The accent that connects your family to another place and time becomes part of the permanent record. Audio captures these elements naturally: the rhythm, emotion, and personality that make each voice distinct and irreplaceable.


    For future generations, audio creates an irreplaceable connection. Your great-grandchildren won't hear about your grandfather, they’ll hear from him. They'll hear his voice, feel his presence, understand who he was as a person, not just a name in a family tree.

  • My clients are families who want to celebrate and honor the people they love—capturing the wisdom, humor, and experiences that make their stories unique, and worth preserving and sharing.

    Whether it's marking a parent's retirement, preserving a grandparent's incredible life journey, or creating a meaningful keepsake for future generations, my clients understand that their family's voices and memories deserve to be preserved beautifully.

About the service

  • The timeline for each service varies, and depends on your family members’ availability for interviews.

    A Voice Portrait takes about 2 months, and includes a ~1 hour pre-interview with you, the client, and 2-3 recorded interviews with your family member.

    The Family History Series takes about 3 months, and includes 1-2 pre-interviews with you, the client, to discuss relevant background information and which stories you’d like to capture and who would be best to tell them, and up to 3 recorded interviews with each family member.

    A Gift of Voices takes about 2 months, and includes a 1 hour pre-interview with you, the client, and one ~30 minute interview with each participant in the honoree’s gift.

  • While I’m based in Brooklyn, all of the interviews can be done remotely (I'll send you a professional microphone). And I'm happy to travel locally, if you're in the New York area.

  • That's completely normal, and it's part of my job to help them feel comfortable. I use professional interview techniques to put people at ease and guide conversations naturally.

    And I’ve noticed that family members are actually more comfortable sharing their stories with me, as someone outside of your family: I create a judgement-free space for them to share their stories, and they have no assumptions about what I should or shouldn’t know.

  • A Voice Portrait costs $1,500. The Family History Series‍ ‍costs $3,000. A Gift of Voices costs $2,000.

    All services include pre-interview preparation, professional recording, audio editing and production, music/sound design, and digital delivery.

    Final pricing will be agreed upon together before interviews begin, and may vary depending on the number of contributors and scope of content you'd like covered in the heirloom. We can discuss payment arrangements during our discovery call to make this meaningful investment accessible.

The process

  • I only use professional-grade audio hardware and software to ensure broadcast-quality sound.

  • You'll receive high-quality audio files that can be easily shared digitally, stored on devices, or uploaded to private podcast feeds for family access.

    Add-ons include access to all unedited interview audio and interview transcripts.

  • Yes! Each service includes a revision round where we can make edits to ensure the final product meets your vision.

  • That’s entirely up to you and your family!

    If you are all comfortable, I can share your family’s story on the public Audio Heirloom podcast feed.

    Or, if you’d prefer to keep your stories private, I can share the audio files and a link to a private YouTube video directly with you, for you and your family to cherish and share as you’d like.

Technical details

  • Let's talk! I’m always happy to have a half hour discovery call to discuss your family's story, what you're hoping to create, and whether Audio Heirloom is the right fit. No charge, of course.

  • Now is always the best time — whether you’re planning around a milestone, a holiday, or simply feeling ready to preserve your family’s stories.

  • Yes! I can share sample episodes before our discovery call so you can hear my style and quality.

    You can also check out my own family’s stories on my podcast, Shattered Glass.

Getting started

Contact me

I would love to hear from you, to help collect and preserve your family’s stories. I view each opportunity to learn another family’s history as an immense honor, something to be handled with care and respect.