Keep your materials safe. This means: keep them dry; keep them away from rodents and pests; make a backup if they are digital; do not throw away the orginals; prevent mold growth; and share their value with those you love and trust so they will not mistakenly discard them.
Put materials in labelled folders and make an inventory. You can write captions in pencil on the back of photographs that include names and dates. In general, it is a good rule to avoid tape and glue (e.g., do not tape a torn letter). If you want to create a photo album, use photo corners instead of adhering the photos to the album pages.
Ask yourself, your family members, or your community: what it is that makes you unique? What are important events? What are the important relationships and connections in the community? What kind of documents would illustrate that uniqueness, those relationships, and those important events?
Just because some materials may seem less interesting than others or may seem to have no monetary value, that does not mean that they aren't valuable. Try to keep an open mind about what may be of interest to family and community members in the future. This does not mean that you need to keep everything! It just means that you should think carefully before you discard something.
If appropriate, consider donating your materials to a library or community archive so that they will be preserved and more easily shared with others.
