Apr 09, 2020 Utah COVID-19 Digital Collection

Have you ever wanted to be a part of history? Well, guess what? YOU ARE! By living through the pandemic of 2020, you are making history and we need your help.

The Utah COVID-19 Digital Collection Project has been created to document the response from the University of Utah and greater Utah community to the Coronavirus pandemic of 2020. The overall project currently includes two sub-projects to document Utah’s response to COVID-19: the Utah COVID-19 Digital Photograph Project and the Utah COVID-19 Story Project. Through these projects, we are soliciting photographs and stories from residents around the State of Utah to share with the world how the pandemic has affected your lives.

YOU are invited to share your photos and stories to help us preserve a bit of current history. Although you might not feel like you are making history, everyone’s story is important. Have you had to figure out how to work from home? Have your K-12 or college classes been moved from in person to online coursework? What social distancing measures have you put into practice to make sure that you and your loved ones stay safe? How has your daily routine changed since the beginning of the pandemic? How has your neighborhood, city, or county reacted to the changed lifestyle? Since the Salt Lake Valley experienced an earthquake at the beginning of the pandemic, how has this changed your community? What are your personal reactions to the need to change life as you know it? The answers to all of these questions will help people in the future know what the world experienced during the pandemic.

Please consider sharing photographs that you have taken during this time to show how you are continuing to live your life as well as can be expected given the circumstances. Also, think about what stories you might be able to share, either as an essay on your reactions to the pandemic, a daily journal documenting every day life, or a story of an experience you have had during these events.

Through this project, we hope to preserve a moment in history so future generations can get a glimpse into what life in Utah looked like during the pandemic. No matter how interesting or dull your story may feel to you right now, sharing your story will help people better understand the effects this pandemic had on everyone.

Visit the Utah COVID-19 Digital Collection Project to submit your photos and stories today! Submitted items will be made publicly available in the Marriott Digital Library.