Contribute to PADA Collections

How To Donate Digital Items

DIGITAL FORMATS: We will accept any file format for photographs, including, for example, old personal or family photographs that you have scanned, as well as videos, and audio from your digital cameras or cell phones.

We encourage you to send to us, either by email or other electronic media, your original digital files without making any alterations, but before sending these to us please do the following:

1. Choose your “best” items – photographs, documents, videos, or other recordings.
   You define what is “best” -- the most important to you and your family, or most the most beautiful, or the most significant for history and/or the community.
   Tell us about each item – the WHO, WHEN, WHERE, WHAT, WHY – so people can understand what it is and its importance. As best you can, please include the following::
   • WHO
     • Who is in the photo or video? Who took it?
     • If it’s a letter, who wrote it and to whom was it sent?
     • Is it from an organization or group? Can you tell us about the group?
   • WHEN
     • This can include dates as well as the significance of the event -- is it someone’s birthday? A wedding celebration?  A holiday or festival?
     • If it’s something that was lost and recently found, what was the original date of the document; when and how it was located?
     • What is the history of the item? (e.g. was it stored in a basement/attic for many years, or was it created recently?)
   • WHERE
     • This can include things like city, state and country, but also things like why the place is important (e.g., family, home, place of worship, etc.)
   • WHAT
     • What is happening or being discussed in the materials? In photos and videos, what is happening? If it’s a letter or other document, what is being discussed?
   • WHY
     • Most importantly, why is this significant/important? (Again, you define what that means – is it the first graduation your family attended? Your first family reunion? Your first experience in a new place?)
2. Please email your original, unedited digital files to: PADA@uml.edu
   • If the files are too big to attach to the email, we can find a different way of transferring the files – please just contact us by email at: PADA@uml.edu or call us at 978-934-5199 (please leave a message).
   • If you have additional materials that may be relevant for PADA, please make a note in your email or phone message.

ONCE YOU SUBMIT:

1. Once you submit your materials, we will immediately acknowledge that we’ve received them.
2. We will assess the materials (format, content to make sure they’re appropriate for the PADA collections. Our goal is to be as inclusive as possible, while making sure that we give each item the care it deserves.
3. We will contact you with any questions or requests for more information. We will try to respond as soon as possible, but workloads vary, so it may take a couple weeks or even a month or two. We will do our best!
4. To finalize the donation, we will ask you to sign a Deed of Gift form, an official document that gives PADA permission to share your materials on the Portuguese American Digital Archive. After donating to PADA, you always have the option to change your mind.  Please see the PADA policy on removal of digital items from the archive on our Frequently Asked Questions webpage.

How to Contribute Physical Items

1. Historically and culturally significant and are related to Portuguese in the Greater Boston Area; 
2. In danger of being damaged or thrown away, please contact us to discuss a possible donation.