Volunteer
Thank you for your interest in being a volunteer! (Already a volunteer? See the volunteer help section / No longer wish to volunteer?)
CanadaGenWeb’s Cemetery Project is a 100% volunteer endeavour, without the support of volunteers this project would not exist.
There are many volunteer opportunities available:
We only accept photos taken by the submitter. If you did not take the photos yourself, please do not send them in.
The job of a photographer is to take* photos of a Canadian cemetery, then send them in to be posted on this website.
Requirements:
– Ability to visit* a Canadian cemetery
– A good camera (preferably digital but film is also welcome) and the ability to use it
– Ability to send photographs either via the internet or through snail mail
*We also welcome ‘older’ photos regardless of when they were taken. If you have photos and want to share them on our website, locate the cemetery and use the submission form available there.
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To photograph an entire cemetery, or entire section of a large cemetery, please:
1. Locate the cemetery on our website
2. Below the cemetery information table, fill out the volunteer form
3. Wait to receive confirmation from our volunteer coordinator
4. Once you’ve been confirmed, visit the cemetery and take photos of every headstone
5. Send us your photos
To send photos you’ve* already taken:
1. Locate the cemetery on our website
2. Verify we don’t already have photos of the stones in question (if there is a name index please check carefully, we don’t index living persons but may already have a photo of a preset stone indexed under the surname)
3. Below the cemetery information table, fill out the volunteer form
(Need more info? Please read our Photo FAQ)
If you are interested in indexing your own photos please see our page on indexing cemetery photos
Before heading out to a cemetery please read our FAQ regarding liability and permission
Do you…
– Have a few hours to spare?
– Like typing?
– Have a knack for deciphering old headstones?
Requirements:
– Enough time to index at least 100 photos within a 7 day period
– Ability to type accurately
– Ability to use OR willingness to learn how to navigate Google Drive
– Ability to use Excel, Open Office, Google Docs or similar spreadsheet software
How it works:
1. Read the indexing cemetery photos page
2. Sign up as a volunteer on that page
3. Retrieve a batch of photos to index (instructions will be sent after you’ve signed up)
4. Index the photos and send back just the index once complete
A lookup volunteer is someone willing to visit a cemetery by private request to seek a specific headstone. (If you would like to take photos and share them on this website, please sign up as a photographer instead).
As a lookup volunteer you may receive multiple requests a week or none at all. The number of requests is dependent upon how many visitors have an interest in the cemetery you’ve volunteered for.
This volunteer position lasts as long as your name & e-mail are posted on this website (to have your lookup offer removed please use this form).
Requirements:
– Ability to transcribe or photograph a headstone on short notice in accordance with your terms*
– Ability to send & receive e-mail within a reasonable amount of time
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How it works:
1. Locate the cemetery you wish to offer a lookup for and fill out the ‘Offer a Lookup’ form located on the cemetery page.
2. On the form you will provide your name, e-mail address, and lookup terms*.
3. Once your form has been received, your name & e-mail address will be posted on the cemetery page where you signed up.
4. Those interested in requesting a lookup will contact you directly stating what they are looking for.
5. You respond to the inquiry and provide the requested information if available.
* Lookup terms should indicate the limits of your lookup offer. For instance “look-ups during summer months only”; “digital photos via e-mail only”; “transcription only, no photos”, etc
We are seeking volunteers to help locate additional information about Canadian cemeteries. Anyone, anywhere can volunteer as a cemetery sleuth, living in Canada is not a requirement!
Requirements:
– Ability to locate and share accurate information
How it works:
1. Pick a Canadian cemetery
2. Try to find out as much about it as possible*
3. Send in the info you find
There’s no need to sign up for this position. Pick a cemetery and start sleuthing! As you locate information it can be submitted to the website through that cemetery’s addition form (these forms can be found on each cemetery page). Please use only the forms on the cemetery page to submit information as this ensures we apply it to the correct cemetery.
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* We are seeking the following information about each cemetery, any blanks that can be filled in are welcome!
– Official and local names of the cemetery
– When the cemetery was first used and officially established
– Location of cemetery (street address and/or GPS coordinates)
– Where transcripts, indexes, photos, etc. can be found for this cemetery online & off
– Any other information about a cemetery that would be useful to genealogists
If you would like to provide information about burials please sign up as photographer or transcriber instead
We are seeking translators to transcribe headstones that are not in English.
Requirements:
– Fluency in both English & the language needing translation
– Ability to type accurately
To help:
1. Search for (Not in English) in either name field.
2. Choose one to translate
3. Fill out the ‘correction’ form below the photo
4. Repeat steps 1-3
Please note that it will take a few days for your translations to appear on the website.
Unfortunately there are many headstones that do not include names, are no longer legible, or are only partially legible. We’re seeking miracle workers to find these missing names.
To help:
1. Search for unreadable, unknown, Father, Mother, Brother, Sister, Grandfather, or Grandmother in either name field.
2. Choose one
3. Fill out the ‘correction’ form below the photo
4. Repeat steps 1-3
Alternately:
1. Choose a local or familiar cemetery that has been photographed
2. Choose an unreadable name to research
3. Fill out the ‘correction’ form below the photo
4. Repeat steps 1-3