MARSHALL, Minn. — Down through the ages, the cemetery headstone has gone virtually unchanged — until now, with a venture by a pair of young business partners that uses QR code technology to unlock the life stories of the departed.
Eternal Legacy LLC’s anodized aluminum plaques can easily be placed on a gravestone and a scan of the embedded QR code will take a person to an online tribute page personalized by family and friends with photos, stories, reminiscences and more.
For entrepreneurs Mike Clawson, 25, and Josh Toney, 27, of Willmar, it’s a way of combining 21st-century digital technology with the age-old desire to preserve the memory of those who have died.
“We really want this to be the next thing,” Clawson said.
After a close friend died in 2013, Clawson was struck by the starkness of the information on most headstones — the deceased’s name, date of birth, date of death and little else.
“I just kind of realized there was no possible way to really encapsulate who this person was. I thought there’s got to be some kind of way to be able to put more information on it,” he said.
He contacted Toney, a college classmate who works with QR codes, and the two started talking about the possibilities. In April 2014 they filed the paperwork to launch their business, Eternal Legacy LLC, “and here we are,” Clawson said.
Their product, which they have named The Living Monument, was developed with open-source QR technology plus a few twists of their own (they have a patent pending on one of the elements).
“Behind the scenes is where it really gets interesting,” Toney said. “It’s been pretty exciting.”
Their main goal was to make their product as user-friendly as possible. The pair came up with an adhesive that allows the small aluminum plaques to be easily affixed to a headstone or flat urn.
“It’s as simple as peel and stick,” Clawson said.
The plaques are long-lasting, with a 100-year guarantee that includes updates to accommodate future changes in QR code technology.
“We went through seven or eight different prototype designs until we settled on the one that would last the longest,” Clawson said. “We tried to anticipate the future as best as we can.”
They’re aware of at least two other companies in the U.S. that offer a similar product but they point out that theirs is unique. For one thing, The Living Monument is designed for use with any smartphone, making it mobile. For another, once consumers have purchased their plaque (prices start at about $200), there are no further annual fees or subscription costs.
Based on feedback that Clawson and Toney have heard from customers, the tribute pages have been one of the biggest selling points, tapping into an increasing American trend of individualizing the experience of grief and loss.
For many families, the process of choosing photos and writing their loved one’s life story often becomes a happy time for re-living and sharing favorite memories, Clawson said.
“It’s almost like a bookend to the grieving process,” he said. “It’s great to hear that has happened. We didn’t even anticipate that.”
Since the cloud is bottomless, there’s no limit to the amount of content families can post, he said. “If you have a thousand pictures, you can do that.”
The plaques also could help future genealogy researchers by providing a much richer trove of information than might otherwise be possible.
The two business partners — Clawson grew up in Litchfield and now lives in Marshall, while Toney is from Paynesville — have yet to make much money on their product, but they’re currently working to market it.
The Living Monument is available on Amazon.com and eBay and also can be purchased through several area funeral homes, including the Harvey Anderson Funeral Home of Willmar; Rehkamp and Horvath Funeral and the Hamilton Funeral Home, both in Marshall; and several funeral homes in the Sioux Falls, S.D., area. It’s available as well on the company website, www.livingmonument.org.
For now they’re focusing on the Midwest but they have hopes of expanding.
“The response so far has been nothing but positive,” Clawson said. “It’s been such a well-received idea. … It’s a way of preserving people’s stories. That’s one of the things we’re really excited about.”
