Afterlife Telegrams

I've been listening to Alan Alda's Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself (read by Alan Alda). A lot of amusing stories, mostly about talks he gave at graduation ceremonies, funerals, etc. On the way home, I was listening to a section from a speech he gave at Rockefeller University, about how many Americans believe in magic, how more Americans believe in the devil than believe in evolution, etc. And then he mentioned the website AfterlifeTelegrams.com. You can write a telegram to someone who has died, and for a fee, this company will have a terminally ill volunteer memorize your telegram so they can deliver it AFTER they have passed away. The website does note that they currently have only one volunteer - but that may have been years ago! Who knows if the volunteer has died, or if they have recruited more?

The site was created by cartoonist Paul Kinsella, and contains an FAQ section (e.g. they only accept telegrams in English, but if you specify that the recipient doesn't speak English, the messenger will try to find a translator on the other side), a series of newspaper articles about the service, and an online cemetary.

If you are thinking of trying this service, please note that they admit they cannot guarantee delivery, nor prove that a message has been delivered.