Free Community Digitization.

Many families have a surplus of photos, tapes, and other media that may be hard to view due to age or defunct media (looking at you, VHS tapes).

We also know that archives do not equally represent and uplift stories from communities of color.

Through Ward 1 Budget de la Gente funding, Los Des and the MexAm Museum have been able to kickstart a Barrio Digitization Program. Through this program we have 2 goals:

  1. Allow families to digitize their at-home collections so that barrio stories may be passed down from one generation to the next.

  2. Create a community archive focused on barrio stories and located at the Mexican American Heritage and History Museum inside of the historic Sosa-Carrillo House.

This program offers up to $150 worth of free digitization using Ping Pong Media Conversion in Tucson, Arizona. Museum donation of the digitized material is not required, by highly encouraged. If your family chooses to donate digitized material to the museum, you will still receive your own personal copy.

Requirements & Process

We are only accepting:

  • 8mm or super 8 film recordings

  • 2 x 2 slides

  • Film (photo) negatives

  • Home movies

  • Audio recordings

WE ARE NOT accepting PHOTOS, PAPERS, or OBJECTS for digitization.

IF you have PHOTOS, PAPERS, or OBJECTS you'd like us to look at, please email: MexAmHistoryMuseum@Gmail.com

Process for applying:

Identify which pieces of family history you would like digitized. Home video, movie film, broadcast media, audio recordings, film negatives, and slides are able to be digitized by Ping Pong Media in Tucson, AZ.

Fill out a request using the “digitization request form” button below. Funds will be prioritized for barrio residents. Museum donation of the digitization is not required, but highly encouraged.

After we review your request, a museum director will reach out determine the amount able to be digitized. We will then schedule a drop off & pick up time for your items to be digitized. Please allow several weeks for materials to be digitized and returned to you along with a USB of the digital copy.

Upon reopening of the Mexican American Heritage and History Museum in 2025, applicable donated materials will be incorporated into the History of the Barrios exhibit and in Los Descendientes programming. Donors will be notified of their inclusion and invited to view the exhibit ahead of opening day. For additional questions email: MexAmHistoryMuseum@gmail.com