ObitsOhio

ObitsOhio.com publishes news and stories about the lives of Ohioans and former Ohioans who have died, as well as essays and reports - written by journalists, academics and other informed individuals - that are related to life and death in the state of Ohio.

We list reports of Ohio deaths and post information and stories about the lives that preceded those deaths as that information is provided to us.

We hope to offer at least a brief description to easily identify the deceased for our readers. Identifying information should include the person’s name, age, the area of Ohio in which they lived and/or worked, occupation and/or claim to fame.

Yet the person need not be famous to be listed on ObitsOhio.com. We want to note the passing of every resident or former resident of Ohio as soon as possible following the death and post funeral information as a courtesy to the family and as a service to our readers.

We’ll also post longer obituaries, which appear on the ObitsOhio.com mainpage and/or on each person’s personal ObitsOhio.com webpage. Such obits may be posted before or after the funeral or memorial service. We believe families should have the luxury of taking their time to prepare these once-in-a-lifetime stories.

Full or partial obituaries, submitted and prepared by the family or funeral home and edited by ObitsOhio.com, will appear on personal webpages. Links to funeral home websites, memorial/tribute sites, newspaper obituaries, videos and more also may show up on those webpages. Many obits also will be featured on ObitsOhio.com mainpage.

Information posted on ObitsOhio.com will remain online for as long as ObitsOhio.com exists.

ObitsOhio.com does not charge for basic listings of recent deaths, including funeral arrangements and biographical information that is provided by funeral homes and families. We endeavor to post these items on the day on which they are received.

ObitsOhio.com also will post memorial tributes and eulogies under the heading “In Remembrance” and on the mainpage for a fee.

ObitsOhio.com provides advertising opportunities for companies and individuals whose products and services may be of interest to our readers.

Write to us at info@obitsohio.com or call us at 216-862-2617 for more details about and payment information for “In Remembrance” items and advertising.

ABOUT THE FOUNDER

Alana Baranick, winner of the 2005 ASNE (American Society of Newspaper Editors) Award for Distinguished Writing in the Obituary category, is the founder of ObitsOhio.com, chief author of “Life on the Death Beat: A Handbook for Obituary Writers” (Marion Street Press, 2005) and director of the Society of Professional Obituary Writers.

She is the instructor for Poynter Institute’s NewsU online course on obituary writing and the “Death Beat” columnist for the National Newspaper Association’s Publisher’s Auxiliary.

Alana wrote obits for the Cleveland Plain Dealer from May 1992 until December 2008. The Chronicle-Telegram in Elyria, Ohio, provided her first obit-writing experience, beginning in 1985.

She now writes obituary features on a freelance basis for newspapers, including The Chronicle-Telegram and Medina County Gazette. She also writes obituaries, advance obituaries and biographies for individuals, families, businesses and public relations agencies for a fee.

Alana has used her more than 20 years as an obit writer, the countless questions and suggestions she has received from readers and bereaved relatives during that time, and things she has learned through her own efforts to find obituary and biographical information in creating ObitsOhio.com.

Contact her at alana.baranick@obitsohio.com.