Celebrating 30 Years! 

In 2024 Modern Memoirs, Inc. is marking several significant milestones, including the 30th anniversary of our company’s founding by retired president Kitty Axelson-Berry in 1994.

Watch this page for special ways that we are marking this anniversary and others as the year unfolds, and stay tuned for information about new products we are developing to help you mark milestones in your life, too.


MODERN MEMOIRS TIMELINE

This Modern Memoirs timeline presents the history of our full-service private publishing company since its founding in 1994. The business began with the bold vision of founder Kitty Axelson-Berry, whose work documenting her own mother's life story inspired her to help others create and share their memoirs and family histories as heirloom-quality books. Thirty years later, and five years since her retirement, Kitty's passion and expertise carry on in our growing team of devoted, creative, and sensitive publishing professionals. Together we have helped hundreds of writers publish books of all kinds, while maintaining a specialization in memoirs and family histories. Read on to see how we have expanded our range of products and services year after year, dedicated to the principle that everyone has a story worth telling, and grounded by an enduring love of books.


30 Years of Client Testimonials


Distinctive Designs Over 30 Years

A sampler of Commissioned (as-told-to) Memoirs by Modern Memoirs, from new to old

A sampler of poetry and art books by Modern Memoirs, from new to old

A sampler of family history and genealogy books by Modern Memoirs, from new to old

A sampler of early, handbound Modern Memoirs books

A sampler of books created by the non-profit organization The American Tribute Center, co-founded by Kitty Axelson-Berry. The ATC created life-story tributes in honor of victims of the 9-11 attacks through interviews with the victims’ families, who received the books gratis.


Painting the U.S. Map Purple: Locations of Modern Memoirs’ U.S. Authors, 1994–present

Modern Memoirs is pleased to show our geographic reach in the United States, represented by the purple states on the map below, which we first shared on our social media platforms in January 2024. During our 30th anniversary year, we are especially eager to work with authors from those states we haven't yet reached, which appear in yellow on the map. If you or a writer you know resides in one of those places, we hope you will contact us today as we envision painting this entire map purple.


Modern Memoirs Goes Global: Locations of Modern Memoirs’ International Clients, 1994–present

Modern Memoirs is pleased to show our global reach through this infographic, shared on our social media platforms in February 2024. We are proud to have worked with clients based in 9 different countries (and 5 continents, including our US-based clients in North America) throughout our 30-year history. We are eager to expand our reach by helping more writers around the world publish their books and would be especially delighted to work with Australian authors in this special anniversary year.


Our greeting Card Gallery 1994—present

We are pleased to share this visual archive of greeting cards Modern Memoirs has sent out over the years, including many of our biannual solstice cards. Dating back to 1994, the practice of sending out winter and summer solstice greetings began with our founder, Kitty Axelson-Berry, and it remains a cherished tradition today. In addition to those special cards, you'll also find examples of mailings we created to highlight important milestones in our company’s history, such as the transition to new ownership and our moves into new offices.