Facebook 'legacy' option welcome addition to site

Achieve immortality through social media?

Some of our church page columnists might have another point of view, but thinking about Facebook and death isn't as far-fetched as it sounds.

Facebook for many of us fills a void that used to be filled by phone calls, letters and postcards -- postcards from the turn of the last century (1899-1900) seem eerily like the text messages, tweets and Facebook posts of today.

Old letters and scrapbooks can be an invaluable resource for those of us who want to find out more about our dearly departed, whether just to remember the good times or even something as important as settling an estate.

With Facebook serving as a channel for that information these days, however, the information that used to exist in physical form can vanish as quickly as a broken hard drive or a dead URL link.

Facebook's latest action seeks to remedy that somewhat. The company announced that Facebook users can choose a "legacy contact" to make one last post on your behalf when you die. That contact can respond to a new friend request, update the cover photo and profile, and archive your facebook posts and photos.

Previously, when family or friends notified Facebook that a user had died, the company verified the death and "memorialized" the account, meaning the accound could be viewed, but it could not be edited or managed.

We're glad the company, which has 186 million users in the United States, has been sensitive to the needs of friends and family members who have lost a loved one.

Too often, Facebook accounts have been lost by insensitive survivors who have altered or deleted accounts of those who have died, robbing other friends and families of precious memories.

Add "designate a Facebook legacy contact" to your list of things to do, along with writing a will, making funeral plans and buying necessary insurance to care for those we leave behind.