Patronage of the Archive
The Archive is built name by name — rooted in the cradle of humanity and held open for every lineage by those who carry the work forward. Stand among them.
Ask Zuri about this page
Honored Ancestors is a public archive of memory — rooted in African American heritage and open to every lineage of humankind. Every memorial preserved, every editorial wave researched, every name made permanent on the open record is the work of the institution. Patronage sustains that work without conditions on the families we serve. Patrons are recognized in the Archive's standing record — not as customers, but as those who chose to hold the institution open for others.
Annual patronage renews each year on the same date. Cancel any time from the Stripe receipt link.
Give what your conscience permits. Any amount is recorded in the Archive as patronage — and if a dollar is all you have, it is enough, and it is honored.
The standing record
Every patron is entered into the Archive’s standing record — a permanent, public account of those who held the institution open. Not a leaderboard; a roll of stewards. Those who give first are recorded as founding patrons of the Archive. Add your name to theirs.
Sovereignty, not charity status. Honored Ancestors is the trade name of Abilities Finance, LLC — a Wyoming limited liability company. We are deliberately not a 501(c)(3): charity status would place an outside board between the mission and the families we serve, and we will not hand anyone that power over the record. The trade-off is plain — patronage is not tax-deductible in the United States, and Stripe issues your receipt automatically for your own bookkeeping. Patronage here is a private act of support for the work, recorded as such: sovereignty kept, the mission unredirectable. Why sovereignty matters here →
On the use of funds. Patronage supports the editorial work of the Archive — research, verification, preservation, editorial staff, infrastructure, and the long-term preservation of the public record. The institution publishes an annual statement of operations.
Have a question before you give?
