Every November during National Family Caregivers Month, conversations usually center on logistics: medical appointments, care schedules, and daily routines. Those details matter, but they miss what families actually hold onto over time.
When a loved one ages, falls ill, or passes away, their voice is often the first thing that fades and the hardest memory to hold sharp.
We asked eight accomplished leaders across advocacy, storytelling, academia, design, and technology one question: 'Who do you wish you had a recording of, and what do you wish you'd asked them?'
Their answers span family history, advice, everyday laughter, and personal reflection, showing how much a single recording can hold over time.
Leeza Gibbons
Founder/CEO, Leeza’s Care Connection & Emmy-Winning Broadcaster
“My mom and I were very close — we shared so much and laughed a lot. I wish I had more recorded moments with her. Especially that wonderful laugh. In the end, it had all but disappeared. Alzheimer’s stole so much from us, and I wish I’d asked her more about the woman she was before she became my mother — her dreams, her fears, the moments that shaped her. I spent so much time trying to hold on to who she was that I wish I’d spent more time discovering who she’d been.”
Matthew Dicks
Bestselling Author of Storyworthy & Master Storyteller
“I wish I had a recording of my mother, who died in 2007, which is almost two decades ago but feels like two years ago and two hundred years ago. I’d love to listen to the story of how she and my father met and fell in love, because they divorced when I was seven years old, and I can’t remember them ever being in love. But they were, if only for a little time, and I wish I could see and know what it was like.”
Lauren Miller Rogen
Co-Founder of HFC (Hilarity for Charity) & Filmmaker
“I wish I had more recordings of my mom, Adele, before Alzheimer’s changed the way we communicated. I would ask her about the little things I never thought to ask when I had the chance: what made her happiest, what she dreamed about when she was young, and what she wanted me to remember about her. It’s those everyday conversations you don’t realize you’ll miss until they’re gone.”
Professor Scott Snook
Executive Education Fellow at Harvard Business School
“I wish I had a recording of our daughter Jessica. She was special needs and shortly before her 19th birthday, she fell asleep and never woke up. If I could go back, I would ask our angel the following questions: ‘What does your dream life look like? If you had one wish, what would it be? Are you afraid of anything and if so, what is your greatest fear?’”
Teepa Snow
Founder of Positive Approach to Care®
“My mom’s good friend taught me to drive, and she always told a funny story about the first time I tried to pass someone. I would love to have a recording of her telling that story.”
Michael Murphy
Founder at AMMA, Author & Architectural Designer
“I wish I had a recording of my dad before he died. My brother had a recording of him leaving a message on his voicemail and he held onto it for years after his death. In fact, he made the recording his voicemail prompt. When he got a new phone he had to delete it and sent a note to all of us he was doing so, but that was before we had so much ability to record. I still remember it.”
Ben Relles
Founder and CEO, Make Believe
“I wish I had recorded myself over the years answering questions about what I was excited about, what I was worried about, and what I thought I had all figured out. Some of my favorite years are a little blurry on the details, and I think I’d really appreciate having an audio journal of some kind to revisit what I was thinking about.”
Shankar Desai
Investor, Board Director & Former Google Executive
“My mom. There are no bad questions and there now seem to be an infinite number. So to me it’s just about ask everything, ask all the time. But if you need one, here it is: ‘Who would you be in the absence of your concerns?’”
Caregiving carries an immense emotional and physical weight, and the daily responsibility can leave very little room for anything else. Yet when time passes, it's those words and quiet reflections we end up wishing we had saved.
Take a moment this month to ask a simple question, press record, and save a voice that matters to you.
