Anderson Area Remembrance & Reconciliation Initiative
Building a Digital Home for Remembrance, Reconciliation, and the Beloved Community
Brand Strategy + Public History + Documentary Storytelling
The Story
Every community has stories that deserve to be remembered.
Some have simply never been told.
When the Anderson Area Remembrance & Reconciliation Initiative (AAR&RI) partnered with Rettew Creative, the goal was not simply to redesign a website. It was to rethink how a community preserves its history and invites others to engage with it.
Throughout the research process, one conversation continued to shape the direction of the project. A descendant searching for information about his family shared how difficult it had been to uncover his own history. Records had disappeared. Family stories had been lost. There was no single place to learn, explore, or reconnect with the past.
That conversation revealed a much bigger opportunity.
The new website could become more than an organizational website.
It could become a permanent digital home for Anderson County's public history.
The Challenge
Transforming Information into Living History
The original website successfully communicated events and organizational updates, but it could not fully capture the depth of AAR&RI's mission.
The challenge was creating a destination where history could be preserved, explored, and expanded over time.
The vision extended beyond a traditional nonprofit website.
It meant building a place where descendants, researchers, students, educators, and community members could come together to learn, contribute, and better understand the stories that shaped Anderson County.
The goal was never to create another website.
The goal was to create a destination.
The Approach
Building a Digital Archive for a Community
Rather than organizing content around pages, the project was organized around stories.
Every decision was guided by a single question:
How can we help someone understand not only what happened, but why it still matters?
The redesigned website became a central home for the Community Remembrance Project, bringing together years of research, storytelling, education, and community engagement into one connected digital experience.
Visitors can now explore:
Complete historical narratives for each of Anderson County's five documented victims of racial terror lynching, carefully researched through the Equal Justice Initiative's Community Remembrance Project and additional archival sources.
Interactive timelines that place each individual's life and death within its historical context.
Historical artifacts, newspaper articles, deeds, court records, photographs, and public documents gathered throughout years of research.
Documentary films produced through Anderson University's Documentary Storytelling program, giving voice to stories that had long remained untold.
The history and significance of Anderson County's Community Remembrance Marker, the county's first permanent public memorial honoring the five victims.
The Soil Collection Project and its connection to the Equal Justice Initiative's national Community Remembrance Project.
Herman Keith Jr.'s traveling sculpture, The Earth Remembers, designed to carry these stories into communities across Anderson County.
Community conversations, educational programs, public events, and ongoing opportunities for residents to participate in the work of remembrance and reconciliation.
Rather than existing as separate initiatives, each project became part of a larger story.
The website brings these efforts together into a single experience that reflects AAR&RI's mission of remembering the past, reconciling the present, and building the Beloved Community.
Just as importantly, the website was designed to continue growing. As new research is uncovered, descendants come forward, and additional historical artifacts are discovered, the platform provides a place where those stories can be preserved and shared with future generations.
Brand Evolution
Creating an Identity That Reflects the Mission
The project extended well beyond the website itself.
Rettew Creative partnered with AAR&RI to develop a unified visual identity capable of supporting the organization's work across digital platforms, print materials, public events, educational resources, and community initiatives.
The work included:
Brand Strategy
Logo System
Official Organizational Seal
Color Palette
Typography Standards
Comprehensive Brand Guide
Website Design System
Visual Storytelling Framework
Every design decision was rooted in the organization's mission and values, creating a visual identity that communicates dignity, historical truth, hope, and community.
The Final Experience
The redesigned website is more than a communication tool.
It is a growing public history resource.
Visitors can discover stories that had long been forgotten, explore original historical documents, watch documentary films, learn about community remembrance efforts, and understand how the past continues to shape the present.
Most importantly, the website invites participation.
It creates space for descendants to reconnect with family history, researchers to contribute new discoveries, educators to access reliable resources, and community members to become part of an ongoing movement toward truth, justice, healing, and reconciliation.
The website was intentionally designed not as the conclusion of the story, but as the place where the story continues.
Services Provided
Brand Strategy
Public History Strategy
Website Strategy
Information Architecture
Squarespace Website Design
Brand Identity Development
Logo & Seal Design Direction
Historical Research
Historical Storytelling
Documentary Storytelling
Copywriting
Photography Direction
Content Strategy
Digital Archive Planning
The Impact
Preserving the Past. Inspiring the Future.
The Anderson Area Remembrance & Reconciliation Initiative now has a digital home that reflects the depth of its mission.
More importantly, the website creates a place where history is not simply preserved—it continues to grow.
Every new artifact, documentary, family story, community gathering, and research discovery becomes part of an expanding public record, ensuring these stories remain accessible for generations to come.
For Rettew Creative, this project represents something larger than website design.
It demonstrates the power of storytelling to preserve history, strengthen communities, and create spaces where people can learn from the past while imagining a better future.
Because sometimes storytelling isn't simply about telling a story.
Sometimes it's about building a place where history can finally be found.
Project Details
Client: Anderson Area Remembrance & Reconciliation Initiative (RemembraceAnderson.org)
Project: Brand Identity & Public History Website
Category: Brand Strategy + Public History + Documentary Storytelling
Services: Brand Strategy • Website Design • Information Architecture • Public History • Historical Research • Documentary Storytelling • Content Strategy • Digital Experience Design
