Raise money in memory of a loved one with 1000Memories

1000Memories, a company that lets people create online memories for lost loved ones, announced a partnership today with WePay, a payment provider. The deal will give users a free account and the option of easily raising money for projects, foundations or charities, according to its blog.

The company lets users create a simple, yet informative page for people to come and remember a loved one. The main page launches with just the person’s name and a giant picture of them provided by the creator of the page. The company provides an example of one of the founders’ great uncles on the main website, found here. From there, users can choose to leave comments, post photos, tell stories, sign a guest book or see if any projects have been started.

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The projects option is one of the more fascinating aspects of 1000Memories — and where WePay now plays an important role. Creators of a page can start a project in memory of a loved one, which may range from setting up a foundation to raising money for charities. 1000Memories sets up each project with a free WePay account, where visitors can easily donate using a credit or bank card. For example, one page has created a project called the John Krettek III Foundation, which is working to give patients Apple iPads during their treatment and healing processes in hospitals. With WePay, the project has already raised $450 in a short time period and hopes to raise more from friends and family visiting the page.

There is no shortage of websites providing people with a way to raise funds for charities or foundations, including celebrity-backed Crowdrise or YourCause.com — not to mention the variety of memorial sites that exist, such as Respectance or Remembered Forever. However, 1000Memories appears to be the only one combining the ability to create an online memorial as well as raise money for a foundation or cause in a loved one’s memory. It’s a combination that could give the company an edge on the competition.

The San Francisco-based company, founded in 2010, has received $15,000 in funding from Y Combinator.