(NewsNation) — A network of libraries and nonprofit organizations are establishing “memory labs,” where patrons bring in photos, VHS tapes and other old media formats, learn at no cost how to digitize them, and then do it themselves to preserve their family histories and their memories.

Millions of Americans have stored their memories on older forms of media, which are difficult to pass on to future generations because they can’t easily be shared over the Internet. Sometimes this older media can degrade, too, making digital preservation even more valuable.

Yet, Americans are arguably more interested in genealogy than ever, and physical media are often the key to learning about what life was like for a distant ancestor. The multibillion-dollar genealogy industry has boomed in recent years as people seek to learn more about their family history.

Private companies can help digitize these old films and photos. But they are both expensive and anxiety-provoking. For example, companies like Legacybox or Digmypics will charge between $30 and $50 to convert a few film reels. Plus, people have to send their one-of-a-kind memories through the mail (allying this concern is at the top of the FAQ at ScanCafe).

One of the memory labs is in Johnson County, Kansas. There, the local genealogical society teamed up with the county library system to offer free digitization services to the local community.

When organizers opened up slots in early April, they were overwhelmed with demand.

“By 8:30 in the morning, all the slots for two months were filled up,” said Marsha Bennett, the vice president of education and outreach at the Johnson County Genealogical Society.

The memory lab has equipment including a flatbed scanner and a Wolverine Movie Maker, which looks like an old 8mm film projector that passes old film over scanner glass, converting it to digital videos.

Residents who want to take advantage of the service are able to go online and reserve 2 1/2-hour blocks of time for free. When they arrive, a volunteer teaches them how to digitize their records and then they get the rest of the time to use the equipment. They’re asked to bring a USB drive or hard drive to do the transfer.

“It’s do-it-yourself, but the goal is to make them self-sufficient so they can run the equipment and then we let them do the job,” said Ron Powell, one of the volunteers at the Kansas memory lab. “And if they have questions, or if something breaks or whatever, then the volunteer is on hand to answer or fix those kinds of issues as well.”

Sarah Martinson, 75, was one of those residents who has utilized the lab. She brought in Super 8 films of her children. “It’s a fairly simple process once you understand the equipment,” she said.

“It’s been fun to look at all those images of my 48-year-old when he was a year and a half,” she said. “It’s been great to get those digitized and I put them up in the cloud, where all the kids can look at them.”

Although the services are run by volunteers, there is an upfront cost to obtaining the equipment for the lab. Bennett estimated that they spent around $6,000 on equipment that will digitize everything from photographs to Super 8 films.

In this case, a donor at the local library foundation is providing the funding for the program. The genealogical society plans on purchasing equipment to digitize VHS tapes in the future.