As a photograph ages, its edges yellow, its corners curl and its crisp lines begin to fade. The memory captured within its frame begins to slip away and the mind loses sight of its details.

Often the keepers of history are packed in boxes and hidden in attics only to have their purpose stripped away.

But not in Trudy Sundberg’s home.

Sundberg’s eyes are wide and inviting and reveal her obvious delight in observing new people and things. Her smile is warm and reflects sweetly upon those who cause it, letting them know that their friendship will be treasured and not soon forgotten.

Those who are close to Sundberg, whether they are related to her by blood or bond, can assume there is a folder somewhere in her house that has their name scribbled across the front cover. The file will contain pictures of them as a child, pictures of their children or children’s children, newspaper clippings noting their achievements, exchanged birthday cards and hand-written letters.

Sundberg is known for many things on Whidbey Island. She was the president of the League of Women Voters, founded several literary groups and Democratic clubs. She breathed new life into the debate team at Oak Harbor High School and fought against the district’s bullies with a “Save Our Kids Crusade.” She is an avid supporter of the Whidbey Camano Land Trust, has written multiple books, and though she won’t admit it, is a beautiful artist. She is a mother to four, a grandmother to three and a role model to many. And because Sundberg’s husband was in the Navy, her story has unraveled in places all over the world including California, New Jersey, Illinois, Minnesota, Virginia, Washington, D.C., the Netherlands and Virginia.

Sundberg’s life has been full, and the photos and documents that preserve it are too intriguing to stow away. So this fall, the Sundberg/James Archives were born.

In September, Sundberg decided to gather albums and family heirlooms to put out for her kids when they came for an early Thanksgiving the first week in November. But the more she looked through her things, the vaster her collection became, and soon it took on a life of its own.

With help from one of her former students, Oak Harbor resident David Lander, Sundberg turned her garage into what can only be described as a family museum. The walls are lined with displays covered in photos dating back to the early 1900s and reaching to the present, diaries from the 1940s line tables, scrapbooks from vacations lie open and toys, mementos and letters from travels are tucked here, there and everywhere. Her daughter’s artwork surrounds the ceiling.

“I didn’t realize how much we had until I started digging things up,” Sundberg said. “In the Navy, you pack up your memories before you have a chance to look at them.”

Sundberg’s kids were shocked to see the display when they visited for the holidays. She said they learned so much about their past that they never would’ve known, like that Sundberg worked in a Vaudeville-style circus with her father to earn money during the Great Depression.

Patsi Waller, a close family friend, spent Thanksgiving with the Sundbergs and said the archives evoked a lot of emotion. She said they read aloud from a diary dated before Sundberg had married her late husband John, and it spoke of Sundberg’s early memories of him.

“It was like he was there,” Waller said. “He was with us. We all had tears in our eyes.”

Lander, who helped Sundberg with most of the heavy lifting, put together posters on her and John and decorated a display of Sundberg’s custom-built Mercedes-Benz modeled after the car from “The Great Gatsby.” He said it was wonderful to watch the spread come to life, and discovered overlooked items like the cardboard model and sketch of Sundberg’s current home in Oak Harbor which her husband built.

“It’s such a pleasure working for Trudy,” Lander said. “I hope maybe this will motivate other families to start their own collections.”

Sundberg intends to share the archives with all of her close family and friends so they can relive their stories together. But she’ll have to make sure they have room in their schedules first.

“The archives are like the Louvre,” Waller said. “You can’t see it all in one day.”