Effective Date: July 31, 2026
Last Updated: July 31, 2026
1. Purpose
Veteran Memorial Project (“VMP,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) publishes memorial records honoring American veterans. Much of what appears on veteranmemorialproject.org (the “Site”) was entrusted to us by families — photographs from shoeboxes and albums, letters, service documents, and written remembrances.
We take copyright seriously in both directions: we respect the rights of others, and we protect the work families and volunteers have given us.
All copyright matters: info@veteranmp.org
2. What VMP Owns
Except for user Submissions and third-party materials, the Site and its contents — text, graphics, design, layout, code, database structure, compilations, logos, and the name and marks “Veteran Memorial Project” — are the property of VMP or our licensors, protected by United States and international copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property law.
2.1 The Compilation Is Protected Even Where the Facts Are Not
An individual fact of military service — a name, a rank, a date, a unit — is not owned by anyone. Facts are not copyrightable.
Our selection, arrangement, verification, organization, and presentation of those facts is. The database as a whole, and the structure by which we assemble memorial records, are protected as an original compilation. Copying the compilation is not the same as citing a fact.
3. What You May Do
You may, without asking us first:
- View, print, save, and share individual memorial records for personal, family, educational, genealogical, or remembrance purposes
- Include a memorial record or photograph in a family history, genealogy project, school project, or personal tribute
- Read a remembrance aloud at a funeral, ceremony, reunion, or memorial event
- Link to any page on the Site
- Quote briefly from the Site with attribution
Please attribute us: “Courtesy of Veteran Memorial Project — veteranmemorialproject.org”
4. What You May Not Do
You may not, without our prior written permission:
- Use any part of the Site for commercial purposes, including resale, subscription services, or paid genealogy products
- Bulk-download, scrape, data-mine, harvest, or systematically extract records, photographs, or data from the Site by any manual or automated means
- Republish our compilation or any substantial portion of our database
- Create derivative works from the Site as a whole
- Frame or mirror the Site
- Use the “Veteran Memorial Project” name, logo, or marks in any manner suggesting affiliation, sponsorship, or endorsement
- Remove, obscure, or alter any copyright notice, credit line, or attribution
A specific word on aggregators. Families give us photographs freely so their loved ones will be remembered. Commercial genealogy services that scrape memorial sites, republish the material behind a paywall, and charge those same families to see it are not welcome here. Automated extraction is prohibited, technically blocked where we are able, and enforced.
Permissions granted in this Policy are revocable at any time, with or without cause.
5. Submissions — Who Owns What
5.1 You Keep Your Copyright
When you submit a photograph, document, or written remembrance, you keep ownership of it. We do not take your copyright.
5.2 The License You Grant Us
You grant VMP a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive, sublicensable license to use, store, reproduce, adapt, edit for length and clarity, publish, publicly display, publicly perform, and distribute your Submission, in whole or in part, in any medium now known or later developed, in furtherance of our memorial and educational mission.
In plain terms, this lets us:
- Publish it on the Site
- Include it in physical or traveling memorial displays
- Use it in exhibitions, publications, and educational materials
- Display it at ceremonies and dedications
- Include it in materials describing or supporting our work
It does not let us: sell your photograph, license it to a commercial stock service, or transfer your copyright to anyone.
5.3 Why the License Is Irrevocable
Once a photograph is printed in a display panel, included in an educational packet, or shown at a ceremony, we cannot recall those uses. The license needs to be irrevocable for us to use material at all.
This does not trap you. See Section 6 — you can have material removed from the Site.
5.4 Attribution
We may credit you by name, or publish anonymously at your request. We are not obligated to use any Submission, to keep it published, or to compensate you.
5.5 What You Promise Us
By submitting, you warrant that you own the material or have permission from the owner, and that publishing it will not infringe anyone’s copyright, privacy, or publicity rights.
Common situations worth knowing:
- Official military photographs taken by U.S. government employees in the course of duty are generally in the public domain and free to submit.
- Studio portraits — the photographer typically holds the copyright, even though your family paid for the sitting and owns the print. Old studios are often long gone, and we accept such photographs in good faith, but tell us what you know about its origin.
- Newspaper clippings and yearbook photographs are usually still under copyright held by the publisher.
- Family snapshots taken by a relative are generally fine, and the photographer or their heirs hold the copyright.
If you are unsure, submit it anyway and tell us what you know. We would rather have the photograph and the honest uncertainty than neither. We handle takedown requests under Section 6.
6. Removing Material
You do not need a copyright claim to have something taken down.
We will remove or restrict material on request from:
- The copyright owner of a photograph, document, or text
- The person who submitted it
- The veteran, if living
- Documented next of kin of a deceased veteran — spouse, adult child, parent, or sibling; other relatives considered case by case
- A person whose own personal information appears in a remembrance
Email info@veteranmp.org with “RECORD REMOVAL” in the subject line. Include the URL, what you want removed, and your relationship to it.
We aim to acknowledge within 5 business days and resolve within 30 days. We do not require a formal legal notice, a lawyer, or a fee. We may ask for documentation of relationship.
Where family members disagree among themselves, we generally restrict public access to the disputed material while we work with those involved.
7. DMCA Notice and Takedown
VMP complies with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 512.
7.1 Designated Agent
Notices of claimed copyright infringement must be sent to our designated agent:
Copyright Agent
Veteran Memorial Project
Email: info@veteranmp.org
Subject line: DMCA NOTICE
Mailing address and telephone number are listed on the Contact page of veteranmemorialproject.org.
7.2 What a Notice Must Contain
To be effective under 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3), your notice must include all of the following:
- A physical or electronic signature of the copyright owner or a person authorized to act on their behalf;
- Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed;
- Identification of the material claimed to be infringing, with enough detail for us to locate it — please include the full URL;
- Your contact information: name, mailing address, telephone number, and email address;
- A statement that you have a good faith belief that the use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law;
- A statement that the information in the notice is accurate, and, under penalty of perjury, that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on their behalf.
Incomplete notices may not be effective. If you are unsure, email us anyway — we would rather resolve the matter than stand on formality.
7.3 What We Do
On receipt of a valid notice, we will remove or disable access to the material expeditiously and notify the person who submitted it. We may forward your notice, including your name and contact information, to that person.
7.4 Counter-Notification
If your material was removed and you believe that was a mistake or misidentification, you may send a counter-notification to info@veteranmp.org containing:
- Your physical or electronic signature;
- Identification of the removed material and where it appeared;
- A statement under penalty of perjury that you have a good faith belief the material was removed as a result of mistake or misidentification;
- Your name, address, and telephone number;
- A statement consenting to the jurisdiction of the federal district court for the district where you reside, or, if outside the United States, for any district where VMP may be found, and that you will accept service of process from the complaining party.
If we receive a valid counter-notification, we may restore the material in 10 to 14 business days unless the complaining party notifies us that they have filed a court action.
7.5 Misrepresentation
Under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f), anyone who knowingly materially misrepresents that material is infringing — or was removed by mistake — may be liable for damages, including costs and attorneys’ fees.
7.6 Repeat Infringers
We will terminate, in appropriate circumstances, the accounts and submission privileges of anyone who repeatedly infringes copyright.
8. Requesting Permission
For any use beyond Section 3 — publications, documentaries, museum exhibits, commercial projects, journalism, or academic reproduction — email info@veteranmp.org with “PERMISSION REQUEST” in the subject line.
Tell us what you want to use, where it will appear, and how it will be distributed. We are generally glad to say yes to uses that honor veterans, and we do not charge for educational, journalistic, or nonprofit use. Where a submitting family holds the copyright, we will refer you to them or seek their consent.
9. Third-Party and Government Materials
Some material on the Site originates with the U.S. government and is in the public domain. Other material is used with permission or under license from third parties, who retain their rights. Where third-party material is identified as such, this Policy’s permissions do not extend to it, and you should seek permission from the rights holder.
10. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Policy at any time. We will change the “Last Updated” date and post the revised version here.
11. Contact
Veteran Memorial Project
Severance, Colorado
Website: veteranmemorialproject.org
Email: info@veteranmp.org
| Purpose | Subject line |
|---|---|
| Copyright infringement notice | DMCA NOTICE |
| Counter-notification | DMCA COUNTER-NOTICE |
| Request to remove material | RECORD REMOVAL |
| Request permission to use content | PERMISSION REQUEST |
Veteran Memorial Project is a Colorado nonprofit corporation and a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.
