As a youngster growing up in the 50s and 60s, the word dream was part of my
vocabulary. I admired dreamy boys, sang “Dream Lover”, watched I Dream of
Jeannie, and ate Dream Whip on my strawberry shortcake. Life was good. Sixty
years later dream was resurrected in a new way.
A long time friend asked me one day, knowing I had been telling stories for a half
century, if there was anything I had longed to do that I had not done in my life.
After some thought, I said I had not seen the opportunity to pass on storytelling
as a skill and art to the young people of our state. I knew we had the talent and
we had the youth; I just had never had the opportunity. That friend made the
connections and handed me funding for 2 years of storytelling camp, and that is
how Come Spin a Tale came to be at Glenville State University.
July 2022 ushered in a week long camp for 6 students who were immersed in
campus life and sat at the feet of such tellers as Bil Lepp, Adam Booth, Jaimie
Froemel, Karen Vuranch, Kevin Cordi, Mike Perry, and Bill Hairston, all members
of the WV Storytelling Guild. In addition, more than 5 other tellers were there to
offer support and provide guidance following the workshops and concerts. David
O’Dell, banjo picker extraordinaire and Chemistry Professor at GSU, not only co-
directed but also entertained one night with his bloody ballads music, as he and
Pete Kosky sang and played the night away! We left that week with stories ringing
in our ears and looking forward to the next year.
July 2023 saw our camp grow. Our little group of first year campers all returned
and were joined by 3 more. These 9 worked with many of the first-year
presenters but also learned from Fran Kirk, Jodi French-Burr, Judi Tarowsky and
Teri Lott. We learned about ghost tales, basics of telling, place-based telling and
props and puppets, in addition to writing and sharing a tale for storytelling in the
oral tradition. The last concert featured students telling tales that ranged from
original historical tales, ghost tales, fractured fairy tales and much more.
This time we have youth tellers committed to joining the guild’s adult members in
telling stories at public venues throughout the state where storytelling is
recognized as one of West Virginia’s treasures.
What does the future hold for youth telling? Can another year of camp come from
the strong beginning? This second year we reached our youth in 6 states; they
came from an interest in show choir, music, writing and speaking. They were
willing to give up a week of their summer to grow their strengths, recognize their
challenges and keep storytelling alive. Funding is all that holds them back from
Camp 2024.