| The lost art of spinning tales will be the focus of Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute's
upcoming writers' symposium, "Leafing Through the Past." Featuring a diverse group of regionally and nationally
acclaimed authors and speakers, the symposium will capture storytelling at its best. The annual event, which draws hundreds
of visitors to the college each year, gets underway April 4-5.
"We will have something for everyone," said CCC&TI English instructor Elizabeth Hardy, coordinator of this year's symposium. The event will feature the down-home humor of Tony Peacock; the nostalgic, often hilarious tales of Donald Davis; the powerfully realistic writing of Silas House; the bone-chilling legends of Charlotte Ross; the thought-provoking poetry of Leatha Kendrick; and the spiritual stories of
Native American Jacque Redleaf Garneau.
Hardy herself kicks off the agenda at 2 p.m. in Room E-120 of the Caldwell campus on
Friday, April 4. Coming from a long line of family storytellers, she will present tales from her
Celtic heritage and the hapless, circuit-riding Preacher Templeton. Hardy, a professional storyteller,
teaches workshops throughout Western North Carolina. She has been a presenter at the Women of
Appalachia Conference and has contributed to the Encyclopedia of Appalachia.
Charlotte Ross, a folklorist specializing in Appalachian regional culture, will follow Hardy's
presentation at 3:30 p.m. An adjunct communications professor at Appalachian State University,
Ross has an extensive background in Appalachian studies and is a frequent speaker for the North
Carolina Humanities Council. Her program is made possible through a grant from the NC
Humanities Council's Humanities Forum, a Speakers Bureau of the NCHC.
Leatha Kendrick will share poetry from 4:45 to 5:45 p.m. in her presentation, "The Possible."
A former editor of Wind magazine, Kendrick has taught creative writing at the University of
Kentucky and elsewhere. Her poems have appeared in The Louisville Review, The American
Voice, Passages North, Nimrod, The Connecticut Review and various other publications. Her first
book of poems, Heart Cake, was published in 2000.
Author and storyteller Donald Davis will conclude Friday night's session from 7 to 8:15
p.m. Davis, a retired Methodist minister, is a former chairperson for the board of directors of the
National Storytelling Association. He has been a featured teller at the Smithsonian Institution, the
Worlds Fair, festivals and concerts throughout the world.
Tony Peacock leads Saturday's lineup from 9 to 10 a.m. at CCC&TIs Watauga Campus. His
session entitled "Collard and Backbone Stories: Getting Everybody to the Table While the
Cornbread's Hot," draws upon his various life experiences. Anative of Clement, NC, Peacock was
the 1999 National Hollerin Contest Champion and has appeared on The Tonight Show and David
Letterman. A columnist for The Chapel Hill News and commentator for WUNC Public Radio, he
continues to perform for numerous festivals and organizations .
Native American Jacque Red Leaf Garneau will take participants on a spiritual journey
from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m. Saturday, also on the Watauga Campus. A Cherokee/Choctaw from
Oklahoma, her legend-telling brings her rich Indian heritage to life. She spends much of her time
teaching Indian arts, customs, games, songs, beadwork, basketweaving and leather work.
Guests will have a second opportunity to hear Donald Davis as he rounds out Saturday
morning sessions from 11:15 to 12:30 p.m. Davis remembers, "I discovered that in a story I could
safely dream any dream, hope any hope, go anywhere I pleased, fight any foe, win or lose, live or
die. My stories created a safe experimental learning place."
Silas House will visit the CCC&TI Watauga Campus for the final leg of the symposium on
April 17 from 2:30 to 3:45 p.m. Chosen as one of the South's ten emerging writers by the millennial
gathering of writers at Vanderbilt University in 2000, House is a frequent contributor to National Public Radio's "All
Things Considered." His first novel, Clay's Quilt, received rave reviews form over 40 publications and the Bronze Book Award from Foreward magazine. His second novel, A Parchment of Leaves, debuted as a top ten Booksense Pick and has been a SEBAbestseller since its release in October.
"One of the most distressing trends many of us see in our students and the culture at large is a loss of connection
to the past," said Hardy. "Each day, someones grandma or Aunt Mary leaves this world and takes her stories with
her because her family never saved them. Our speakers are all people who are seeking to stop that loss of past and heritage by keeping the stories alive in print and in telling. We wanted our students and our community to see how they can access and save their family stories, cultural stories and even their own stories. If even one person who attends the symposium goes home and begins preserving such stories, then the vision of this symposium will be fulfilled."
The symposium, funded by the CCC&TI Foundation, is free and open to the public. Teacher renewal credit is available for a registration
fee of $50 by contacting CCC&TI's Corporate and Continuing Education Office at 726-2242 or 263-5370. For more information on
the event, call 726-2345 or 297-3811. |  
|
