Benzie Central students showcasing community through oral history project

BENZONIA — The legacy of local storytellers like Bruce Catton lives on in Benzie County thanks to the efforts of four Benzie Central students.

These four high school students — Reeve Katt, Au Sable Kreiner, Melia Lorenz and Finn McLaren — are engaging in a yearlong project to record oral histories from community members and showcase them for current and future generations to learn from and enjoy.

“I kind of have a fascination with how this community has come together over the years and how, quite literally, everybody knows everybody in some way, shape, or form,” Lorenz said. “I am very proud of my roots. I am proud to say that I am from Benzie. I am a proud Michigander. I am so excited to share that with everybody and share other people’s stories that haven’t been told.”

This oral history project is made possible thanks to a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

According to Amanda McLaren, director of Benzonia Public Library and the individual responsible for applying for the grant, grants like this one typically go toward larger organizations and this is the first time the grant cycle has been opened to small communities. Moreover, of all the small communities in the state to apply for the grant, only Benzie County was chosen.

“The community is awesome. I think that we really appealed to them with that,” McLaren said. “We have a rich community here …There has been a lot of struggle, a lot of hard work for the community to be what it is today, and so many people contributed to that. That this is the smallest county in the state and yet we are trying to do big things speaks well.”

Through the grant, the library has been given the support and financial means to accomplish what otherwise would not be possible.

Each of the participating students received a MacBook Pro, a camera and tripod with multiple lenses and other accessories to help them record and later edit the oral histories of individuals in the community. Individuals from the University of Michigan traveled to Benzie County in September to provide the students with two days of training and will continue to provide them support throughout the project.

In the spring, Katt, Kreiner, Lorenz and McLaren will pass on what they have learned by teaching the community how to use the recording equipment, which will be available to be checked out for the recording of additional oral histories.

Amanda McLaren and Benzie Central High School teacher Ferd De Guia will guide the students at the local level. For De Guia, a Benzie County native, mentoring the students as their staff advisor was an opportunity he could not turn down.

“I don’t want to sound cheesy, but I think it was meant to be,” De Guia said. “I grew up here. I’ve been gone for 15 years. I came back here (this year), and it all fell into place … Coming back here, I knew I wanted to be impactful in the community. What better way is there to be impactful than to help these kids be impactful in their community. I truly believe it was meant to be.”

The students have already begun recording oral histories, their first project being to each interview two veterans. In most cases, the students did not know the veteran prior to their interview, which according to Lorenz, provided a unique experience.

“It’s a weird experience asking somebody about possibly the most horrific moments of their life when you’ve just met them. I think it’s kind of like a beautiful experience, because there’s a lot of people who won’t share it,” she said. “I feel like it must bring them some personal peace just to say: ‘I told my story. It’s going to be there forever in Washington D.C.’ I feel like that’s kind of comforting.”

Katt added that she has enjoyed learning from the life experiences of Vietnam veterans with whom she spoke.

“Listening to them talk about when they were my age and the mistakes that they made is helpful for me to think about what I want to do, so I don’t repeat their same mistakes but can do again their successes,” Katt said.

The veteran interviews will soon be able to be enjoyed by all, as De Guia said they should be online at the Library of Congress by the end of the year.

Following completing their interviews of veterans, the oral history group will turn its attention to Christmas and the holiday traditions of Benzie County residents. They will conduct these interviews from noon to 2 p.m. on Dec. 14 at the Benzonia Public Library Holiday Party during Christmas Magic. The exact set up for these interviews is too be determined, but the students are looking to hear from local families about their traditions and invite them to attend the event.

Interviews of community members, who have unique views and experiences, will continue into the new year as part of the Legacy Phase of the oral history project.

Finn McLaren, for one, is excited to see what kinds of stories he can uncover.

“Living in such a small county, I think I know all of the stories that it has to offer, but I don’t. It’s just the tip of the iceberg,” he said. “I love how we are taking this information and making it so much easier for everyone to have access to.”

The project will conclude with a film presentation which will chronicle what the students have done, featuring clips from interviews with a number of different community members. This will take place at the Garden Theater next spring. Following the presentation of the film, the event will feature a question and answer session with the students.

“It’s just going to be a really special moment,” Lorenz said. “I am excited to see what kind of ripple effect this causes. I know we are going to make a movie, but what are the people who watched the movie going to do about it? What are they going to think about what they see?”

De Guia echoed these thoughts, suggesting that the impact this project has on the community could be tremendous.

“One thing I’m looking forward to is seeing the connections that these kids make with the community and the barriers that are going to be broken,” De Guia said. “I think there are a lot of people out there who want the opportunity to talk to one another, but just don’t have the access. These guys are going to break down a lot of barriers and give people the opportunity to tell their story. I just can’t wait to see the ripple effect. I’m just thrilled to watch these guys do amazing things.”