Episode 22: Mendon Remembers
In July, 2021 residents of the town of Mendon, VT gathered to share stories and reflect on the impact of tropical storm Irene, 10 years after it tore through their small town. In this episode of VT Untapped we hear excerpts from this story circle event.
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Ten Years Later
This episode is the second in a pair of shows in which we reflect on the impact and legacy of Tropical Storm Irene. In Mendon Remembers, we hear from a group of Mendon, VT residents who gathered for a story circle in July, 2021 to share how their perspectives on Irene and its impacts have unfolded over the past ten years. Everyone who participated had also taken part in the story circles recorded by the Vermont Folklife Center immediately after the storm as part of the Irene Storytelling Project.
If you missed it, make sure to listen to the previous episode, Revisiting Irene: “Weathering the Storm.”
VT Untapped producer Mary Wesley recording the Mendon Story Circle. Photo by Reilly Brown.
The Irene Storytelling Project
Organizing Story Circles was one part of the Irene Storytelling Project. In addition to recording these events, our engagement was also an effort to support community-initiated documentation projects that explored the impact of Irene, and to maintain Irene Digital Memory, an online repository for media generated about Irene and the human response to the storm. Click below to browse the database.
Documenting Mendon’s Story
In the immediate aftermath of Irene, the Mendon Historical Society - coordinated by future VFC board member Ann Singiser - was instrumental in documenting the storm’s impact in their small town. With support and training from VFC staff, members organized and hosted three story circles and conducted several individual interviews, ultimately recording the experiences of 41 individuals, all of which reside in the VFC Archive. Working with these records they created a book (see below) with photos and interview excerpts to commemorate the extraordinary efforts of Mendonites in recovering from this extreme weather event.
We thank Ann and the Mendon Historical Society for taking on this initiative and for organizing the retrospective story circle this July.
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The views and opinions expressed by participants of this project are their own and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Vermont Folklife Center.
This episode of VT Untapped has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts: Democracy demands wisdom.
