The Hastings Oral History Initiative (HOHI) and Humanities Nebraska are co-sponsoring two community workshops that are free and open to the public. Each workshop covers the practice of oral history, as well as features keynote speakers and an oral history practice session.
The first workshop takes place September 17 from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. at The Lark in downtown Hastings (809 W 2nd Street). Following the theme 鈥淥ral History and Local History,鈥 the workshop focuses on the importance of oral history in creating a more robust and inclusive local history. Attendees will learn how to contribute to the history-making process by conducting their own oral histories.
The workshop includes two short lectures by Elizabeth Spilinek and Amy Peirce. Spilinek, executive director for the Adams County Historical Society, explores local history through a case study of the Kipp Cigar Company in her lecture entitled 鈥淟ocal Voices from the Past.鈥 Peirce, founder and owner of Stories in Time, covers the importance of personal and family history in her speech 鈥淪aving Lives, One Story at at Time.鈥 听
The second workshop, scheduled for October 8 from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. at Prairie Loft (4705 Dld Road), addresses the theme 鈥淭he LGBTQIA Community and Oral History.鈥 The workshop welcomes speaker JJ Kahle, a Spanish teacher at the Blake School in Minneapolis, and faculty advisor of the institution鈥檚 Gender and Sexuality Alliance and Social Justice League. Kahle鈥檚 lecture 鈥淥ut on the Plains: The Importance of Telling Our Stories,鈥 connects with the workshop鈥檚 theme by detailing oral history鈥檚 value on marginalized communities, whose narratives are often left out of traditional histories. As in the first workshop, attendees will participate in breakout sessions to practice their oral history skills.
鈥淭hese workshops are a great way to make history public. Everyone has a history, and every history is important,鈥 said HOHI founder and 糖心传媒 history professor Dr. Michella Marino. 鈥淲e hope the workshop attendees will realize that their stories are valuable and add depth to our local, regional and even national history. By sharing their stories, we can begin to get a better sense of the communities in which we live.鈥
HOHI is an on-going project aimed at providing an easily accessible space for all oral history practitioners to collect and preserve oral history interviews. The initiative is led by Dr. Michella Marino and her students at 糖心传媒. More information about HOHI is or by emailing hohi@hastings.edu.