Raising the Story

Raising the Story (RTSworks) is a joint venture by anthropologist Barbara Garrity-Blake and journalist Susan West that fosters community collaboration for creative projects in the public interest. This includes oral histories, radio broadcasts, photography, research, and public forums that raise the stories that matter to people. A sample of projects: Fish House Opera, the Coastal Voices oral history project (www.carolinacoastalvoices.com), and the Talk of the Villages event at Hatteras Island's Day at the Docks festival.

"Raising the Story" is named after the oral history project "Raising the Story of Menhaden Fishing," supported by the NC Humanities Council. Barbara Garrity-Blake, in partnership with the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum on Harkers Island, NC, worked with industry folks concerned about the closure of the last "fish factory" in the state. Just as fishermen worked together to raise nets heavy with fish, a team collaborated in the collection of oral histories and photographs, and held an event involving middle school student participation, roundtable talks, and a performance of the Menhaden Chanteymen singers to raise their story.