Back to About Story Tsunami First Progress Report, January 2, 2005 Dear Storytellers: I sent out my first proposal for Story Tsunami on Tuesday, December 28th, and a great deal has happened in just a few days. It's already time for a progress report! SUMMARY: "Story Tsunami" will be a wave of storytelling benefit concerts for the victims of the December 24, 2004 earthquake and tsunami which caused so much devastation for Sumatra, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, the Maldive, Andaman, and Nicobar Islands, and Somalia. My proposal is to provide organizing, web, and publicity resources so that as many as 50 storytelling organizations can hold fundraising events during the month of February. These concerts should feature folktales and stories from the afflicted countries. Each organization will turn over funds it raises to previously identified charitable agencies doing relief work. ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS: At this point, I'm doing this without the blessing of the National Storytelling Network (the staff has been on vacation), and sadly, I haven't kept up my membership for several years. If you want to call or write by US mail, here's how to reach me:
Email is the best way to communicate with me, at lmarvin@twcny.rr.com PROGRESS REPORT: I've gotten word from 17 different storytellers or storytelling organizers that they are either approaching their local storytelling group, considering holding a fundraising event, or already planning an event. Word has gotten out to two international storytelling communities, in Singapore and Argentina, and programs are being considered in those locations. Here is a list of the places and contact name for concerts that will most likely take place:
IMPORTANT: If you have
scheduled a date, time, and location for a SETTING A DATE: Establishing a single date for Story Tsunami looks to be impossible -- even Tellabration events take place over a span of a week or so -- so, I'm giving up the idea of one day for the events, and aiming instead for a steady stream of events until the end of February. Atlanta-area storytellers will be holding on event on January 22, and might hold another one later; in New Hampshire, there is interest in holding several events throughout the state, on different dates allowing the storytellers to travel around (which could be a great model -- develop a program and tour it through your state!) PUBLICITY MATERIALS IN PROCESS: Below is a draft of a logo (made small so that it travels easily by email) that will be available for use by any storytelling organization holding a Story Tsunami event. Please let me know what you think. STORY MATERIALS: Margaret Read McDonald has contributed several stories from the countries that were afflicted by the tsunami; Laura Simms has offered to identify more; Jackie Baldwin of http://www.story-lovers.com will put together a special Story Bones collection just for this project. I am hoping that members of Storytell will be able to pitch in, too. COMMUNICATIONS: I am about to secure a web site for this project, with its own domain name. I am aiming for 'StoryTsunami.org', and will let you know as soon as the site is secured and on-line. CHARITY AGENCIES: I want to establish, very soon, a small committee to provide me with oversight and to select targeted charities. This committee will be in email contact fairly intensively in the next few weeks. Are any of you eager and/or willing to serve in this capacity? I'm concerned about developing clear guide lines for giving, for acknowledging gifts if people what the tax deduction, without overburdening any one organization. I have no 501(c)3 organization and don't want to handle any of the money raised, so each group will be responsible for collecting money and turning over the funds to the target charities, with sufficient paper work to satisfy the needs of the charities and the givers. Most concert attenders will not want receipts for their admission tickets, but we can hope (and encourage) that some attenders will bring their check books and write larger checks. These checks should be written directly to the target agencies. Again, I would like a committee to establish guidelines. LOCAL PUBLICITY: Let as many people know as possible -- think beyond your usual circle of story audiences. Most important, you'll need to pester (yes, pester) the news and arts editors of your local newspapers until they pay attention -- as soon as you set a date, send an email; write a press release (I'll be sending a draft release, but you will want to adapt it for local audiences) and send it by mail; send it by email a week later; send a photograph and another copy of the press release about one week before the event; send bios of the storytellers, send a summary of a couple of the stories being told, send a short paragraph about what makes storytelling great of adult listeners. GOALS: Could we accomplish this? 50 concerts across the country raising $1,000 each by drawing audiences of roughly 100 people each, paying $10 each. Yes, $50,000? For many of us, that means drawing in new audiences that have never before come to storytelling events - whew. And, charging $10 might be a big leap -- but storytelling is worth it and our cause is certainly worth it. INSPIRATION: Finally, if you are feeling overwhelmed (and who doesn't?), some inspiration. Laura Simms wrote a beautiful letter that came to the Storytell list about the practice of compassionate storytelling. Her last paragraph reminds us that simply telling stories is important, when she wrote, "I would also like to introduce into our practice of storytelling, an ancient buddhist (and probably so many traditional cultures) of the dedication of merit. By dedicating the merit, or sharing the blessing of peacefulness aroused through the living event of storytelling, we can help increase the love and kindness that self exists and is always available, in the world. " Let me know if you would like a copy of the full letter. And thank you thank you thank you, all for responding so quickly and with such enthusiasm! Fondly, Lee-Ellen Marvin |