The Scotts Run Settlement House, The Shack and the Scotts Run Museum and Trail announced that their partnership proposal was awarded the Mid Atlantic Arts Central Appalachia Living Traditions (CALT) grant for West Virginia.
This grant will be used to implement a year of events and classes at the three venues to pass on traditions of foodways, history/heritage, music culture and repair/upcycle. The project is called Scotts Run Resonance — Passing It Forward.
Central Appalachia Living Traditions promotes the understanding and recognition of folk arts and culture in the Appalachian counties of Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia through a three-part program that invests in folk arts communities while seeding new folk and traditional arts experiences and honoring under-recognized practitioners of traditions across the region.
In 2021, Scotts Run was identified as the CALT anchor community for West Virginia, and in 2022 Mid Atlantic Arts worked with these three historic entities to collaboratively design a $75,000 investment to support folk arts and culture in the region.
Representatives from these partners reached out to community members, regional organizations, WVU Extension, WVU international student organizations, relevant WVU faculty, practitioners of music, food traditions of growing, preparing and storing, as well as oral traditions of storytelling and repair skills in order to plan a year-long program. They have a list of 60 interested people and will be continuing to build new relationships with a community coordinator who will solicit participation from practitioners to share and people to take classes and attend events, all of which will be free to the public.
The first event is a Spring Planting Festival from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. May 13 at the Shack Neighborhood House, 537 Blue Horizon Drive, Pursglove.
The Festival is a family event with activities for kids, adults and older adults. Participants will be planting raised bed gardens and potting seeds and plants. There will also be live music and a chance to collect and share oral history, storytelling, demonstrations/presentations from the Beekeepers of Mon County, MountainSol, StartingPoints and healthy snacks among other offerings. Performances will be by Al Anderson’s Rock and Soul Revue, Appalachian Soul Man Aristotle Jones and special guests.
Individuals can sign up for the Osage Gospel and Soul Community Choir.
This will also be an introduction to the whole Scotts Run Resonance program and an invitation to join in with later opportunities like the community choir, music, cooking, foraging, songwriting and other classes, Repair Cafés, and more.
The community coordinator will be introduced then as well, as the groups are in the final interviewing stage.
For questions, call the Shack, 304 599-5466, or Eve Faulkes, 304 692-1116.
