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Profiles in Storytelling
Meet Jacqueline Merrill, M.A. who is the current president of the National Spellbinders Board of Directors. Jackie is the founder of CenterPoint, a program to facilitate discussions and exercises in creative self-expression.
Jackie was the host of a television show in Aspen for 5 years.
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A Reminder:
Resource for Spellbinders
Spellbinders National has launched a Spellbinders-only list serv for volunteers to share stories and ideas. This is a group, hosted by Yahoo Groups, that you can use to share ideas, pose questions to your fellow storytellers, and get some great tips! You can find out how to join this online group at the Spellbinders National website.
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 Greetings!
Welcome to Mesa County Spellbinders Newsletter!
A little bit about us:
The mission of the National Spellbinders organization is to nurture literacy, character and intergenerational community through the art of oral storytelling. In order to spread the magic of oral storytelling Spellbinder chapters train volunteers to become storytellers in their communities.
This newsletter is sent to you by the Mesa County Spellbinders. Enjoy! |
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Spellbinder Profile -Jackie Merrill
 The television show she hosted interviewed guests on female role models and mentoring. She was formerly a board member of the California School of Professional Psychology and past member of the Illinois Governor's Council on Fitness and Sports.
Jackie currently serves on the Governor's Commission on Community Service.
Jackie has also been a Spellbinder in Aspen since 1997 and is passionate about storytelling. She took some time to meet with a few of our local Spellbinders. She expressed interest in supporting our chapter in whatever way she can. We brainstormed some ideas for recruitment of new Spellbinders. Jackie made some suggestions for consideration which we will share with our local Board at our next meeting.
It was great meeting Jackie and we appreciate her taking the time to talk with us. Thanks Jackie!Top of page
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Question of the Month:
Do you have any favorite fall-themed stories? Any sources for great Halloween tales?
Bone Soup by Cambria Evans is a story similar to "Stone Soup" except the characters involved are witches, zombies, and mummies. The ingredients include things like bat wings, spider eggs and toenail clippings. Yum! You can find this in the library. Janice Shepherd
I have to admit that all my classes love the stories from the Scary Stories series of books. These stories were collected from folklore and retold by Alvin Schwartz. There are three books in the series as well as a CD collection that is great. Titles for these three books are Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, and Scary Stories 3 More Tales to Chill Your Bones. These include quite a few jump tales, a favorite story type for all the classes I tell for! Karen Hurst
There is a series of books that are great for Kindergarten or 1st grade. They are written by Diane de Groat and are about Gilbert, a possum and a 1st grader himself. One of them is Brand New Pencils, Brand New Books and its about Gilbert's very first day of school. Let's just say it's not what he expected! Her Halloween book is called Trick or Treat, Smell My Feet. In this story Gilbert accidently grabs the bag with his sister's Halloween costume instead of his own and has to dress as a ballerina. De Groat has other books in the series for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines Day, etc. Anne Saunders
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Spellbinders Show & Tell
 We had some great stories at our August workshop!
Anne Saunders told "A Bagful of Stories" which can be found in The Usborne Book of Myths and Legends. This story demonstrates that stories "have a life all their own" and what can happen if they are not shared. Bob Spears added that he tells a similar story called "Story Spirits." I've included an link to this version which is told by Aaron Shepard.
Ruthmary Allison told "The Unicorn in the Garden" by James Thurber. She found this story in The Oxford Book of Modern Fairy Tales, edited by Alson Laurie, which can be found in the library. You can also find this story online. This story is probably best suited for adult and young adult audiences.
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Coming Attractions!
Next month our Question of the Month will be:
Have you ever used your storytelling skills in venues other than elementary school classrooms? Have you told stories for family gatherings, a social club, or anywhere else? If you have please share your experiences with your fellow Spellbinders!
If you have a great suggestion/answer to this question feel free to share it with your fellow Spellbinders by sending me an email. Please include Question of the Month in the subject line. Some of the answers will appear in our next issue along with a note citing the source.
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In case you did not get this email invitation:
The Roaring Fork Valley Chapter would like to invite our fellow Spellbinders in Parachute, Eagle County and Mesa County to join us in a Storytelling Enrichment Workshop to be given by professional Boulder storyteller Susan Marie Frontczak.
The training will take place at the Eagle County Community Center in El Jebel on September 16 from 12:30pm to 3:30pm.
Susan is an enthusiastic, talented and FUN workshop leader who will give us pointers and practice to enrich our storytelling. Check out her website.
You can bring a brownbag lunch to enjoy with us at 11:30. We'll have cookies and juice.
Please rsvp by emailing Germaine Dietsch at germaine@spellbinders.org or calling her at 970-923-1230 to let us know if you will come.
Hope to have you with us.
Germaine
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Thank you for your contributions and support to our organization. If you know of someone who might enjoy this newsletter please forward via the link below.
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 Sincerely,
Karen Hurst
Spellbinders Mesa County |
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