From the Tuskegee Airmen’s fight for equality to a naturalist’s exploration of the Great Smoky Mountains, the sights, sounds and tastes of America will be found at the Perry County District Library this fall.
The eastern Ohio library is one of just 16 from across the country selected to participate in a new national initiative: the Smithsonian Associate Rural Library Program.
It’s designed to bring resources from the world’s largest museum complex to the country’s most rural areas. The 16-member cohort of libraries will each receive support from the program to host 12 educational events in their communities, with live virtual presentations from the Smithsonian.
Melissa Marolt, director of the Perry County District Library, says the partnership gives libraries access to an online catalog of upcoming programs.
“As rural cohort members, we go on to the catalog, we choose things that we think would work in our communities,” Marolt said. “So another library may not choose the same programs that we've chosen for Perry County.”
A focus on rural communities
Marolt believes the Perry County District Library is a great fit for the initiative because community programming is already at the center of its work.
“In Perry County, we really, really work hard to provide unique programming opportunities that are not only fun and exciting and new, but are also opportunities for cultural enrichment,” she said. [They’re] things that people might not have an opportunity to do if they can't leave the county.”
"Not everyone can visit D.C. and go to the Smithsonian museums, so this an opportunity to bring that cultural information, those types of experiences, to people in rural areas."Melissa Marolt, Perry County District Library
Like many Ohio libraries, the Perry County District Library runs a bookmobile to reach community members who can’t make it to the library. They also offer delivery to those who are homebound, have adult literacy classes, run donation drives and host family art nights at branch locations. It’s all part of what inspired Perry County native Megan Cremeans to nominate the library for the Smithsonian program.
“Public institutions like the Perry County District Library are bastions of vibrant rural communities,” Cremeans said in a statement. “They create spaces where people can come together across generations to learn, exchange ideas and share their own stories. A partnership with an institution like the Smithsonian builds on that role, bringing experiences and perspectives that might otherwise feel distant while giving the community a local lens through which to explore and make meaning of them.”
Library director Marolt says it’s the unique perspective of rural communities that allow programs like this to thrive.
“We struggle here in Perry County with economic development, but also we have a driving force in the people who live here,” Marolt said. “We have a rich history of very diverse people and the population is full of go-getters. They really like to develop ideas and really promote the area.”
Taste of the Times
The first five events in Perry County will be a series called “Taste of the Times.” Each event will have a tasting plate of food themed to the event topic.
It kicks off with “White House Memories: Recollections of the longest-serving Chief Usher,” on Sept. 9, with a live virtual presentation by Gary Walters, who served as White House chief usher from 1970 until 2007.
“His book is the primary focus of the event,” Marolt said. “But I have started gathering a collection of books that are recipes from the White House. So my hope is that I will choose two or three of these recipes and make samplings of those, offer the tasting and really touch all the senses of the participants, so they'll be able to see and smell and taste the food that may have been part of the time that Mr. Walters was the chief usher at the White House.”
During the following event, “Apples of Uncommon Character,” author Rowan Jacobsen will discuss the history of apples in America and go over some unusual varieties.
“That's gonna be a fun evening with apple tasting. I think we'll probably serve apple cider, have fresh apples with some different dips and probably go for an apple pie or an apple crumble,” Marolt said.
The last three events in the “Taste of the Times” series will be:
- “An Appalachian Journey: Skyline Drive to the Great Smokies” with naturalist and interpreter Keith Tomlinson
- “Wings of Change: Tuskegee Airmen and the fight for equality” with aviation expert Jerry Burton, a past president of Tuskegee Airmen Inc.
- “The American Table: 10 Cookbooks that shaped a nation” with cultural historian Leslie Goddard
The Perry County District Library is currently planning additional events as part of the Smithsonian program. The events are open to anyone, even those who aren’t Perry County residents.