>> Do you have ten good stories that you can tell?

And what do they say about you?

Stay with us as we talk with Miss Susan Reed and Mr.

Jason Berkowitz from the Stories in Mind Project at the Frazier Kentucky History Museum about the importance of sharing our lived experiences as we age.

Next on Kentucky Health.

>> Kentucky Health is funded in part by a grant from the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.

>> A kid.

Ask an older person something along the line of what did you do back then?

And the older person gets a wistful look in their face, blurs only to refocus on them as their younger self, while direct questions such as that may trigger a response.

Other things such as a taste, smell, touch, sound, location and seeing.

Some people are equally effective in soliciting and bringing long forgotten memories to the surface.

Not surprisingly, stories that we hear or tell are powerful triggers for memories.

Unfortunately, or in some cases, fortunately, as we age, time has a way of obscuring them, and the significance of the events and people involved may be lost.

For the elderly, memories are reminders of the past, harbingers of the future, and anchors to the present.

Memories for them and us are keys to understanding why we are who we are and validate our existence.

For many of us, our memories are often the visitor who remains with us when all others have left the room.

Recapturing and revisiting our memories can have great importance to both our physical and mental health.

There are many means that facilitate this process, and today we have two guests from the Frazier Kentucky History Museum who will discuss the hows and whys of retrieving our memories through a project called Stories in Mind.

First, we have Miss Susan Reed.

Miss Reed has over 25 years of therapy experience.

She holds a master's degree in Expressive Therapies and has done Post-master's work in behavior analysis.

Next we have Mr.

Jason Berkowitz.

Mr.

Berkowitz received his B.A.

in anthropology from Center College and his M.A.

in Cultural Heritage Management from Johns Hopkins University.

He is an engagement specialist at the Frazier Kentucky Historical History Museum and is a stories and Mind facilitator.

Welcome to you both and thank you.

>> Thanks for having us, Susan.

>> What is it that you do and how do you do it?

>> That's a really great question.

First of all, thank you for having us and letting us speak about this really important program to both of us.

We could not do it if we didn't have the passion that we have for it.

We've been given a lot of leeway from the Frazier.

They let us research stories that have gone untold and find meaning in those stories, and then go out and present them in a way that has meaning to the people we speak about.

>> So, Jason, given your background, how did you get into the story business?

>> Well, honestly, I come from a family of storytellers.

It is a long standing tradition in our family to gather together and tell stories, family stories that have been passed down for generations and generations.

It helps us to connect to those we've lost.

And what I really love about this tradition is that, well, the younger kids, they eventually take up that mantle.

You know, I remember when my time came to tell those stories that I had heard over and over again how excited I was to do that.

And so that's what really instilled that tradition into me, was just telling stories at such a young age.

>> So why is the Frazier History Museum involved in this?

Why?

I mean, why would a museum even think about doing.

>> Well, museums.

Nothing without its community, right?

Everything in that museum is a product of the lived experiences of our elders out there.

Without their history, without their lived history.

There is no museum, truly.

So we're just objects without their experiences and their ability to attach meaning and see meaning and significance in what we have at our museum.

You can't have one without the other, is what I'm saying.

>> How do you see that?

>> Well, I would say that the Frazier has a strong commitment and a vision of mattering more to more people, and they identified a population that is often overlooked and they want to matter to them.

And we have a population that can't always get to our museum.

And so we've decided to take the museum to those people.

>> Well, I want to come back to that, but let's take a look at a typical Stories in Mind program.

Let's take a look at this video, and then we'll come back and talk.

[MUSIC] Bryant.

>> You know, getting folks out and doing something completely different and having them share stories with us and we learn more from them than we do hitting the books and making these stories.

You know, it's just that time to come together as a community and get to know one another and just really form these bonds and relationships that they would not have done with any other program.

>> But we tell a lot of different stories.

Today we're going to tell stories related to love stories.

>> Rudi Muth met Isabelle Stengel when they were working.

>> When the residents are in here and I see them listening to the storytellers.

Yes.

I mean, it's easy to see that they are reaching maybe parts of their memories that hadn't been in the front of their minds for a while.

So it really is wonderful, you know, to see that.

>> I know.

>> Okay.

>> For about 3 minutes or 2.

>> Minutes, just being around people.

[MUSIC] You're in a room by yourself or I am, and you get to meet other people that you haven't met, that you've just seen in the passing.

And it makes a big difference, makes good friendships.

>> Hearing the interactions between the residents and the facilitators, and the laughter and hearing someone say that is the highlight of their week.

It's words.

Just don't do it justice.

>> Love letters.

>> It is the highlight of my week because you're with other people and you learn something new.

>> Understatement right there is an understatement.

[MUSIC] >> Well, Jason, it looks like you're the candy man going around dismissing all the sweets and everything.

So the name is Frazier Kentucky History Museum.

Got it.

But it's in Louisville.

Yes.

Are you restricted to the Jefferson County area, or do you go throughout the state?

>> I wouldn't use the word restricted.

We are always looking to grow this program.

So for the first three years of it, we have remained local within Louisville.

But throughout these three years we have discussed expanding it into other locations, even across the river in Indiana, we see tremendous value with this program to, you know, for a variety of reasons, you know.

So, yeah, we hope with, you know, some good support from our communities that we can continue this initiative and grow it, grow it, because we just really want people to see what we're doing because we're doing good work.

We really, truly are.

And I would say I'd also like to correct you that I don't dispense the candy.

I always get the candy.

Every time I come.

>> Fair enough.

>> Sounds fair.

And showered with Werther's treats.

So that's true.

Each one of them, every one of them are just so precious.

And what I really like to say about that is that first and foremost, we're building relationships.

It's not the stories are great, but they're a launching point.

They're a catalyst to really, really growing these meaningful relationships, not just between these residents and History, but between us and them.

You know, we're connection in many cases, the only connection to the outside world.

And so nothing could be more rewarding than filling that role, I feel.

>> Well, a little bit we're going to talk about some of the techniques.

But first tell me, are you Susan?

Are you invited in or do you contact these places?

And are they, as we look here, look like you're going to an assisted living facility?

Yes.

Or is it to community centers where people are brought in?

>> We would love to go to community centers, and that would definitely be in our future.

This program started serving elderly citizens and going to long term residential campuses.

And and so that's where we currently are.

But we're hoping to branch out.

We've had an invitation to work with incarcerated women.

That's really interesting to us, and we'd love to be involved in the library system or the schools or whoever wants to hear a story and tell a story.

>> And feel connected.

>> You know, it seems as though we there's a plethora of things the moth on public radio, several other storytelling things.

So this does seem to be a great way in which we're connecting with people.

So to that end, since you're with a museum, are these things going to be collected so that down the road people can go back and access and listen to them?

>> We are very hopeful to make that happen.

In fact, we've started recording some of these stories really, and doing more of an oral history project with certain individuals.

We're well aware when we go that we have a limited time to capture these memories and stories, and they're very important to the museum.

They help us connect dots.

If someone remembers a certain business and a certain neighborhood and we can document that, oh, that's very important to us.

So it's very much a reciprocal relationship.

>> Jason you like that idea of documenting these things for future access?

>> Yes, absolutely.

I, I can't overstate just how incredible these personal histories are.

Just yesterday we went to a new facility, and a woman there opened up to us right out the gate.

She's talking about her uncle being a referee in the late 70s and early 80s for wrestling.

He was on the tour in this region, and she took a major interest in it herself as a child and became a wrestler in the 80s.

So we now know that this woman has this incredible back story of wrestling regionally, you know, and perhaps beyond.

And we operate knowing that everyone has that kind of story within themselves.

>> Jason, please tell me that when you say the 80s, you're referring to 1880s.

And because I'm from that generation, 1880s, I know what you're trying to say.

And all of a sudden I dated myself.

So now, Susan, we talked about this talking thing with the stories and getting these out.

But there are some health benefits that a strong, serious side to this.

How do stories help us as far as, say, cognition or does it help as far as with cognition in.

>> The well, from the data that we've been able to collect surve line?

Yes, it does help with feeling that you are a contributor and not a burden, because we hear that from our people feeling that your life mattered, that you had value, that you're able to come to our session and participate, not just observe, but actually be a participant.

We've had facilities that have said before you came so and so never left their room.

>> Really.

>> So it's a place where they come together.

We're always surprised that sometimes they don't know each other.

And so we do activities to make sure they know who they're sitting next to.

I remember one facility.

Two women are sitting next to each other, and both of them grew up in this small town in Kentucky and never knew it.

Never knew.

So we're trying to build those connections that last long after our hour is over.

>> Now, you mentioned some people say they never came out of the room or never talked.

What about the mental health?

Does this a calming thing?

Jason have you seen?

Has this calming people down or getting them excited?

>> You know, I was going to say actually energizing quite a few people.

We we're told time and time again that by activity directors and Aulds at these places that, oh my goodness, such and such.

I've never seen her open up like this.

Some people, they've never even heard him speak.

And Susan will tell a story that taps into this memory.

And next thing you know, you see this smile spread.

You see their face brighten up, and then all of a sudden, just going on and on and telling stories that people haven't even heard before.

And again, so many of these stories are just incredible.

Incredible.

>> You know, Wayne, we hoped and we our data shows that this does decrease feelings of loneliness and isolation.

Really?

Yes.

And and it does improve their sense of connection.

So we've had several people tell us we wait all week for this hour.

>> Yeah, yeah.

>> It's not because of the candy.

>> It's.

I can't all week for the candy.

>> Well, you know, I imagine that some people are a little more outgoing than others into that agreement.

This young lady I find very fascinating.

So let's take a visit with Miss Billy Willow and let's hear a little bit of her story.

>> Will the circle be unbroken by and by?

Lord?

By and by.

[MUSIC] [MUSIC] There's a band.

On my way in the sky.

Lord in the sky.

>> When she got old enough.

She left Clark County.

For the bright lights of the city.

>> I went to New York with some friends.

And then I went to amateur town contest.

You know, and like I said, I won some and lost a few.

And then back in, in the 40s, I think I got this break from Shorty and Smokey Warren.

They were in a band and they got records out too.

And so I went join their, their band.

And for a backup singer, me and Elaine Sloan, another girl, and then everything just started from there.

>> Her relationship with the Warren brothers led to tours around America, Canada and even Europe.

Along the way, she met some incredible figures from music history.

>> How about the Everly Brothers?

>> Oh yeah, I knew they were.

Some of us sort of grew up together.

Patsy Cline I remember I met her to Faron Young.

Wow.

We'd meet out, you know, we'd all just meet, get off the bus.

And I remember him.

I remember, I remember Tennessee Ernie.

>> That lady was fascinating.

But unfortunately, you have an update for me about Miss Willow.

>> Well, unfortunately, she did pass recently, but we've been in contact with her granddaughter, and the museum will be honoring Billy at an upcoming gala, which her granddaughter will be in attendance.

So that's going to be special.

>> I don't think you have enough space, man.

That woman would seem like she would fill a room.

>> She would.

Can I tell you a little bit about how we came across her?

It's incredible.

And it just really strikes home what we're trying to accomplish with this.

We were at one of these facilities when another individual came to me and said, you know, there's a woman that's wheeling around out there claiming she's a famous country music star.

No one was.

>> Buying it.

>> But I thought, that's an interesting enough lie.

And I think the truth is in the telling anyway, right.

So let's bring her in and see what she has to say.

Well, sure enough, she starts telling us this incredible story about how not only did she know all these country music stars, she's toured with them not just in the US, but abroad.

She ended up adopting a child from Germany, bringing that child home.

Incredible.

And then she started yodeling.

This spark plug of a woman started yodeling and it was magic in the air.

I tell you, it was one of the most beautiful, if not certainly one of the most beautiful moments of my entire life.

>> Well, I can imagine, you know, I had a chance to work with a couple of your colleagues, especially Miss Rachel Platt, looking at stories.

But league baseball.

Yeah, and it's funny.

Until you start talking and listening, you say, oh, that's just somebody telling the tale.

But then when you sit down and listen and you get that.

So that is just fascinating.

Now she's obviously an outgoing individual and she had papers and all this sort of thing.

So tell me about what do you use, what are the tools that you try to use?

I mean, she had photos and of course she had her wonderful memory and voice.

What are the prompts or things that you tried to access?

>> Well, first you have to have a great story.

You have to have a story that speaks to the collective.

It can't just be about one person.

It has to be inspirational, something they can apply to their own life.

And then we use a lot of prompts.

We come in with prompts, we ask a lot of questions to keep them engaged.

>> What kind of questions do you ask?

I mean, is it a yes or no or is it an open ended question?

>> Very.

We start with very simple questions today I said, where is where is Covington?

You know, and invariably someone will say, I grew up by there, you know.

And then it starts a whole nother discussion, which might in fact inform the rest of the hour because we let it go where it needs to go.

We use we bring objects in from the museum video, any kind of music.

Music is so powerful as far as listening and memory.

And then we have wonderful photographs that we employ.

>> To get all that.

So, so Jason then when you go in, are you the storyteller or are you the listener?

Are you an active listener to what they're saying?

And then you engage with the group?

>> Again, the storytelling is just a catalyst to elicit these stories from them, to help them feel connected.

Where in a situation where so few of them do.

And so I do go as a storyteller, and I can be very performative.

They love to see a.

>> Lot of motion.

No.

Okay.

>> So I do incorporate the entertainment, right?

But at the end of the day, I am always listening while I'm telling those stories.

I'm always conscious of how people are responding and for opportunities to be like, well, you seem to be really, really interested in this part.

Did you have an experience similar to this?

So yeah, we always pepper our stories with opportunities to speak to our residents and draw them in, because these stories are their stories ultimately.

>> You know, and that first video, it looked like that you had some kind of a structured activity for people to do.

Is that what you kind of come in and then you go from there, or how do you even structure these things to pull get people to open their mouths?

>> I think when we first started, we felt the need to be more structured.

Now, I think that Jason and I could walk into any of those engagements without a story, and we'd be great.

It's fine.

And that's come with confidence and that's come with building trust with them, really, and building friendship.

When we walk in there, we know that we're taking care of by them.

They care about us, they check on us.

We have one resident that was a professional chef, and on the weekend he texts us.

He emails us recipes.

And so it's become a very it's become family.

>> Yeah.

>> How do you either of you tell me how does this begin?

Do you just stand at the front of the room and go, no.

What?

What?

>> Hi.

Hi.

Really?

Yeah.

Well.

>> Well, I mean, when we started engagement, I will say the first thing we do is go around and check on everybody, see how they're doing.

How's your day going?

And keep fostering that relationship before we step in front of everyone.

We really don't like that kind of barrier between.

>> Well, when we get there, they go, here they are.

>> Here they are.

>> Some of them even skip bingo.

And you know how serious that is.

Yeah.

Really.

>> I mean, but what is the what is the entree to getting someone?

Are they telling the story or do you start off telling a story which happens first?

>> We start off with a story, but if it's a great story, it's going to prompt memories and contributions from them.

>> What kind of story?

I mean, what would you so what is it that you say you're going to talk about?

>> Well, we love, love, love, love to tell what we call hidden stories.

You know, so many people are familiar with the big names and the big dates and, you know, and the fancy mustaches, but we try to suss out those lesser known stories such as, you know, league players.

We try to tell the stories that they haven't heard but can still feel connected to.

And that's what we're really, really complimented on a lot of the time.

One of the greatest compliments we hear is if they'd only told us these kind of stories, if they had only told these stories.

The way you tell these stories, we may have paid more attention in history class.

So I take that as a as a nice compliment.

>> You've been surprised or get something unexpected Susan when talking to someone?

>> Oh, I'm sure I have.

I can't think of anything right off that made me stumble.

>> I mean, other than someone like Miss Billy Willow, who you came along with, I mean, but there's people you find this jewel in here that says, wait a minute, you did that.

You were there.

>> I have a person at a facility that I love, music, and I have been unable to stump Richard for over two years.

And last week, I finally stumped him.

And I took great pleasure in that.

And so did he.

>> That is kind of.

What about you, Jason?

Has there been anything you know?

My God, I did not realize that.

Or you.

>> I operate under that assumption.

I honestly do.

And I tell our residents that every time, almost, I say everyone in here has an incredible story.

You've probably gotten used to it in your own mind.

Maybe you've told it one too many times, so you get accustomed to it.

But I guarantee if you can tell that story to someone that hasn't heard it, like my jaw, their jaw is going to drop to the floor.

And that happens so frequently.

And then we kind of surprise them.

What's so interesting about that?

Are you kidding me?

Of course.

That's fascinating.

You were there.

You lived through that.

You did that for an occupation?

Well, yeah, I did.

>> So, Susan, we're sitting around.

We're at a family reunion.

We have all of the old folks sitting there.

And if it was like my family, my grandmother did not want to tell us anything.

So what are the techniques that we should use to get that story started?

How do I get them going?

>> I think that approach it with a curious mind.

What would you want me to know about your life?

What mattered the most in your life?

What do you remember the most in your life?

What was the most painful part of your life?

Nobody really wants to talk about that one.

>> No.

>> And those are the things I think we want to know about our loved ones.

>> Jason, what about you?

What is the that key that we're going to use to unlock that memory to get the faucet going?

>> Well, I think it's the result of our general approach, and that is we try to celebrate and highlight what we call assets, contributions, ways people can still contribute to society, even if in just a small measure, even just by sharing their own histories.

To me, that's a massive contribution, right?

We don't like to focus necessarily on the negatives or what people are missing the deficiencies, as we call them, like loneliness.

Yes, we address these issues, but we address them organically, okay, by focusing.

And that's how we draw people out.

You know, it's just we celebrate those assets that they they have, all of them have in one form or another.

You know, it's like, again, to repeat myself, I can't believe you did that.

I can't believe you lived through that.

And once they see that genuine, authentic excitement and curiosity on our end, that frees them up to start speaking, really.

>> Get them going.

>> Get them going.

I mean, how many people come into these places and speak to them like truly interested, truly, truly curious and interested?

It's a rare thing.

>> So you guys are the special sauce that gets us to go back to our memories, validates us, keeps us going.

I want to thank you both for being with us today.

I've enjoyed talking to you.

>> It's been great.

>> And thank you for being with us today.

Time is tight for many of us, but if you can take the time, please sit with that elderly person at home in your place of worship, at the club or wherever you are, and just listen.

Yes, you may have heard their story ten times before, but think of it as a wave crashing to the shore.

Each time that person tells the story, it refreshes the link to who they are and let them return to a hopefully pleasant moment.

[MUSIC] And we'll all benefit from that.

If you wish to watch this show again or watch an archived version of past shows, please go to ket.org.

Forward slash.

If you have a question or comment about this or other shows, we can be reached at KY Health at ket.org.

I look forward to seeing you on the next Kentucky Health and please get those stories in mind going talk to your folks or come out to the Frazier Kentucky History Museum.

>> Thank you.

Kentucky Health is funded in part by a grant from the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.

[MUSIC]