Mountain Elder Wisdom

ABOUT

The Southern Appalachian Mountain people historically met their basic needs of water, food, shelter, clothing, and recreation in unique and diverse ways that were well suited for their distinct environment and its natural resources. With the advent of modern technology, many of these lessons are quickly becoming lost as the elders who lived and experienced these ways of life are dying, and those who remember and learned these ways of life are becoming older.

We must capture through oral history these lifestyles before they vanish. It is only through film, recordings, written documentation and the actual teaching of these skills that their way of life can be preserved and taught to present and future generations. This project will focus on how our Southern Appalachian Mountain people lived without the use of modern conveniences that rely on advanced technologies. This project will help to reclaim the traditions and culture of our mountain elders of Cherokee, African-American and Scots-Irish descent through a multi-county ORAL HISTORY PROJECT that will capture interviews, activities and cultural performances, a PUBLIC PROGRAMS component that will include lectures, forums, educational opportunities and workshops to teach our history and how it applies to today and will consummate in a DOCUMENTARY FILM that will travel the world through film festivals, public programs and broadcast television.

This work only continues by the generous support of individuals and institutions who understand the value that elder wisdom has for our present and future through contributing time and money to make this work a reality. Thank You!