Family Legends Achieves Lift-Off

Family Legends has achieved lift-off!

Thanks to Ramsay Recreation Center Director Harold Little, Family Legends will offer the workshop, “Tell Your Story, Make Your Book” led by Sushmita Mazumdar. The 4-session workshop will be offered to 12 children per class, ages 7-12 in October, January and March.

Little was enthusiastic about offering the program at Ramsay saying he knows first-hand that art can change lives. His love of music is attributed to an early mentor. “Art is in one's soul...it can be a stepping stone to anything,” he said.

Friend of Living Legends John McEnearney has pledged support for two of the workshops.

The Family Legends workshop is part of the Living Legends of Alexandria Project. In this workshop, children will research and record the story of a legendary family member. The participants will learn how to interview people and how to write the stories. Then they will learn to turn the stories into a handmade storybook complete with illustrations, photos and maps.

Completed Family Legend Storybooks will be exhibited for the community to read and enjoy and published in Living Legends of Alexandria News.

Sushmita Mazumdar is an Arlington-based writer, book artist, and educator. She teaches art education programs for children and adults encouraging storytelling and the sharing of cultural heritage. She has conducted workshops at museums, schools, and arts institutions in the Washington DC area. She participated in the Smithsonian Folklife Festival 2010 Asian Pacific American Program: Local Lives Global Ties. 

Living Legends of Alexandria is an ongoing, not-for-profit project to identify, honor and chronicle people making current history in Alexandria.

For workshop information, see www.HandmadeStorybooks.com. For information about Living Legends of Alexandria, see www.AlexandriaLegends.com