My beloved Grandpa Norman

About 25 years ago, veteran broadcast professional Dana Wright gave her grandpa Norman an old hand-held tape recorder leftover from her journalism school days. “Tell me about the farm,” she said to him. “Tell me about the war and how you met grandma and stuff…” Over the course of a few weeks, he talked about life on the farm in small-town Kansas.  He told stories about taking his pet horse into his one-room schoolhouse. He talked about hunting and trapping raccoons and he talked about the war. Norman Wright died in 2001. And when everyone sat down and listened to that 26-minute cassette, they laughed and smiled and cried. A couple of years ago, Dana started volunteering for a local hospice organization to record the oral histories of people nearing the end of their journey. She bought professional equipment. She got better at it. She recorded her radio partner’s mom for Christmas as a surprise for his family for the holidays. The legacy recording that started with her grandfather so many years ago has grown into a passion. Dana has learned so many things since she handed her grandpa that small Dictaphone. But most importantly, she is reminded that we ALL have a story to tell.