A Love of Stories

By Beth Monroe, Public Relations and Marketing Director, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden

I was in the local library the other day and saw the book All There Is: Love Stories from StoryCorps by Dave Isay. I picked it up because I’ve become a fan of StoryCorps ever since they visited Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden almost a year ago. This visit was the result of the Garden receiving the 2011 National Medal of Honor from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the White House.

When StoryCorps was at the Garden, I had the honor of lining up the interviewees. Eighteen pairs of people (36 people total) interviewed each other and related compelling stories of what the Garden has meant in their lives. This past summer, our Public Relations and Marketing summer intern Kristen Wolenberg spent a great deal of time going through all of the 40-minute interviews and accompanying photos to produce this page on the Garden’s website about StoryCorp’s visit to Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. It was one of the highlights of the IMLS award and, as years and people pass, ever more treasured.

While the book does not include any of the interviews at the Garden, it is a wonderful read — especially as we approach Valentine’s Day. The well-edited stories are incredibly moving — they detail how love has brought people together, persevered in the face of prejudice, and survived even as loved ones passed.

We all have great stories to tell and I am grateful StoryCorps exists to capture them.