They knew it’d be popular. But they didn’t know how popular.
The Bainbridge Island Senior Center’s Collect Call Phone Booth has logged about six hours of memories each week since it opened in May.
The phone booth, built by the Bainbridge Artisan Resource Network (BARN), is a handcrafted red oak private phone booth where anyone can drop by and record a memory or personal story to be shared with others.
“It’s been popular,” said Sue Barrington, Waterfront Park Community Center program manager. “The news about it got out before we really had everything in place. So we’ve been rushing to keep up.”
The StoryShare project was in the making for more than a year and is a way to gather and share memories of those who reside on Bainbridge Island. The phone collects the call and records it to be reviewed later.
It’s technically only at a “soft opening” stage, Barrington said. The real intergenerational kickoff will be this fall.
“We’re working with the local schools to have students and teachers come to the Waterfront Center to record their own stories beginning in the fall,” she said. “We want this to be an intergenerational project.”
Student will record stories as part of a class experience and the hope is that the sweetness of how children tell stories will be captured.
To date, it’s mostly been seniors who frequent the center who have used the phone booth. Some stories have been gathered at community events. Callers can talk about anything, but suggested topics have been offered.
Among them: “Tributes to John DeMeyer” (community retirement celebration), “Memorial Stories for Marcia Ruddoff,” Stories of Exclusion (related to the Japanese Internment), first kiss, favorite holiday memory, and “Simply Bainbridge” — stories of things that seemingly could only happen here, she said.
What’s needed now are volunteers who can listen and edit the stories, Barrington said.
“We have an intern this summer who is helping out with that,” she said. “But we need people with a commitment to confidentiality who can listen and edit in a way that honors the individual telling the story.”
Some stories will be chosen for more in-depth interviews and then video recorded for podcast.
“We don’t have any staff time for this program, really, so volunteers are important to make it succeed,” Barrington said.
The old school-style phone booth is more than seven feet tall and sits in the center’s lobby. Memories are recorded on a circa 1900s vintage phone. Inside the mouthpiece is a voice-activated recording device that will capture any spoken words.
Participants can sit on a stool to record a 3- to 5-minute story. The audio is immediately saved and the next person can step inside to record their memory. Participants are asked to leave their name and phone number so they possibly can be contacted later for more details, but they can remain anonymous.
Since the messages and stories are just beginning to be listened to and edited, Barrington doesn’t really know yet what’s there. The most interesting ones will be archived at the Bainbridge Island Historical Museum.
To drop by and tell a story go to 370 Brien Drive SE, or call 206-842-1616 for more information.
Along with the senior center, the Bainbridge Community Broadcast, the museum, BARN and the Bainbridge Island Metropolitan Park & Recreation District all had a hand in the project.
