Mount Vernon Area Arts Council wins grant to present farm stories in the community

The Mount Vernon Area Arts Council (MVAAC) has received a $2,000 grant to present Farm-to-Fork Tales in the community. The grant, from the Iowa Arts Council, will enable the MVAAC to partner with former Iowa Poet Laureate and Iowa State Professor Emerita Mary Swander to identify five local farm people to tell their stories to a live audience. 

The Farm-to-Fork Tales project has been presented in several locations around the state. Each presentation has a theme running through the stories. The theme here will be determined by local people, with input from Swander.

“We’re really excited to bring this to the Mount Vernon-Lisbon community,” said Steve Maravetz, MVAAC president. “Even though you can be in a field in five minutes from any place in the community, many town dwellers don’t really know what it’s like to live in the country. We hope this will help change that.”

Once the rural residents are identified, Swander will coach them as they develop their stories and prepare their presentations. 

The event is tentatively planned for March 2021, but a date has not been set. Factors in setting the date include the schedule of farm work, availability of venues, and the Covid-19 pandemic. 

“We’re all committed to making this happen,” Maravetz said. “We’ll make whatever adjustments are necessary to do that.”

Anyone interested in suggesting a farm person to participate is encouraged to contact the MVAAC at mvaac.org.

Mary Swander is the Executive Director of AgArts and the Artistic Director of Swander Woman Productions.