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Additional information on this topic provided below.
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My Name is Jeremiah
By Kelly Meinhart
 ’ve
been a long-time fan of the Wildlands Conservancy in Emmaus,
PA, but they’ve recently put together a real ‘show
stopper’ program that’s fun and educational for
the whole family. The show is called ‘My Name is Jeremiah’
and let’s just say that it’s a puppet extravaganza!
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show features realistic, almost life-sized, wooden puppets that
tell the history of the Lehigh canal and the stories of the
people who worked on it. It’s the creation of Tom Gettings,
Director of Advancement for Wildlands, and Doug Roysdon, Artistic
Director of Mock Turtle Marionette Theater. The 50-minute performance
focuses on 19th Century canal life, and on the lifestyles and
historical values of the time period. The Lehigh Canal is itself
very important to the history of the Lehigh Valley, but the
general public often knows very little about this unique treasure.
he
Wildlands Conservancy hopes to change that by reaching out to
the public, and more specifically, to middle school students,
to bring this era of time to life through ‘Jeremiah’.
Tom told me that one of the most frustrating things for him,
as an educator, was having that age group miss out on the history
of the canal system.
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comments, “They just didn’t have the attention span
to listen to someone speaking about history along the canal,
they needed something more interactive. We’ve always tried
to include a historical aspect in our public tours of the Lehigh
River and canal, which are offered through our ‘Bike &
Boat’ program. But the middle school students weren’t
connecting with the relevance of the history of the canal. So
I did a lot of research on that age group and found a way to
reach them. We’ve found that the Jeremiah story really
resonates with the kids because of the uniqueness of the puppets.
That period of American history, the industrial revolution,
has often been ignored – even in canal towns. It’s
an important link between our history and our future. So this
project is of great value.”
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addition to the live performances, Wildlands has developed a
video version and a classroom study guide for teachers. This
unique kit will be available for educators in early 2004, and
may be purchased through the Wildlands Conservancy’s education
department. Chris Kocher, Chief Program Officer and Director
of the Rivers Program comments; “What makes this kit,
and the live performances so unique is its ability to educate
people about the cultural, natural, and historical aspects of
canal life at the turn of the century. It reaches students,
the watershed community, and the community in general in a technical
and artistic way – one that is a new form of outreach
for the Wildlands Conservancy. We’re all very pleased
with the project and with the partnerships that have been formed
throughout the process.”
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 reenWorks
has also partnered with The Wildlands Conservancy in the production
of the video version of the show, and while it will not be available
for use in the classroom until early 2004, if you live in the
Lehigh Valley are you can still catch it on WLVT. Check your
local listings for dates and times. You can also see a segment
of the video on the ‘My Name is Jeremiah’ website
presented by GreenWorks listed below.
om
comments, “What makes the study kit aspect of the project
such a success is that they get to see the video in conjunction
with the study guide and what they’re getting is really
the best information about the 19th Century, on the canal system,
and what life was like for canal workers.”
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live performances have concluded for the fall, with four shows
and a total audience of approximately 750 people. But if you
missed the performances, not to worry, ‘My Name is Jeremiah’
will run again in April 2004 at the Ice House in Emmaus, and
again in August 2004 at May Fair in Allentown.
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more information about the educator kits contact Maureen Ruhe,
Director of Environmental Education at the Wildlands Conservancy
at 610-965-4397, extension 36.
Congrats to
all who have participated in this uniquely wonderful production!
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For more information check out the following sites:
Wildlands
Conservancy
Mock
Turtle Marionette Theatre
Mock Turtle Marionette Theater
‘My Name is Jeremiah’ website presented by GreenWorks
Lehigh
Canal History
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