Summary: In spite of the grave adventures they've undertaken, the Holmes County Library Ladies are having a lot of fun sharing the history of Holmes County with folks across the country.
When visiting distant relatives, there are a few necessary preparations to make, like entering the destination into a trusty GPS, packing just the right clothing, and tossing a camera into the car to catch those special family moments. Holmes County Library Ladies Michele Skolmutch and Susan Corl have a few more suggestions. For example, how about a bringing a pair of binoculars, carrying a box of crayons, and maybe making ready a machete? After all, when visiting certain relatives, one can never be too prepared.
Skolmutch and Corl aren't talking about dropping in on Aunt Lulu and Uncle Cliff at their beach house in Sarasota. What they have in mind goes a little deeper than that.
Corl and Skolmutch, through a bit of creativity and a little legwork, are teaching people near and far how to visit long lost relatives who've been buried in the many cemeteries throughout Holmes County.
Susan Corl, Head of Reference and Collection Services, explained how she and Skolmutch, Children's Services Associate and Public Relations Specialist, first began the Grave Adventures of the Library Ladies, an online project aimed at sharing facts and folklore about Holmes County's burial places.
"We had a strategic goal to get the information from our local history room onto the web," said Corl. "We thought it would be a great way to connect the community to people who don't live here."
Armed with a few necessities and accompanied by their trusty cameraman, Bill Martino, the library's director, the Library Ladies have explored, for starters, St. John's Cemetery in Walnut Creek, Millersburg's Oak Hill cemetery, Berlin Cemetery, and Salem Reformed Cemetery in Saltillo, home of the well-know headless angel, a gravestone that has been victim to vandalism and cloaked in folklore.
"Susan has been to some cemeteries where you needed a machete to get to the gravestones," laughed Skolmutch. "We want to prepare people for that. If they decide on a whim to travel from a few counties away to visit and then encounter those obstacles, it can be disheartening."
The Library Ladies' resulting video segments are lighthearted, fun and packed with information about the prominent citizens buried in the cemeteries, the location's unique features and tidbits about nearby attractions.
At the beginning of each segment, the ladies introduce the cemetery's entrance, information a visitor would need to know about the terrain, hours of operation, general etiquette, and other helpful hints. In one segment, their special guest, "gravedigger" Braden Semonovich, demonstrates the art of grave rubbings using a piece of paper and a crayon, a method of capturing information from a gravestone for more detail and closer viewing at home.
The duo's inaugural video took them to Oak Hill Cemetery on Port Washington Road. They had ambitious goals with glorious ideas of discussing all of the prominent citizens of Holmes County, which they found to be a long and daunting task. Now, they keep each episode relatively short.
"As much as we'd like to, we can't feature everyone," explained Skolmutch. "Our goal is to keep it less than ten minutes."
And while they've learned a lot about Holmes County's former residents, they've also learned a lot about the importance of being prepared. In seeking the Salem Reformed Cemetery in Saltillo, the Library Ladies found themselves on a wild goose chase and running low on fuel. Now they realize how important it is to follow the bits of advice they offer their viewers--have a full tank of gas, keep a map handy, and carry a notebook to write down directions and take notes.
The Library Ladies' videos have attracted nearly 1,000 hits on YouTube and have brought comments from viewers as far away as Maryland and California, with folks asking for specific information about relatives or facts about the area. As the Library Ladies continue their grave adventures, they hope to address such requests, visiting at least one cemetery in each township.
"We're trying to make it fun and entertaining in a way that it's not boring," said Skolmutch, who always throws in a few silly but tasteful jokes.
On Saturday, Oct. 29 from 11:45 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine, the Grave Adventures of the Library Ladies will hit the road for their first ever fall tour, sponsored by the Friends of the Library. The outing, geared toward older teens and adults, will begin with lunch and haunting tales at Hotel Millersburg and will continue with a bus tour exploring four of Holmes Countys interesting cemeteries and their local lore, complete with prizes and en-route showings of the Library Ladies' videos. The cost is $25 per person, and the deadline is Oct. 5. Reservations are required and space is limited.
Both the tour and the videos are ways Corl and Skolmutch hope to connect with people who are interested in their ancestry and local history.
"We just want to bring a taste of Holmes County to those who can't get here," said Corl, "and to give those who can an idea what to expect."
For more information, visit the Grave Adventures of the Holmes County Library Ladies' blog at http://www.holmeslibrary.org/cemeteries/ or call the library at 330-674-5972, ext.203.
