Homegrown Stories

“Folklore, legends, myths and fairy tales have followed childhood through the ages, for every healthy youngster has a wholesome and instinctive love for stories fantastic, marvelous and manifestly unreal. The winged fairies of Grimm and Andersen have brought more happiness to childish hearts than all other human creations.” L. Frank Baum

The St. Simons Island Storytelling Festival does a fabulous job of keeping that love for stories alive. On February 16-18, the popular storytelling festival returns to Epworth by the Sea for its ninth year. A cyclone of a different sort, the whirling dervish known as Andy Offutt Irwin, will be emceeing the event once again. One of the most sought-after performing storytellers in the United States, Andy is always a highlight of the festival. With a voice moldable as silly putty, hilarious heart-filled stories, and amazing mouth noises (arguably, the greatest whistler in the world) this one-person-showman is equal parts mischievous schoolboy and the Marx Brothers, seasoned with a touch of the Southern balladeer. Some of Andy’s most beloved tales share the adventures of his eighty-five-year-old-widowed-newly-minted-physician-aunt, Marguerite Van Camp, a woman who steps lively through this existence, loving as many people as she can, and avoiding curmudgeonship by keeping her finger on the pulse of the changing world of the New South around her.

Also returning is “Dean of Storytelling,” Donald Davis. Born in a Southern Appalachian mountain world rich in stories, Donald heard many traditional stories about Jack and other heroic characters, but he was most attracted to the stories of his own family and places of origin. Davis began retelling the stories he heard and then adding his own new stories to them until he was repeatedly asked to "tell it again, on purpose." During his 25-year career as a United Methodist Minister, Davis began to use stories more and more. He was also asked to begin performing at festivals and in other settings until he retired from the church to tell stories full time. Since then, he has become well-established as a promoter of the cultural importance of storytelling through seminars and master classes. The author of eighteen books and more than forty original recordings, Davis is the recipient of both the Circle of Excellence and the Lifetime Achievement Awards from the National Storytelling Network. Listening to Davis is always a joy and memorable experience. Joining these two St. Simons Island Storytelling Festival veterans this year are talented storytellers Megan Hicks, Paul Strickland, and Kim Weitkamp.

Describing herself as a "Teller-Without-a-Niche," Megan Hicks dives heart-first into every story she tells, whether it be a fairy tale, personal story, American history, parody, ghost story, or humor, always engaging her listeners. Megan performs throughout the United States and internationally. She is a sought-after workshop presenter and seminar leader, with credits ranging from storytelling festivals and conferences across the US, bilingual schools in Latin America and China, libraries in Australia and New Zealand, juvenile detention centers, and the FBI Academy. Megan’s CD “What Was Civil About That War…” earned her a Parents’ Choice® Silver award and made her a 2005 Finalist for an Audies® award in the category of Best Original Work. She received the Parents’ Guide to Children’s Media Award and Storytelling World Honor for “Groundhogs Meet Grimm,” a collection of her original parodies that was also tapped for Honors by NAPPA. Her collection of fairy tales, “No Tricks. Just Magic,” and her recording "Like You're Really There: Megan Hicks Live at Jonesborough” have both received a Storytelling World Award.

Kentuckian Paul Strickland is a professional storyteller and theatre artist. He was an Exchange Place Teller at the National Storytelling Festival in 2018 and in November of 2018 he made his NYC stage debut Off-Broadway at the SoHo Playhouse with his shadow and flashlight ghost story play "13 Dead Dreams of "Eugene." He has been a featured teller at several major storytelling festivals, including the Cave Run Storytelling Festival and Timpanogos Storytelling Festival. Always adapting to whatever audience is in front of him, Paul has a passion for telling stories in every imaginable environment, from comedy clubs to elementary and middle schools, corporate events and even two prisons (where he assures readers that he was not an inmate at the time). Collections of his stories have won "Best of Fest" honors more than 16 times at Fringe Theatre Festivals in the US and Canada. Selections from his comedy performance "Levels of Difficulty" are still played almost daily on SiriusXM radio.

Kim Weitkamp grew up in Amish Country as, she says, “the middle child of exhausted parents.” Called “high-spirited, uncooperative, and too talkative” by teachers, Kim channeled that personality into a lifetime of high-energy, heartfelt, and hilarious artistry, becoming an award-winning storyteller, author, singer-songwriter, and humorist. After using applied storytelling in her work with adjudicated and at-risk youth for more than a decade, Kim took a different path of story and song which she’s been traveling as a full-time touring performer for the past 15 years plus and has garnered several awards. She performs regularly at festivals and theaters around the country, has written a well-received folk operetta and has been a guest editor and contributor for various publications. Kim's material gets regular airplay on Sirius XM and NPR Affiliate Stations. She has 8 award winning albums, has produced and/or designed 32 albums for other performers and has hosted a morning show for a DOVE Award winning radio network. Kim has been honored with leadership and speaking awards for her coaching/speaking work with internationally known companies and nationally recognized non-profit organizations and is ranked as a top business coach in the Columbus, Ohio region, teaching the power of story to help grow organizations and build teams. At her core, she believes in the incredible power of storytelling.

Please help keep the art of telling stories alive by joining these talented tale-spinners at Epworth-by-the-Sea in February. Registration is now open and packages are available for both those needing accommodations and local commuters. A detailed schedule of events and registration information is available at stsimonsislandstorytellingfestival.com.