She tells traveling and tall tales, ghost stories, and real or imagined mountain events as she makes every attempt to find the origin of yarns that have been repeated for generations in these hills.

Ross is a ninth-generation Appalachian mountaineer, so her interest in folklore began as a child from listening to her grandparents’ stories. It was natural that she continued the family tradition by studying Appalachian regional culture and earning a doctorate specializing in folklore and folk life. She has taught English, folklore, Appalachian studies, history and speech classes at five campuses and has presented more than 4,000 regional programs on Appalachian topics.

“I read somewhere that the task of a bard was to define a place and a people, to record history, to transmit cultural values and to entertain using only the human voice and memory. I guess I was meant to be a bard,” Ross said.

All members of the Friends of the Polk County Public Library will meet in a short annual meeting at 5 p.m., which will include electing officers for the coming year, voting on by-laws changes and other business.

– article submitted by Marian Bryan