By Jenny Zeller
Everybody loves a good story. And The Moth is dedicated to finding intriguing people to tell inspired stories. The Moth is a non-profit organization that features people telling true stories from their lives without notes. Since its inception in 1997, The Moth has grown from storytelling in founder George Dawes Green’s living room to main stages throughout the country and beyond!
The Moth Radio Hour has been a staple in my weekend public radio repertoire for years now and I was very excited to learn that Bernheim’s own Kathy Hart would be competing in The Louisville Moth GrandSLAM. This was Kathy’s second time on that GrandSLAM stage and she got there by winning a monthly StorySLAM event hosted by WFPL at Headliners. After ten StorySLAMs, the winners then compete for the title of GrandSLAM Champion with a brand-new story. Kathy admits to finding her voice for storytelling on the Moth StorySLAM stage by challenging herself to doing something every month that “scared the crap out of” her.
The theme for this years’ Louisville Moth GrandSLAM was Fuel to the Fire and each of the ten storytellers explored that topic in numerous and unexpected ways. Contestants are judged on adhering to a five-minute time frame, sticking to the theme and having a story that has a conflict and a resolution.
As one would expect, this sold-out event featured some pretty amazing stories. But it was Kathy’s nature-inspired tale of empowerment, and her sense of clarity revealed through the recovery systems of lodgepole pines, that grabbed the winning title. Upon the announcement of her big win, Kathy encouraged others to find their voice onstage at a Moth event.
We are so very proud of Kathy and the courage it took to tell her story! Looking forward to hearing many more from her!