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Editor's Note: Love is on the Air

Duke employees serve as interviewers for the Museum of Durham History, which hosts a Valentine's listening party Feb. 12

Love stories. Many of us have one.

On Feb. 12, you can listen to Durham love stories during a “Love is on the Air” listening party at the Museum of Durham History. The free event is a collaborative effort with Audio Under the Stars, an audio festival hosted at Duke’s Center for Documentary Studies in the summer.

During the Valentine’s event at the museum, recorded interviews with up to six Durham couples will be intermittently played while visitors mingle and view other exhibits, which include an item about the Blue Devil. A raffle for a Monuts and Ninth Street Flowers gift card, Carolina Theatre movie tickets and one night stay at 21c Museum Hotel in Durham will be held and refreshments will be available.

Leanora Minai
Leanora Minai,Working@Duke editor

“These stories—especially on a topic so universal as love—connect us to the past and to one another,” said Katie D. Spencer, the museum’s executive director. “Who knows what will come from this evening: maybe new love will blossom, community love will grow, and just maybe folks will be inspired to record their own stories for friends, family, and future generations.”

Recording memories and experiences of Durham are an integral part of the Museum of Durham History’s programming. The museum has conducted about 100 interviews with residents of Durham, and some of the interviewers are Duke employees who volunteer at the museum. In addition to love stories, topics range from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination to the city’s start-up/entrepreneur stories.

Stacy Torian, a communications specialist in the Duke Graduate School, volunteers for the museum’s “Story Squad.” In the past year, she has conducted nine interviews with 11 people, including leaders from TROSA, a residential substance abuse recovery program in Durham.

“I like hearing people’s stories, learning from them and finding out what makes them tick,” Torian said. “It’s fun.”

The Museum of Durham History is a local gem. It opened in 2013 in a downtown bus station at 500 W. Main St. I currently serve on the board of directors, and enjoy learning more about Durham through the museum’s rotating exhibits, including the current display about the Hayti neighborhood.

I hope to see you at 6 p.m. Feb. 12 at the museum for the listening party, and if you’re looking for other ideas to celebrate Valentine’s Day, see page 14 in this issue for Duke employee discounts, including deals on confections, music performances, and a membership to the Nasher Museum of Art.

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