Apex Historical Society Oral History Project Overview

AHS Oral History Project Overview Close Window

The AHS has launched a long term project to capture and preserve the "oral history" and memories of the area as told by many of the residents born here in years past or that moved here during a time when the town was a small, rural community. If you have attended any of the Society's meetings, you have heard bits and pieces of the history of the area and this project was planned to help capture much of that knowledge and document it for future generations.

The following letter was sent to AHS members and town leaders to provide an overview of the project and the scope of work to capture our towns Oral History. The Society plans to eventually publish a book (or books) and provide a DVD of interviews and photographs that will be available for those interested in local history. In addition to written transcripts from interviews of residents, audio and video recordings will be made when possible as interviewees are talking about what they remember and what life was like living, growing up, and in some cases leaving and coming back to Apex.

The project has taken over a year of preparation and team members have begun interview technique training and throughout 2009 will be conducting interviews to document reflections and historical information about Apex and surrounding area.

Interviewer training sessions have been held to help a few AHS members get information needed to conduct interviews and do other jobs. Click to view more about the training.

If you have already joined the team and are planning an interview, please click to view and print Oral History forms as needed.

Project Plan and Scope of Work

Project Plan Announced & Published on April 25th, 2008

March 01, 2009 - Current Status & Update

TO: Apex Historical Society Membership, Apex Leaders & Apex Community

FROM: Oral History Project Coordinating Committee

Mack Thorpe: Committee Chair, Oral History Project Management (OHPM), PR & Assignments

Molly Weston: Interview Content, Training & Cert., Project Scope of Work, Editing & Publications

John Pearson: Web Master & Content, Equipment, Data Base, Recording, Editing & Storage

Mary Petersen: Secretary, Volunteer Assignments, Schedules, Communications, Process & Forms

Debbie Douglas: Archives, Recording, Documenting, Library, Storage, Cataloging & Restoration

Margot Knepp: Transcribing, Documentation, Filing & Storage Mediums

Shawn Fuller: Minority Communities, Membership, Interviews, Schedules & Volunteers

Pete & Sharon Galluzzo: Home Video Studio Inc., Production, Recording, Editing, Studio Time & Videographer

SUBJECT: Apex Oral History Project

Dear Friends of the Society,

The AHS Web Committee has embarked on a project to capture the oral history and the heritage of the historical buildings, structures and homes of Apex. This project consists of two major parts;

PART-I: Research and document the heritage of the historical buildings, structures and homes of Apex—recording and archiving documents and interviews, and transfering many to DVD—and placing results on the AHS web site.

PART-II: Capture and document the oral history from residents of Apex recording on digital video, transferring to DVD, archiving and making the results available on the AHS web site.

The committee, currently in Phase-I of both Project Parts I & II, is completing the following preparations for the Oral History and Historical Building Project. It is anticipated that the project will take at least 2 if not 3 years to complete, with the last phase a system to capture and record Apex history as an ongoing initiative.

Phase-I: Planning and Preparation

Oral History Goals & Objectives

Building, Structure & Home Heritage Goals & Objectives

Project Information & Kick-Off Letter

Interview Criteria, Format & Content

Interview Clients List

Project Volunteers

Project Scope of Work

Video Recording Arrangements

Video Recording Schedule

Volunteer Scope of Work

Volunteer Workshop & Training

Volunteer Assignments & Schedules

Project PR & Marketing

Video Transcripts of DVD Production

Document Recording Plan & Process (books, letters, diaries, photos)

Apex High School Reunion Coordinator

Early Bird Interviews & Recordings

Minority History Plan

History Trivia: Do you know when and who coined the Apex town slogan? “Peak of Good Living!”

There is so much to be done to get started and we know we can count on each member to take an assignment to see this project through. The Committee is scheduled to meet every two weeks in regular session to review the scope of the project, to assess progress and to make Scope of Work adjustments as required to keep the project moving forward to completion.

We will be contacting each of you soon to request your commitment and consideration for an assignment in the Oral History and Building History project. This project is a great opportunity for every member to assist and make a contribution. Also, we hope that this project will interest members of the community and will bring in new membership as the news and excitement of our efforts filters outward. Many, certainly, will want to be part of this most important contribution to our town’s history and heritage.

Pete and Sharon Galluzzo, owners of Home Video Studio Inc., have graciously committed to provide professional video recording and then transfer to DVD the interviews and discussions with Apex residents as they share their history of Apex. Home Video Studio Inc. is located at their home in Apex Scotts Mill Subdivision at 304 Hickory Bottom Ct. (919-267-3409). Join us in thanking them for making this professional service available to AHS and the Oral and Building History Project You can check out their company at www.homevideostudio.com.

You will be getting a call soon to solicit your time in one of the many actions and activities on our Things-To-Do List to complete this project.

Additionally you can start making a list of folks you think would be good for us to contact for an interview. Make your own notes on Apex History from your perspective and any information you may have or remember on old buildings, structures and homes in Apex. Think about books, letters, diaries, documents, posters, cards, programs, photos, movies and video tapes of Apex you have which might be important to the content of the recorded history. We would like to borrow any of these so we can copy, scan and record their information. Please pull these things together and let us know what you have when we make contact with you. In the meantime the committee will be finishing up Phase-I and beginning Phase-II in the second half of 2008 and should have all committee and Things-To-Do assignments completed and communicated.

That’s all for now…. We do look forward to you participation and what this will mean to all residents both present and future of our little village of Apex “The Peak of Good Living”.

Preserving Heritage – Protecting History

History Trivia: What was Apex known as before it was named “Apex” & why?