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Story Hour (Contributed by Jim Harris)
In 1940 and 1941 a representative of the District Attorney's office, Mr. Harry G. Woods, would ride the bus to DH each Friday night and present the STORY HOUR. Usually 15-20 kids would gather at a selected house and Mr. Woods would read from the current book and tell the story. The first session, he read and told The Wizard of Oz. Mr. Woods was such an outstanding story teller that all the kids, including myself, were mesmerized by the story and his delivery. Each session would last about 1-1/2 to 2 hours and would continue the following Friday night until the book and story was finished. You would think with 15-20 kids it would be a wild circus atmosphere, but, not one time was there ever any disturbance during the Story Hour, Mr. Woods was that good, and everyone admired and respected him. During the period, all the books about OZ were presented and read by Mr. Woods. After each session, another house was selected (with the approval of the Parents) for the following session. There was always some kind of refreshment offered by the host parents. Sometimes it was cookies, popcorn, homemade yeast rolls and sometimes candy. If you attended all the sessions, when the book was finished, you were presented a copy of the book. Also, Mr. Woods presented special awards, such as a flashlight or something else useful for attendence and correct answers to questions about the story. It was a fun time for everyone attending. I do not know what became of Mr. Woods (I truly hope he went on to bigger and better things in the District Attorney's office) to me and the kids and parents, he was an outstanding individual and deserved the best.
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