Close Menu
The Baylor Lariat
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    Trending
    • Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown
    • Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects
    • Baylor graduate charged after killing cats with pellet gun, hanging bodies over utility lines
    • Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18
    • Board of Regents confirms budget, renovations, new leadership in May meeting
    • How facilities responds to storms, flooding in campus buildings
    • Welcome Week leaders now paid in hopes of increasing numbers
    • 5 Baylor sports storylines to look forward to in 2025-26
    • About us
      • Spring 2025 Staff Page
      • Copyright Information
    • Contact
      • Contact Information
      • Letters to the Editor
      • Subscribe to The Morning Buzz
      • Department of Student Media
    • Employment
    • PDF Archives
    • RSS Feeds
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    The Baylor LariatThe Baylor Lariat
    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz
    Tuesday, July 8
    • News
      • State and National News
        • State
        • National
      • Politics
        • 2025 Inauguration Page
        • Election Page
      • Homecoming Page
      • Baylor News
      • Waco Updates
      • Campus and Waco Crime
    • Arts & Life
      • Wedding Edition 2025
      • What to Do in Waco
      • Campus Culture
      • Indy and Belle
      • Sing 2025
      • Leisure and Travel
        • Leisure
        • Travel
          • Baylor in Ireland
      • Student Spotlight
      • Local Scene
        • Small Businesses
        • Social Media
      • Arts and Entertainment
        • Art
        • Fashion
        • Food
        • Literature
        • Music
        • Film and Television
    • Opinion
      • Editorials
      • Points of View
      • Lariat Letters
    • Sports
      • March Madness 2025
      • Football
      • Basketball
        • Men’s Basketball
        • Women’s Basketball
      • Soccer
      • Baseball
      • Softball
      • Volleyball
      • Equestrian
      • Cross Country and Track & Field
      • Acrobatics & Tumbling
      • Tennis
      • Golf
      • Pro Sports
      • Sports Takes
      • Club Sports
    • Lariat TV News
    • Multimedia
      • Video Features
      • Podcasts
        • Don’t Feed the Bears
      • Slideshows
    • Advertising
    The Baylor Lariat
    Home»Arts and Life

    It’s story-telling time at Oakwood Cemetery

    Ben WoolleyBy Ben WoolleyOctober 13, 2016Updated:October 14, 2016 Arts and Life No Comments3 Mins Read
    Learn of important figures of the past at the Oakwood Cemetery on Saturday with "Walking Tales: Bringing Historic Stories to Life." Photo credit: Dayday Wynn
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    By Ben Woolley | Reporter

    Every third weekend in October, the Heart of Texas Storytelling Guild goes to Oakwood Cemetery for an event called “Walking Tales: Bringing Historic Stories to Life,” and this year it happens to fall on homecoming. This year there will be about 25 storytellers stationed throughout the cemetery telling tales of late governors, senators, legendary pioneers and infamous people laid to rest there.

    McLennan County is named after Neil McLennan, an early settler of the Edwards Plateau of Central Texas. Buried in Oakwood Cemetery, McLennan is one of many that will have their story shared this weekend.

    The Heart of Texas Storytelling Guild was established in 2007, but the one in Waco has been held at the Oakwood Cemetery since 2009.

    “When we began the guild, there was a need to creating a venue or an atmosphere to tell our stories,” said Vivian Rutherford, a children’s librarian for the Waco-McLennan County Library, otherwise known as the “story lady.”

    Rutherford has worked for the Waco-McLennan County Library system for 16 years. She conducts weekly story-time for toddlers and pre-kindergarten students at the East Waco Library and Waco Central Library. Rutherford is also a founding member and established president of The Heart of Texas Storytelling Guild.

    Rutherford expects a big turnout since people will have time to make it back to the homecoming football game. She said the event grows each year and calls for new storytellers. They try to rotate out storytellers, but some just come back each year. This year Rutherford expects the biggest turnout yet.

    “We love having them out here. It’s a great opportunity for people to come out and learn history about people buried here and explore our historic cemetery,” Clint Lynch, Oakwood Cemetery’s general manager, said.

    Storytellers will be bringing stories to life and giving the public free entertainment. For listeners, the storytelling guild can be entertaining and informative at the same time.

    “It is a unique experience to witness people tell the stories of past significant figures in the history of Waco,” Waco Tribune-Herald chief photographer Rod Aydelott said.

    With the event held inside the cemetery, some people may keep their distance, but for people like junior Christian John Kearton, it provides a rush of excitement in October.

    “I went last year and I want to go again this year,” Kearton said. “I learned a lot about the history of Waco and it also got me in the mood for Halloween.”

    Ben Woolley

    Keep Reading

    What to Do in Waco: Summer Edition

    Fields of joy: Western Belle Farm’s Sunflower Festival returns this May

    Review: ‘Until Dawn’ starts strong, gets lost in the fog

    A&L Tunesday: May 6

    Waco roots to recognition: Texas short film gains national traction

    25th annual Black Glasses highlights best of Baylor filmmakers

    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Recent Posts
    • Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown June 27, 2025
    • Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects June 26, 2025
    About

    The award-winning student newspaper of Baylor University since 1900.

    Articles, photos, and other works by staff of The Baylor Lariat are Copyright © Baylor® University. All rights reserved.

    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz

    Get the latest Lariat News by just Clicking Subscribe!

    Follow the Live Coverage
    Tweets by @bulariat

    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    • Featured
    • News
    • Sports
    • Opinion
    • Arts and Life
    © 2025 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.