Dear Friends near and far,
We haven't forgotten about you. Not at all. We've been busy with life
-
and with our day jobs :)
We have some important PenTales news:
We've decided to pass on the PenTales HQ baton from NYC to
Berlin.
From that great city, Louisa Loewenstein, a PenTales veteran as
well
as a journalist, photographer, and documentary filmmaker, will take
the
lead. Louisa shares our deep commitment to storytelling, and we
couldn't think of a more competent and compassionate leader to
take
this project to the next level. She and her new partner Laura
Trumpp,
a Parsons graduate and Creative Director, have big plans for
PenTales.
We are thrilled to serve as advisers along the way.
It seems like just yesterday that we sat in what is perhaps the last dingy
cafe in
SoHo and decided that - for no good reason at all - we wanted to
inspire
more people to share stories. .In fact, it was exactly three years
ago last
week. We didn't have a clear road map. We just knew that we
liked to
listen to and tell tales. And so we organized weekly storytelling
classes
in low-income areas across New York City, we passed out little
notebooks
to inspire our friends to collaborate on stories in creative ways,
we
invited friends and strangers to share their stories over good food and
wine, and
we spread our little idea about the power of storytelling in person
(in the
digital age) to over twenty-eight cities around the world (including
Lahore, Damascus, Reykjavik, and Panama City).
It was
fun, and we learned a lot about the world, our friends, and ourselves.
The most
powerful thing we're taking away? The knowledge that when you
start
something positive, good people join in and support you. And, that's
where you
come in. Thank you for shaping the PenTales adventure, and for
listening
to our story and sharing yours.
We're
excited for the second chapter of PenTales under Louisa's leadership.
She'll
reach out to you soon. You'll hear about her vision for PenTales, and
of course
get a chance to share your own.
In the meantime, thanks for everything, and don't be a stranger.
Warmly,
Saskia
and Stephanie
saskia.miller@gmail.com
PenTales is
a project run by friends and friends of friends. We're trying to
build a
culture where we slow down, ask each other questions, meet in
person,
and, above all, listen. In all our various endeavors, people and their
stories
are front and center. Just a little over three years old, our little tale
has just
started.
We exist
because of you. Got a talent? Bet you do! Pitch in.
Just
email and we'll figure out a way for you to get involved.
