Inventors, innovators focus of this year's Chatauqua

By Ed Runyan

All Chautauqua events are free and open to the public.

WARREN — For an hour Wednesday morning, scholar Dorthy Mains Prince pretended to be Mary McLeod Bethune, the daughter of former slaves.

It was Bethune who founded the Daytona Normal & Industrial School in Daytona Beach, Fla., in 1904 with six young black children.

As Bethune, Prince showed the South Carolina native’s forceful personality and drive to teach.

Leaning on Bethune’s signature cane, Prince explained numerous sayings posted around the room on the second floor of the Warren-Trumbull County Public Library that demonstrated her personal beliefs.

“Education is Greek and a toothbrush,” was one of them, which she challenged two Howland children, ages 9 and 5, to explain.

Eventually, Paul Lattanzi and his sister, Leah, and Prince agreed that the message means that education teaches higher-level concepts, such as languages, but also practical things, like how to take care of yourself.

The children were part of a presentation Prince gave as part of the five-day Ohio Chautauqua tour stop in Warren, which continues through Friday night at the library and in a big red and white tent near City Hall on Mahoning Avenue downtown.

The focus of this year’s tour is inventors and innovators, such as Bethune, Alexander Graham Bell, George Washington Carver, Andrew Carnegie and Thomas Edison.

Ohio Chautauqua gets its name from the two-week summertime experience of music, dramatic interpretation, lectures and oratory that became popular in Lake Chautauqua, N.Y., starting in the 1800s.

Bethune, whose school is today known as Bethune-Cookman University, helped establish her as the most influential black leader in American history and an adviser to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the 1930s, Prince said. Bethune died in 1955.

Prince, a university professor in Boston and a Chautauqua performer since 1995, also presented a prayer that Bethune said every day, which showed her desire to be a productive citizen.

“Grant me strength and breath and will, Some useful niche in life to fill, A need to serve, a task to do, Let me each morning arise anew — Eager and glad that I can bear My portion of the morning’s care.”

Prince urged all the children to follow Bethune’s example and strive to be successful at whatever they want to do — and not be limited by negative thoughts about ourselves.

Bethune was motivated to read at age 9 after a young white girl who could read told her to leave her books alone, saying, “You can’t read.”

Prince will be part of today’s performance under the tent, starting at 6:30 p.m. with piano music, followed by a 7:30 p.m. performance as Bethune. Prince will give another workshop at 2 p.m. Friday at the library, discussing the friendship and working relationship between Bethune and FDR’s wife, Eleanor.

All Chautauqua events are free, open to the public and sponsored by the Ohio Humanities Council and the Fine Arts Council of Trumbull County.

Ohio Chautauqua last visited Warren in 2004 and 2007. Besides Warren, the tour also stopped in Canton last month and moves on to Archbold, Euclid and Centerville later this month.

runyan@vindy.com

SCHEDULE

Remaining events

All events of the Ohio Chautauqua are free and open to the public.

TODAY

Michael Hughes as Alexander Graham Bell in a workshop for youth ages 8 and up, 10 a.m. in the Warren Public Library, 444 Mahoning Ave. N.W., Warren.

George Dauler as Andrew Carnegie in a workshop for adults on wealth, 2 p.m. in the Warren Public Library, Warren.

Dorothy Mains Prince as educator Mary McLeod Bethune, 7:30 p.m. in the red and white tent near City Hall on Mahoning Avenue downtown. Piano music will precede the presentation at 6:30 p.m.

FRIDAY

George Dauler as Andrew Carnegie in a workshop for youth ages 8 and up on steel production, 10 a.m. in the Warren Public Library.

Dorothy Mains Prince as educator Mary McLeod Bethune in a workshop for adults on the relationship between Bethune and Eleanor Roosevelt at 2 p.m. in the Warren Public Library.

Hank Fincken as Thomas Alva Edison, 7:30 p.m. in the red and white tent near Warren City Hall on Mahoning Avenue downtown. A musical program begins at 6:30 p.m.

Source: Ohio Chautauqua