In the fall of 2009 the Society embarked on an oral history project headed by OLHSI Board member Sousan Arafeh. Sousan has a doctorate in education research and extensive experience in the field. The project, known affectionately as “Telling Tales Out of School,” had its kickoff at the Lymes’ Senior Center in November, 2009. A group of community volunteers were trained to conduct interviews with Lyme/Old Lyme residents to mine their memories of life and times in our town.
 

The interviews, some of which were videotaped, have been posted on this website and collected as part of our archive. We are also developing a program that will train high school students to conduct future interviews. Several oral histories were collected in March 2010, and then, members of Old Lyme High School’s Class of 1960 were interviewed at their 50th reunion on September, 2010. Later that same month, a fourth Oral History Day focused on residents memories of WWII at home and on the front lines.