WCPL Employee To Portray American Girl Doll During Programs
WCPL Employee To Portray American Girl Doll During Programs
Posted
Jennifer Peryam-jperyam@timesuniononline.com
WCPL Employee To Portray American Girl Doll During ProgramsStephanie Hershberger sat in the children's section at Warsaw Community Public Library Tuesday wearing a beret with braided hair, an argyle sweater and a skirt.
American Girl dolls series books were stacked on a brightly painted yellow table next to her.
The wardrobe was not the 35-year-old Hershberger's usual work attire she wears as the library's children's services employee. Instead, the clothing is what she will wear to portray Molly from the American Girl dolls series in programs the library will hold April 9 and 25 at the library for girls in grades kindergarten through fifth grade.The Molly American Girl doll represents the 1944 time period. Molly was patriotic and loved camping during the World War II time period.
This summer will be Hershberger's 15-year anniversary working at the library. She has worked as a children's services employee for the past seven years.
She said she got the idea for the program when she saw that the library's children section had more than 100 American Girl Doll collection books for children to check out.
"They have been sitting on the shelf and I wanted to come up with a program to teach girls about the American Girl Doll history," Hershberger said.
The April 9 program is already full with 20 girls and their dolls scheduled to make an appearance. Girls can still register for the April 25th program.
The program will be in meeting room C and is free to attend. For more information about the program or to register, contact Hershberger at 574-267-6011 or e-mail hershberger@warsawlibrary.org
Hershberger said she did Internet research and looked in books to prepare for her role as Molly for the past month.
The program is titled "Walking Through History with the American Girls."
She said this is the first time she will portray Molly, and the library has never done an American Girl Doll program before.
The program will include crafts, a pioneer lunch, and the girls will have the opportunity to watch the "Kitt Kittredge: An American Girl" movie that came out last year.
Hershberger said the movie is about the Great Depression. She said the movie can relate today because we are today dealing with a downturn in the economy.
Participants will learn about historical clothing from daywear to sleepwear to special-occasion clothing that resembles what the popular American Girl characters Kirsten, Kaya, Felicity, Josefina, Addy, Samantha, Kitt and Molly might have worn. They also will learn how clothing has changed over the years to reflect history, culture and girls' individual styles.
Hershberger will be assisted by library associate Margaret Fritzel, who will represent the pioneer time period representing Kirsten.
"I want the girls to learn that history can come alive by reading a book. They will learn about the Revolutionary War by reading the books and inspired to read the books because of their dolls," Hershberger said.
Hershberger has a daughter, Megan, 8, who is a second-grader at Eisenhower Elementary School. Megan has one of the American Girl dolls, Kitt, and has the American Girl movie. Megan will be one of the 20 girls who will attend the April 9 program with her American Girl doll.
"This is a historical-based program, not a party, as I am trying to capture the books," Hershberger said.
The girls will learn about the American Girl Doll character Kaya, a Native American girl from 1764 and ending with Molly in 1944, and will finish with the movie.
Hershberger stressed the girls who attend the program do not need to have an American Girl doll to participate. They can bring any type of doll to the program with them and parents are invited to the event.
