The Saga of Thea Foss
Posted July 30, 2014 at 5:50 am by Tim Dustrude
Join renowned Washington State storyteller Karen Haas for an hour of first-person history with “So Many Things to Do Yet: The Saga of Thea Foss,” scheduled for 8:15 pm, Thursday July 31 at the San Juan Island Library.
Thea Foss was born in Norway. She arrived in Tacoma with her husband Andrew in 1889. Starting with a used rowboat, they built a maritime empire. Karen portrays Thea in 1912, the year of the first Foss tugboat. She reflects back on her life and looks forward to the future. At a time when few women could, Thea Foss took her place in a “man’s world”, always believing “we are members of one great body… we were born for the good of the whole”. Like other immigrants, she added her experiences to the rich blend that is Washington.
Haas enjoys both telling in “modern times” and bringing the past to life with living history presentations through the Washington state Humanities Commission’s Inquiring Mind series. She is well known for her effervescent style, which engages emotions, from the sublime to the ridiculous, in audiences both young and old.
She has presented at such “usual” places as libraries, bookstores, schools, senior centers, and churches; as well as “exotic” sites such as 1850s fur trade and Pig War historic re-enactments, a medieval wedding reception, and ghostly bonfires.
An experienced Teacher and Museum Curator of Education, Haas was the recipient of the Association of King County Historical Organization’s 2005 Heritage Education Award. She is active in re-enactments at northwest historic sites such as Nisqually, Fort, as well as San Juan Island National Historical Park Her living history presentations have been featured at Fort Clatsop and Whitm an Mission National Historic Site. She feels especially rewarded telling the tales of those whose voices are usually silent in history – the women.
The program is free. Call the library at 360-378-2798, or the park at 378-2240, ext. 2226 for special access information.
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Categories: Around Here
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