Heiman, Ben, 1914-1988.

Ben Heiman told mostly Appalachian stories to thousands of children in Alabama through the library and school systems, and fostered story-telling by children.

A Lieutenant Colonel in the US Airforce, Ben Heiman concluded his career at the Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. He and his wife Bobbie had one daughter, Lori. After retiring in 1972, Heiman worked fulltime for volunteer organizations, specializing as a story-teller with the Huntsville libraries and the city and county school systems. Eventually a dial-in system was set up so that children could hear taped stories by "Mr. Ben" as well as hear him in person. He encouraged the children in his audiences to become storytellers themselves. Many of the stories he collected and told are Appalachian, but he also collected Afro-American and international stories and traced parallel types.