News Photo by Kayla Wikaryasz On Friday, Norma Alexander, Alpena County Public Library Special Collections assistant, is seen reading her script for the Stories from Beyond tour at the Evergreen Cemetery in Alpena. Alexander led participants through the cemetery, stopping at certain graves to tell the history of those that now rest there.

ALPENA — On Friday, community members gathered at Evergreen Cemetery for a guided tour, hosted by the Alpena County Public Library Special Collections, called Stories from Beyond. Tour guides led participants through the cemetery and told the histories of those that now rest at the cemetery.

The tour began at the entrance of the cemetery, near Crow Memorials, and winded through the pathways of the cemetery. Tour guides were dressed in black, macabre costumes and were positioned around the cemetery at strategic locations where the subjects of the stories were buried.

Norma Alexander, Special Collections assistant, led the group, stopping occasionally to point out notable people who now rest at the cemetery. Due to the nature of the stories told during the tour, Alexander noted that the content of the event was not suitable for those younger than 16 years old.

Alexander told The News that the tour was, and is, about telling the histories of those who are buried at the cemetery, highlighting the tragic deaths some of the subjects experienced.

“The program is built around telling true stories,” Alexander said. “Telling how people died.”

Alexander explained that the Stories from Beyond event began in 2019 but was temporarily paused when COVID-19 hit.

Tina Markowski, Alpena County Public Library director, stated that the library has hosted Stories from Beyond the last few years since the pandemic ended. She added that it has become a tradition for the library.

The stories told during the tour consisted of those whose deaths led to innovations in the workplace, medicine, public safety, and beyond. Alexander said that many of the stories told during the tour echo later improvements in how our society prevents tragic deaths.

“Times were really hard back then,” Alexander said. “There were learning experiences people went through.”

Alexander explained that the Stories from Beyond tour not only highlights those that have passed, but revisits mistakes of the past that have led to how doctors provide care for certain diseases and how workplace mishaps are prevented through safeguards and oversight.

“An example is, why we treat burns the way we do now,” Alexander said, referencing a story highlighted during the tour.

The tour is an extension of what the library’s Special Collections provides for the community. Alexander explained that at the library’s Special Collections, “we preserve Alpena’s history.” She added that the special collections makes that history available and accessible for the public.

Kayla Wikaryasz can be reached at 989-358-5688 or kwikaryasz@TheAlpenaNews.com.