About Our Organization

Novelist Alison Moore and musician Phil Lancaster established "Extraordinary Stories" in Fayetteville in 2001 under the umbrella of The National Heritage Foundation, a non-profit organization in Alexandria, Virginia. Extraordinary Stories developed an outreach program, Riders on the Orphan Train for The Orphan Train Heritage Society of America, Inc. in Springdale, Arkansas in 1998 and toured the state for four years with an Arkansas Humanities Grant to over 80 libraries, museums and schools. Two programs were also developed for Arkansas Heritage Month with grants from the Arkansas Department of Heritage: Riders on the Orphan Train in 2000 and Gospel, Biscuits & Gravy, a documentary film with live music about the life of Ozark gospel singer Ernestine Gulledge Shepherd. We're touring in Texas with grants from Humanities Texas and in New Mexico.