COEUR d'ALENE - When North Idaho College Outdoor Pursuits coordinator Jon Totten speaks about his program, listeners can hear the passion in his voice. They can see how his face lights up, his smile widens and a twinkle appears in his eyes.

"I knew immediately that this was something special," he said.

An OP coordinator since 2003, Totten provided interviewer Kim Golden details about how OP works and the kind of relationship the outdoors program has with Lake Coeur d'Alene, the NIC Beach and the visitors who spend time there.

"The lake is the epicenter of Coeur d'Alene," Totten said. "No one can deny that."

The Totten-Golden interview took place in the Boswell Hall TV studio Friday afternoon during the first session of "Stories of the Gathering Place." The ongoing interview-based program is part of the ninth annual NIC Cardinal Connections Symposium.

"We thought this would be a great opportunity to celebrate the 80th anniversary of NIC," said Cardinal Connections committee member Lee Wallace. "A birthday project."

Totten's explanation of OP drummed up mental images of summer sunshine and sailboats, but it also tied into the fact that NIC rests on a land known as Yap-Keehn-Um, the gathering place of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe. The historical and attractive nature of the area is a large part of "Stories of the Gathering Place."

"We're looking for people who have a relationship with NIC, residents of the Fort Grounds area, people who worked in the mill sites, and also people who have stories from their tribal heritage as well," said Cardinal Connections director Max Mendez.

Mendez said last year, the Cardinal Connections committee began looking at ways to increase awareness of the value and tradition of the Fort Grounds area. Last semester, the organization hosted presenters who discussed local history, culture and more, "just so people could understand the value and the tradition of this small geographic area," Mendez said. "It's very rich in history."

Golden, a Coeur d'Alene retiree who volunteered to conduct the first interview, said being the first interviewer was an adventure.

"This looked interesting," he said. "It looked like something I could be involved with that would be a project that would last and contribute to something meaningful."

He and Totten chatted for nearly 45 minutes while NIC learning resources technology coordinator Andy Finney filmed from behind a large window. The cardinal-red backdrop, coffee table with mugs and staged greenery created a suitable, soothing studio for the interview.

"What we've tried to create is an environment for people like Mr. Totten here to just have them come in, slip in, sit down and have a private, personal conversation," Finney said.

The video will be edited to a two-minute clip that will be broadcast on CDATV channel 19 or channel 16-2. Finney said the clip will be up on the NIC website at www.nic.edu/cardinalconnections early next week.

"The idea is not to get an exhaustive documentary out of each story, but to pull out of that story a two-minute segment," Mendez said.

Interviews are still needed for "Stories." Anyone with a story from the Fort Grounds area can visit the website and click on the "Tell Your Story" tab to write up to a 100-word summary of the topic and include preferred contact method and availability options.