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Dear Friends,
I’ve long been interested in the historical role of archaeological nonprofit organizations in the United States (yes, there are many). And annually, during this stretch between Thanksgiving and the New Year, nonprofits send out year-end letters asking for support. Following my interests, I usually direct my personal giving to place-based nonprofits—organizations focusing on archaeology, history, cultural landscapes, and heritage.
This year, the pandemic caused global-scale devastation that has overwhelmed both governments and the human-services nonprofits that pick up where governments leave off. As a result, my priorities about giving this year’s end have changed.
I spent much of last weekend carefully sifting through year-end letters. I created a spreadsheet and thoughtfully considered what levels of support I could provide. I took into account that I haven’t spent money on travel or restaurants or new clothes. I factored in my privileged status. Clearly, I’ve been less affected by the horror of the COVID pandemic than many, many people.
I did my best to boost my level of giving. I’m still not fully comfortable with the outcome—I still feel the need to do more.
I hope that each of you will consider how you can give this year—to nonprofits that you know and trust. To organizations you are confident will have a meaningful impact. To a diversity of nonprofits—to those that help with the physical care and healing needed by so many, and to those that facilitate the spiritual healing we must not ignore.
Be well and be generous,
Bill Doelle
President & CEO, Archaeology Southwest
Continuing Coverage: San Juan County Commission Asks Incoming Administration to Restore Bears Ears
With fewer than 50 days remaining before Inauguration Day, the San Juan County Commission passed a resolution Tuesday calling upon President-elect Joe Biden “to take immediate action to restore the Bears Ears National Monument” once he assumes office. The resolution marks a dramatic reversal of the commission’s position from four years ago when, in December 2016, President Barack Obama designated a 1.35 million-acre national monument at the request of five Native American tribes with ties to the region over the loud objections of nearly every elected leader in Utah. https://bit.ly/36XX4xH – Salt Lake Tribune
Continuing Coverage: Ancestors’ Return from Helsinki
In 1891, ancestral remains belonging to the Pueblo tribes of the Mesa Verde region began a long and unexpected journey when they were taken from their resting place in Colorado, United States. A journey which culminated in them arriving halfway across the world in Finland. This September, 129 years later, the ancestors took their final voyage when they were reunited with the tribes and laid to rest for the last time. https://bit.ly/36JcF3W – Helsinki Times
Mesa Verde National Park Cancels Annual Luminaria Gathering
“We regret having to cancel the open house this year,” Mesa Verde Superintendent Cliff Spencer said in the news release, “but feel doing so is in the best interests of the health of park visitors and our employees. This event brings people together in celebration of the season, but bringing people together from around the region is not advised, considering the high potential for spread. We look forward to resuming the open house when conditions improve.” https://bit.ly/2VWJzbf – The Journal
Maxwell Museum Welcomes Kari Schleher
The Maxwell Museum at Anthropology recently welcomed a new curator of Archaeology, Kari Schleher, who holds a joint position as an assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology. Schleher earned her Ph.D. in Anthropology from UNM in 2010. She comes to the Maxwell from the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center in Cortez, Colo., where she was the laboratory analysis manager from 2011–2014 and laboratory manager from 2014–June 2020.Returning to The University of New Mexico is a homecoming for Schleher, who wrote, “I’m thrilled to be back at the Maxwell as the curator of archaeology. This is truly my dream job—I’d been enamored with the amazing collections, great research, and wonderful staff at the Maxwell since I first started at UNM in 1998.” https://bit.ly/36VdDu7 – UNM Newsroom
Position Announcement: Director of Operations, Archaeology Southwest
Reporting to the President/CEO, the successful Director of Operations will be a hands-on and participative manager supporting the following areas: finance, business planning and budgeting, human resources, administration, and IT. The Director of Operations is a critical member of the senior leadership team in strategic decision-making and operations as Archaeology Southwest continues to enhance its quality programming and build capacity. http://bit.ly/2oQN4mq
Call to Applicants: Carryl B. Martin Research Award
In late 2015 the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society (AAHS) received a substantial bequest from the estate of Carryl B. Martin, an avocational archaeologist and longtime member of AAHS, specifically to support our research program. A single award of $5,000.00 will be given annually to a high-quality archaeological or historical research project that focuses on significant questions in the archaeology of the Southwest United States or Northwest Mexico. In the spirit of Carryl Martin, projects that allow opportunities for participation by avocationalists will receive special consideration. Applications are due by December 18, 2020, and must be submitted electronically. All applicants must be members of AAHS. https://bit.ly/33TayZw – Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society
Save the Date: AAHS Research Slam
January 11, 2021, 6:30 p.m. MST. We will be virtual this year! Pour your favorite libation, picture a great pot-luck feast and zoom in. Check out our online auction starting January 1. As always, all funds raised will support the AAHS Research and Travel Grant program. More information: https://bit.ly/36VT9RN. Zoom registration: https://bit.ly/3gq8jlw
Video: Beloved Things
December’s Archaeology Café with Shannon Cowell and Kelly Jenks, “Beloved Things: Micaceous Bean Pots and Connections to the Hispanic New Mexican Homeland,” a case study on Hispanic women and heirloom bean pots, is now available as a video: https://bit.ly/3mG88EX – Archaeology Southwest
Video: Paul Reed Interview on Discoveries in Norway and the Utah Obelisk
On December 3, Paul sat down for his monthly discussion with KSJE’s Scott Michlin. https://youtu.be/F-rLkT0juGI – KSJE (opens at YouTube)
Video: Barger Gulch, a Folsom Campsite in the Rocky Mountains
In this presentation, Dr. Todd Surovell discussed research at an intensively occupied Folsom winter campsite in Middle Park, Colorado, that provides glimpses into rarely explored aspects of Folsom lifeways. Because the Barger Gulch site is shallowly buried, they were able to excavate large contiguous excavation areas, which allowed them to examine aspects of the spatial organization of the site and the social organization of the people who lived there. Within those excavations, they were able to identify multiple household features, and comparing artifact assemblages among those households provides some insight into the individuals who lived there more than 12,8000 years ago. https://youtu.be/vT0yvyEE4A8 – Pueblo Archaeological and Historical Society and Crow Canyon Archaeological Center (opens at YouTube)
Video: Examining the Role of Diversity and Inclusion in Arizona Archaeology
This Arizona Preservation in Place webinar confronts the issues of bias, cultural justice, objectivity, race, and racism in Arizona archaeology today. The session features an introduction by William White on archaeology’s whiteness problem followed by a question-focused discussion. Moderator: Daniel Garcia, Arizona Archaeological Council. Participants: Margaret Hangan, Kaibab National Forest; Annie J. Lutes, SWCA Environmental Consultants; Rebecca Renteria, University of Arizona Laboratory of Tree Ring Research; April Sewequaptewa, Arizona Department of Transportation; Jewel Touchin, Logan Simpson; and William White, University of California at Berkeley and Society of Black Archaeologists. https://youtu.be/Qcr1OtlG1n8 – Arizona Preservation Foundation (opens at YouTube)
Video: Preston Arrow-weed’s Message about Indian Pass
Quechan elder Preston J. Arrow-weed and a contingent of Quechan tribal members return to Indian Pass and vow to protect this sacred area from potential open pit gold mining. In the mid-1990s, the Quechan stopped it, and now they must do so again. https://vimeo.com/482813886 – Dan Golding (opens at Vimeo)
Speaking the Quechan language, Quechan elder Preston J. Arrow-weed explains why Indian Pass is sacred to the Yuman tribes and must be protected. (Subtitled in English.) https://vimeo.com/483144730 – Dan Golding (opens at Vimeo)
This is a developing story. We will keep you informed.
Publication Announcement: With Gold in Their Eyes
“With Gold in Their Eyes,” by Paul F. Reed. El Palacio 125(4), Winter 2020. https://bit.ly/36xAnQz
Online Resources, Events, and Opportunities to Help
Please keep sharing these with us, and we will keep helping to get the word out. Our inbox is sat-editor@archaeologysouthwest.org.
From the Albuquerque Archaeological Society: The Fall/Winter 2020 edition of Pottery Southwest is now available: https://potterysouthwest.unm.edu/PDFs/PSW-36-3-4.pdf.
From Old Pueblo Archaeology Center: On December 10 at 7:00 p.m. MST, archaeologist Kelsey Hanson will present “Painted Landscapes of Reverent Avoidance in the Chiricahua Mountains.” Her talk will describe a survey of caves in the eastern Chiricahua Mountains where the Hohokam, Mogollon, and Casas Grandes archaeological cultures overlapped. More information and Zoom registration: https://bit.ly/3otCdrQ
From 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. MST on December 21, archaeologist Allen Dart will lead a Winter Solstice Tour to Los Morteros and the Picture Rocks Petroglyphs archaeological sites starting near Silverbell Road & Linda Vista Blvd. in Marana, Arizona. Los Morteros was a Hohokam village with a ballcourt, bedrock mortars, and other archaeological features, and Picture Rocks includes a Hohokam calendar marker petroglyph, among others. $30 donation. 520-798-1201 or info@oldpueblo.org. More information: https://bit.ly/3n2qWyr
We’re happy to help get the word out. Please submit news, publication announcements, and other resources to this link for consideration: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/submit-to-sat/
Questions? sat-editor@archaeologysouthwest.org
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