PRESIDENT'S CORNER
A Message From our President's Desk:
PROMISES TO KEEP
swe reflect on our mission, "To feel the pulse of earth where man has trod, and for the future, keep the past," it is clear that there is an unending charge before us to work toward documenting the past as we live forward into the future. At our last program event on November 9th, it was clear from those who gathered to hear Michael Henry speak about The Colvin Run Mill that there is an abiding and active interest among our membership in doing the work of historic research, gathering the clues, stories, and artifacts that mark our past, weaving a well-documented narrative of life in our community for future generations to reflect upon and enjoy.
To gather the story of our heritage, we are forming research groups around particular neighborhoods of Great Falls. Over the past several months, we have had a sustained focus on the Colvin Run neighborhood, as the Mill celebrated its 200th anniversary. We plan to write up a milestone report on the Colvin Run neighborhood at the 200-year mark and we welcome and invite volunteers to join in preparing such a document.
Our program offerings during 2012 will focus largely on the Seneca Road neighborhood, to be followed by a focus on Forestville in 2013, and the Riverbend/Matildaville neighborhood in 2014. As program teams work to provide thoughtful, informative presentations of new research, our research teams work to gather what we know, explore how additional insights might be obtained, and perform the interviews and research work needed to articulate a coherent story of our community's past as seen from the perspective of a particular neighborhood.
Within the context of each neighborhood focus, we will perform the work of our society: to conduct oral history interviews; to gather photographs of life in Great Falls and take photographs that record milestones of our historic properties; to work toward the preservation of historic landmarks; to uncover the original stories of historic lineages; demonstrating solid research and documentation techniques, and communication skills, whether in writing, film or photography.
Please join us in spending some cold winter days snuggled up around some intriguing historic questions about our community's past. Who knows what treasures we may come upon! Please let me know about your interest and willingness to participate. We will have our first comittee meeting in early January and will announce the exact time and place in mid-December.
Sincerely,
Kathleen Murphy
Kathleen Murphy, President 2011-2012
