February 2023
For the Love of Turquoise with Carrie Calisay Cannon
Turquoise has a long standing tradition amongst Native cultures of the Southwest, holding special significance and profound meanings to specific individual tribes. Even before the more contemporary tradition of combining silver with turquoise, cultures throughout the southwest used turquoise in necklaces, earrings, mosaics, fetishes, medicine pouches, and made bracelets of basketry stems lacquered with piñon resin and inlaid turquoise. Found on six continents across the world, turquoise forms in arid regions through the process of water seeping through rock and…
Find out more »April 2023
Jerome-Too Stubborn to Die-How the Town Survived Numerous “Near-Death” Experiences with Jay Mark
Numerous fires, landslides, floods, labor strikes, polluted air, epidemics, Depression, recessions, financial collapse, one adversity after another. Any one of these might spell the end of a lesser community. But, in Arizona, one town survived these “near-death” experiences, and more; yet managed to survive. Some might even say, “thrive.” This presentation looks at the numerous disasters, tragedies and setbacks Jerome faced in its first ¾ century. And still come out on top. From the time in prehistory when the Sinagua’s…
Find out more »May 2023
They Beat the Heat: How Arizonans Survived the Desert Heat in the Days Before Air Conditioning with Christine Reid
Drawing from multi-cultural influences of the variety of people who helped build Arizona, discover how creative adaptations in lifestyle, architecture, building materials, town planning and even humor all contributed to surviving intense desert temperatures. What have we forgotten and what can we learn from the wisdom of those who came before as climate becomes a vital and daily issue in life today? Using newspaper clippings, anecdotes, and photographs, the story is told how Arizonans adjusted to life in the desert…
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