Salute to Journey Santa Fe

Among the dozens of amenities that make our city special, one of my favorites, and one that is insufficiently recognized for all it contributes to our civic life, is Journey Santa Fe, a lively one-hour forum that takes place every Sunday morning at Collected Works. Now in its 12th season, this series provides an opportunity for attendees to meet and converse with leaders who are doing all they can to foster a more cohesive, vibrant and welcoming community.

Arranged by Santa Fean Melissa Williams, who helped launch the venture in 2007, and hosted by Collected Works Bookstore owner Dorothy Massey and her colleagues in a bookstore that has long been an indispensable part of our city’s connective tissue, Journey Santa Fe explores the work of volunteer organizations like the Aldo Leopold Writing Program, CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocates for Children), New Energy Economy, New Mexicans to Prevent Gun Violence, Planned Parenthood, the Santa Fe Watershed Association, Somos Un Pueblo Unido and Think New Mexico.

It promotes our schools, our parks and gardens, our galleries and museums, and our performing arts institutions. And through gatherings that feature dialogue with educators, public officials, philanthropists and a broad spectrum of concerned citizens, it offers a delightful way for attendees to reflect and comment on the most important issues of our day.

In recent weeks, for example, participants in Journey sessions have heard Mayor Alan Webber talk about what he and his team are doing to make City Hall more responsive to the needs of both residents and visitors. They’ve enjoyed an opportunity to chat with Senate Leader Peter Wirth and House Leader Brian Egolf about our state’s current legislative session. And they’ve had the pleasure of meeting Allan Affeldt (“Legal Tender to be restored,” July 28, 2018), and learning about what he and his colleagues from Winslow, Ariz., are doing in Albuquerque, Lamy and Las Vegas, N.M., to celebrate the railroad heritage that established Santa Fe and the American Southwest as iconic destinations.

If you’ve yet to look in on these weekly town hall meetings, I encourage you to take advantage of one of the best reasons to be thankful that you reside in the City Different. These gatherings are always a treat. And if you happen to miss one that you’d hoped to attend, you’ll be relieved to know that you can listen to a KSFR recording of it on the Journey Santa Fe website.

John F. Andrews is president of The Shakespeare Guild.