Awards to honor keepers of history
Esther Martinez is on annual poster
The state’s Historic Preservation Division, which is honoring an Ohkay Owingeh woman on its annual commemorative poster, will present a number of awards in a ceremony 2 p.m. May 10 at the Scottish Rite Center in Santa Fe.
A number of organizations and individuals from throughout New Mexico will be honored that day, including the late Albuquerque architect Steven Kells, who will be commemorated with a Lifetime Achievement award.
This year’s free poster features Esther Martinez, the Tewa language preservationist and linguist from Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo. She was named a National Heritage Fellow by the National Endowment for the Arts shortly before her death in 2006 and was one of the first women commemorated on a women’s history roadside marker. You can get a copy of the poster by contacting the division at 505827-6320 or nm.shpo@state.nm.us.
Kells co-founded Kells + Craig Architects in 1984 and was known for his firm’s restoration of the Kimo Theater in 2000. The firm and Kells also restored San Felipe de Neri Church in Albuquerque and did restoration on the Tularosa Red Brick Schoolhouse, the Harwood Foundation Museum in Taos, Fuller Lodge and the Los Alamos Historical Society Museum in Los Alamos, and Morgan Hall in Deming. He also co-authored a State and National Register nomination of Apache Canyon Bridge, located along the Santa Fe Trail and significant in Civil War battles.
Other awards that impact northern New Mexico include:
Ellis Browning Architects, Ltd. and Gayla Bechtol Architects, both of Santa Fe, will receive Architectural Heritage awards for their documentation of Bruns Army Hospital in Santa Fe. During World War II, the 123-acre campus consisted of nearly 200 buildings to serve wartime needs. By 1950, only 50 buildings remained and it became the College of Santa Fe. Most of the “temporary” barracks are gone and the few remaining buildings will likely be demolished or relocated, so their documentation preserves part of Santa Fe’s history.
Los Compadres del Palacio will receive an award for the Windows on History Project at the Palace of the Governors. Eight windows facing the Palace courtyard were in such poor repair that they endangered the building, so Los Compadres del Palacio spearheaded raising the needed $40,000. Dorothy Bracey assumed the leadership role and soon Los Compadres embarked on a successful media campaign, graphic designers provided their services, artists donated works for a raffle and the Santa Fe Playhouse staged a special performance of the Fiesta Melodrama to help raise funds. With assistance from the Daughters of the American Revolution, the National Society of Colonial Dames in New Mexico and La Fonda Hotel, fundraising exceeded expectations and the windows were restored.
The New Mexico Historic Women Marker Initiative will be honored for its work in getting more women recognized on the state’s historical markers. By 2010, 65 women’s history markers were built and installed in every county and 16 are on Native American lands. Patricia French and Alexis K. Girard, both of Santa Fe, and Beverly Duran of Albuquerque, co-founders of the Historic Women Marker Initiative, will receive awards, along with the organization’s executive director, Karren Sahler (2007-10), and Rosemary Molnar (2006-07), both of Santa Fe.
Charles A. Hannaford will get an Archaeological Heritage Award for his work as outreach director of the state Office of Archaeological Studies, Department of Cultural Affairs, since 1991. In a 35-year career, he has helped raise public awareness of New Mexico’s archaeological heritage –– both historic and prehistoric –– among diverse groups of New Mexicans.