“A kind heart can still stand strong and fight for what truly matters.” ~ Unknown
academic girl gang
Yesterday’s post seemed a bit of a downer because of the events of 9/11, and it is, without a doubt, one of the most somber events in our collective history, but despite the 25-year anniversary, I actually had a really great day. I was just too tired to do it justice here. That goodness continued today, but let me back up a bit. Yesterday was the first full day of the Monuments Workshop, which you’ve heard me talk about before. It was a third convening in two years of folks from all over Kentucky and beyond to talk about how we honor our people, how we restore, learn, and tell stories buried under weeds in a cemetery, and how we can help one another in this work. There were plenty of academics in the house, but there were many community practitioners, too, and I think that’s a critical part of what makes the Monuments Workshop, like the Appalachian Studies Association, so successful. In a future post, I’ll talk about the many people whose necks I got to hug yesterday, but for today’s post, I want to shout out my girl gang panel on Building Archives and Preserving Legacy (below, L-R): Dr. Vanessa Holden, Tiffany Sturdivant, moi, and Dr. Karen Rignoll. We come from different backgrounds and hold different roles in our organizations and in the community, but in intersecting ways, we all work actively in archives building as a way to tell and preserve stories for many underserved Americans. Tiffany, who is the executive director of Appalshop, was our impromptu moderator and did an incredible job keeping us on track and on time. Plus, like Vanessa, she’s hilarious, so we laughed plenty throughout the day. I really enjoyed listening to my three colleagues talk about the vital work they’re doing, and I enjoyed getting to know Tiffany. I’ve worked closely with Vanessa for several years now, as you know, and I’ve been very involved in some of the work Karen is doing with LiKEN in Martin County (LiKEN is short for Livelihoods Knowledge Exchange Network). I hold both Vanessa and Karen in high regard, and Tiffany now certainly joins them in the ranks of my favorite people. It was a wonderful morning to cap off an incredible Monuments Workshop. I’m already looking forward to next year. I never say that about conferences, but this is different in every way. This is about all of us.
panel gals
No responses yet