Upcoming Events Calendar (NPS Digest)

Please submit information on upcoming events to Bill_Halainen@nps.gov. New listings and revision are in bold face.

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November 7 – November 21 – Black Women’s History Celebration, Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS, Washington, DC. The National Archives for Black Women’s History and Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the National Archives for Black Women's History and the 15th anniversary of NPS involvement with Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS. In conjunction with the anniversaries, the site is conducting a series of luncheons associated with collections in the archive. The structure of the luncheons will include presentations by two guest speakers and then a tabletop discussion led by invited guest speakers.

The topics, dates, and location are located below:

African American Women in the Government – Saturday, November 14, noon, Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS, 1318 Vermont Ave. Washington D.C. 20005
African American Fashion: Then and Now (featuring designs by L'Shandi and Yndigo designs) – Saturday, November 21, noon, Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS, 1318 Vermont Ave. Washington D.C. 20005

The National Archives for Black Women’s History documents the legacy of Mary McLeod Bethune. The scope of the collection includes materials about Mary McLeod Bethune, the National Council of Negro Women, and other African American Women’s organizations, and individuals associated with those organizations. The archive’s collection also documents the ongoing preservation and interpretation of the Bethune legacy through the Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS. Mary McLeod Bethune achieved her greatest national and international recognition at the townhouse that is now a national historic site. It was the first headquarters of the National Council of Negro Women and was her last home in Washington DC. From here, Bethune and the Council spearheaded strategies and developed programs that advanced the interests of African American women and the Black community. For more information about The Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site or the National Archives of Black Women’s History please see our website at www.nps.gov/mamc or call (202) 673-2402.

November 28 – Eighth Annual Visit, Canadian Pacific Railway Holiday Train, Steamtown NHS, Scranton, PA. The train will arrive between 5:30 and 6:00 p.m. The Canadian Pacific’s goal is to stock food banks in local communities year-round, and especially at this time of year. Visitors are asked to bring along non-perishable food items or cash donations.

December 3 – National Christmas Tree Lighting, President’s Park, Washington, DC. The ceremony will take place at 5 p.m. EST. For the first time, the lighting will be broadcast nationwide on the Public Broadcasting System. It will also be available online at www.thenationaltree.org. The public is also invited to visit this interactive site now and throughout the holiday season to experience all the behind-the-scenes festivities of the event, from the story of the first National Christmas Tree to the one-of-a-kind ornaments made each year by ordinary Americans to hang on 56 trees – one for every U.S. state, territory and the District of Columbia. Visitors to the site may also create their own customized, interactive e-card for the holidays.

December 5 – “An Old Virginia Christmas: The Plantation Reacts to John Brown’s Raid,” Booker T. Washington NM, VA. From 3:00 pm- 8:00 p.m. This event is the beginning of many special programs at the park throughout the next several years commemorating the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War. At this special event, visitors will learn how Christmas was celebrated on a small, slave-holding Virginia tobacco plantation in 1859 and how one abolitionist helped steer the United States towards a devastating Civil War. The afternoon programs will include children’s activities, farm programs, and storytelling by Royal Shiree Jones from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Walking tours with costumed interpreters will be held at 5:00 p.m., 6:00 p.m., and 7:00 p.m. The event will conclude with a special reading of Booker T. Washington's "Christmas Days in Old Virginia.” Contact Booker T. Washington National Monument at (540) 721-2094 for more information.

December 6 – December 10 – Ranger Rendezvous XXIII, Association of National Park Rangers, Wyndham Hotel, Gettysburg, PA. The theme for the Rendezvous this will be “America’s History: Protecting The Past, Informing The Future,” and the keynote addresses, plenary sessions, workshops and breakout sessions will explore issues pertaining to the Service’s management, protection and interpretation of historic sites. They will also focus on current NPS operations and on the future of both the National Park Service and the Association of National Park Rangers. Here are some of the highlights of this year’s gathering:

The Rendezvous will open on Sunday evening with a reception at Gettysburg NMP’s spectacular new visitor center, which will be followed by special viewings of the park movie, “A New Birth of Freedom,” narrated by Morgan Freeman, and the fine restoration of the 1884 cyclorama painting of Pickett’s Charge
Monday will feature a three-hour-long afternoon field trip of the battlefield and the national cemetery (where the Gettysburg Address was delivered), guided by a park ranger. There will also be opportunities to see the Eisenhower Farm at the same time.
Director Jonathan Jarvis will be speaking at the Rendezvous.
Also speaking will be Deny Galvin, past deputy director and current member of the Second Century Commission, who will talk about the commission’s recommendations and the challenges facing the National Park Service in coming years. He will be joined by Tom Kiernan, president of NPCA.
Workshops, presentations and breakout sessions will include a session on doing Civil War and other types of historical genealogy led by professional genealogists, a panel on the challenges of managing cultural landscapes, a hands-on workshop for younger members on how to move forward in their careers, a session on an ANPR-sponsored oral history project collecting employee stories for the NPS centennial in 2016, another session on partnerships and how to make them more effective, a panel on interpreting controversial historical sites, and an overview of the Service’s plans and activities for the upcoming Civil War sesquicentennial.

Click on the following for more inf http://www.anpr.org/anprrr.htm

December 10 – December 12 – Bioblitz and All Taxa Biological Inventory Annual Conference, Gatlinburg, TN. The National Park Service and Discover Life in America (DLIA) are partnering in implementing the all taxa biological inventory (ATBI) within Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This December, DLIA will be sponsoring its annual national conference in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, and all NPS personnel are invited to participate. This conference will provide an opportunity for park managers to discuss and share information about Bioblitz and ATBI events within their parks and regions. An NPS side meeting is planned to discuss Servicewide all taxa biological inventories, with an emphasis on youth, tribal and senior engagement. The NPS continues to advance the development of ATBI’s and Bioblitz events throughout the United States and encourage partnerships with scientists and others interested in biodiversity, the discovery of new species, taxonomy, and wildlife conservation. This conference is an important opportunity for natural resource managers interested in establishing similar biodiversity discovery events within their own parks or regions and for those managers who already participate in these events to share their ideas and experiences about how to improve future NPS events. The conference will be held at the River Terrace Resort and Convention Center. For more information regarding the conference please follow the link to the announcements and calendar page located on the Sharepoint website: http://nrpcsharepoint/brmd/ATBI/default.aspx . Or you can view the DLIA website at: http://www.dlia.org/index.shtml . A conference registration form available to interested parties can be completed by following the link posted below: http://www.dlia.org/dlia/conference/2009ConferenceRegist.pdf . For more information concerning the National Park Service’s work with all taxa biological inventories and biodiversity discovery, please contact Kirsten Leong, NPS Human Dimensions program manager (kirsten_leong@nps.gov)