Two C.O. projects win ‘Heritage Excellence’ honors
Individuals, organizations and projects that have made outstanding contributions to preserving Oregon heritage will receive Oregon Heritage Excellence Awards on April 26 in Newberg. The public is invited to attend the presentation, with pre-ticketing required.
“The award recipients represent the extraordinary efforts to preserve Oregon’s heritage,” said Todd Mayberry, coordinator for the Oregon Heritage Commission. “They also serve as models for others on how to develop new ideas, approaches, and innovations.”
The recipients will be:
— Oregon Public Broadcasting’s 2016 “Oregon Experience” Season, for a year of exceptional programming, which resulted in showcase documentaries that promoted education and dialogue around remarkable citizens and underrepresented communities of the state.
— “15 Minutes Histories” Project, a cutting-edge collaboration between the Deschutes Public Library and the Deschutes County Historical Society that innovatively addressed the immediate access and long-term preservation needs of community-based stories in Central Oregon.
— Aimee Gorham Mural Conservation Project, an exemplary cooperative effort to preserve and interpret a uniquely Oregonian cultural asset, a 1930s WPA-era wood art mural in Portland’s Chapman Elementary School created by one of the state’s most important female artists.
— John M. Tess, Portland, for a 40-year professional career built around increasingly significant and enduring contributions to the cause of preserving Oregon’s historic and architectural legacy.
— Historic Columbia River Highway 2016 Centennial Celebration, a range of statewide stakeholders joined the Oregon Department of Transportation to host yearlong public programs and events as part of a once-in-a-century birthday bash for Oregon’s oldest scenic highway.
— Vanport Mosaic Festival 2016, a groundbreaking, grassroots effort that utilized a multi-disciplinary approach through creative partnerships to bring Oregonians together to learn and talk about Vanport’s history.
— Kelly Haverkate, for her inspirational and tireless commitment as a Main Street program volunteer, whose work resulted in a visionary, transformative, and sustainable revitalization of the city of Dayton’s downtown, a gem in the Willamette Valley.
— Redmond’s Union High School Rehabilitation Project, a statewide model for restoration and adaptive reuse of a locally treasured historic building, honoring its storied past while beginning a new chapter as the home of City Hall.
This year also introduces the Sally Donovan Award for Historic Cemetery Preservation. This recent addition to the Oregon Heritage Excellence Awards program is given for a project, organization, or person for outstanding contribution in the preservation of Oregon historic cemeteries.
The award is named for Sally Donovan, who brought cemetery preservation to the forefront in Oregon. She developed historic cemetery planning and trained hundreds in the assessment, cleaning, and repair of monuments.
The first-ever recipient will be:
— Dorothy Brandner, for over a decade of extraordinary volunteerism and estimable leadership in the areas of preservation, interpretation, and historical research while serving the Eugene Pioneer Cemetery.
The Oregon Heritage Excellence Awards are a project of Oregon Heritage, part of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. This year’s awards are being presented in conjunction with the Oregon Heritage Summit.
The awards banquet will be held from 6:30-9:00 p.m. at the Chehalem Cultural Center (415 E Sheridan, Newberg) on the evening of Wednesday, April 26. Special guests include Bertony Faustin, proprietor of Abbey Creek Vineyards, who will share his experience documenting the stories of a growing community of fellow minority winemakers across the state.
Tickets are available by using the online registration system that is available through www.oregon.gov/oprd/HCD/OHC/Pages/Conference.aspx. For more information, contact Todd Mayberry at 503-986-0696 or Todd.Mayberry@oregon.gov
