The ceiling lights and fans are up and running in both library and lab. Ceilings and walls have their final coats of paint and IFWEF’s contractor has installed laminate flooring throughout the two rooms except where work is pending on two exterior doors and their wood jambs and transom lights. Baseboards are cut to size, painted, and in place. The rooms’ four interior doors await only their final coats of paint.

We are thrilled to announce that the following friends have contributed a combined total of $8,022.12 in support of our MAREC rehabilitation project. Thanks to them the GCAS's two rooms in the historic Wood House have fresh coats of paint in cheerful colors, bright lights and ceiling fans, a utility sink/workbench assembly that can't be beat, and much more. Thank you, one and all, for making the MAREC dream come true:

We of the GCAS cannot say "thank you" often enough to all the supporters of our MAREC rehabilitation project. Please join these wonderful people as we move into the final stretch of construction - and if you have contributed but do not see your name on the list below, please contact us so we can correct our error and thank you properly!

This latest installment of our MAREC project finds our volunteers (that's some of them over there on the right) completing smaller, more compartmentalized jobs in between visits by IFWEF’s contractor. He and his crew carried out our request to coat the flat, smooth sheetrock on the lab and library’s ceilings, fireplace encapsulation, and electrical panel with an orange-peel texture so that those surfaces would harmonize with the walls' coarser stucco. We were not disappointed. The results are superb.

Mark your calendars for 6:30 PM on Wednesday, June 16, 2021, to attend the GCAS's first post-pandemic in-person general meeting! Meet at the Roundup Lodge at 91 Acklin Hill Road in Mimbres, New Mexico.  Due to ongoing renovations at the Roundup we must defer our traditional summertime potluck dinner in favor of FINGER FOOD SNACKS ONLY for yourself or to share. Your beverages must be in recyclable containers and there is no cleanup available except for what you can take home yourself or put in the trash.

The GCAS began in 1928 but we never had a reliable location to shelve our growing Library and Archives. Instead, our group's materials remained in assorted boxes and bins and traveled amongst various GCAS members who stored them at their homes. Thanks to the Imogen F. Wilson Education Foundation (IFWEF), the GCAS Library and Archives finally found a stable home of their own at the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site in 2016. Now in 2021, IFWEF and the GCAS are rehabilitating two ground floor rooms of the Heritage Site's Wood House; once the rehab is complete the GCAS will box and bin their materials once again and relocate into those two rooms. There, our Library and Archives will become more accessible and our educational programs will have space for our annual research and experiential workshops.

We are excited to announce that our GCAS supporters have now contributed a total of over $7000 toward our project goal of $10,000. Such generosity has allowed us to continue through the typical fits and starts every rehabilitation project faces, and for that we thank all of our donors. We and IFWEF continue to coordinate the work of our two groups' volunteers with IFWEF's two professional contractors, while each group navigates the challenges of timing the purchase of construction materials subject to - shall we say - today's opportunity pricing.

KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN FOR THESE TITLES
(Ours have gone missing or are badly damaged and must be replaced)

Thinking of downsizing your personal library? Considering purchasing a book or periodical to donate to the GCAS as an alternative to donating to our Mimbres Archaeological Research and Education Center project? We can help make the process easy for you! Scroll down below for the link to our current list of books, periodicals, and supplies our GCAS Library needs to make our shelves more complete and user-friendly.

The GCAS doesn't want anyone to be burdened by a donation, or feel bad that they can't donate the amount they'd like. However, even the smallest gift goes a long way toward our goal. Click on this image over there on the right, for another list of examples of microdonations that keep us moving forward with our MAREC project, and the specific items your contribution buys.

In lieu of a money donation, please consider volunteering some of your time as the interior rehab of the Wood House begins in earnest. We'd appreciate your help with all kinds of projects, from packing-up boxes to cleaning walls and floors, and more! We are grateful for your generosity, whatever form it takes.

Donate here, either online or by standard mail.

Contact us by email or telephone Marianne Smith at 772-529-2627 if questions or for arranging to volunteer your time.

/s/ webmaster

As we move into April our project partner, the Imogen F. Wilson Education Foundation (IFWEF), is trading places with us to start work on some of their portions of the Wood House rehabilitation. This will allow the GCAS to rest and regroup for our next phase.

One of the GCAS's jobs during February and early March involved the Wood House's adobe fireplace. It had originally served the two downstairs rooms we are working on now, and the two rooms directly upstairs. This fireplace presented a dilemma for our volunteers: its chimney had disappeared decades ago, rendering it useless; but we determined that the surviving, out-of-plumb hearth and mantel downstairs were the central support for this four-room section of the Wood House. Removal was contraindicated.