The GCAS is very proud to announce to all of cyberspace that the Society for American Archaeology has awarded our very own Marilyn Markel their 2020 Crabtree Award for outstanding Avocational Archaeologist. The SAA will present the award to Marilyn at their annual meeting, to be held this year in Austin, Texas, from April 22 through April 26.

To be nominated for this honor, a person

"...should have made significant contributions to advance understandings of local, regional, or national archaeology through excavation, research, publication, site or collections preservation, collaboration with the professional community, and/or public outreach."

Marilyn Markel personifies all of the above, as the awards committee acknowledged:

"Marilyn Markel has a deep passion for archaeology and has spearheaded efforts in the Mimbres Valley, New Mexico, to preserve archaeological sites and educate young people of all ages on the value of the archaeological past. She has made significant contributions to our understanding and preservation of Mimbres sites in New Mexico, through over 20 years of volunteer work on university field school excavations, promotion of site protection through stewardship, transforming the local artifact-collecting community into an avocational/professional archaeological society, and educating schoolchildren about the value of archaeological heritage. Ms. Markel has assisted archaeological field schools, preserved sites, published children’s books on archaeology, and created a center devoted to the preservation and interpretation of Mimbres archaeology through educational outreach. Marilyn Markel is highly deserving of the Crabtree Award for her exemplary service to enhancing the preservation and public appreciation of New Mexico’s archaeological past."

Have you ever thought about contributing something to our GCAS website, but weren't sure how to start?  Do you have an archaeology-related event to announce? Would you like to share a link to an article or a book you've read? Have you recently visited a historic or archaeological site and have photos to share online? Need something to keep you occupied during this Time of Social Distancing?

The Santa Fe National Forest is looking for Archaeological Site Stewards for their area. Their training day is Saturday, March 21, 2020, so if the date and location fit your schedule, get busy now and sign up. They explain in their press release:

Three groups of fourth-grade students from Deming and their teachers have scheduled a day of multi-station outdoor museum classrooms at the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site on Friday, March 6, 2020. The GCAS provides volunteer guides for these field trips, coordinated by our very own Marilyn Markel. This is the first time we will be welcoming students and teachers from Deming to our area, so we are asking GCAS members to help Marilyn in showing these young students some of their region's rich heritage.

The very next week, on Friday, March 16, 2020, it's the fourth graders from Stout Elementary School who need your help for their day of multi-station outdoor museum classrooms at the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site.

Please pitch in with Marilyn to show these students the rich cultural heritage and history in their own back yard. No experience is necessary for any of these classroom stations. These workshops begin at 9:00 AM and continue through about 2:30 PM. For specific hours and other details please contact Marilyn ASAP by telephone at 575-536-9337, or via email.Thank you in advance for your help!

/s/ webmaster

Three groups of fourth-grade students from Deming, along with their teachers, have scheduled a day of multi-station outdoor museum classrooms at the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site for Friday, March 6, 2020. The GCAS provides volunteer guides for these field trips, coordinated by our very own Marilyn Markel. This visit is a special one because this is the first time we will be welcoming students and teachers from Deming to our area. We are asking GCAS members to help Marilyn in showing these young students some of their region's rich heritage.

No experience is necessary for any of these classroom stations; Marilyn will quickly get you up to speed. For hours and other details please contact Marilyn ASAP by telephone at 575-536-9337, or via email. Thank you, one and all!

/s/ webmaster

A significant aspect of the GCAS's mission is to preserve and protect archaeological resources through education. School is in session and three groups of fourth-grade students from Deming, along with their teachers, have scheduled a day of multi-station outdoor museum classrooms at the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site for Friday, March 6, 2020.

The GCAS traditionally provides volunteer guides for these field trips, coordinated by our very own Marilyn Markel. This visit is a special one because this is the first time a large number of students and teachers will travel from Deming to our area. So please, GCAS members: take time to assist Marilyn in welcoming these young students to our backyard and showing them some of their region's rich heritage.

No experience is necessary for any of these classroom stations; Marilyn will quickly get you up to speed. For hours and other details please contact Marilyn ASAP by telephone at 575-536-9337, or via email. Thank you, one and all!

/s/ webmaster

Due to inclement weather, the Stout Elementary School has had to CANCEL their planned visit to the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site today, November 22, 2019. We thank all the volunteers who kindly offered to help make this trip a success. We'll see you all next time!

/s/ webmaster

Due to inclement weather, the Stout Elementary School has had to CANCEL their planned visit to the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site on Friday, November 22, 2019. We thank all the volunteers who kindly offered to help make this trip a success. We'll see you all next time!

/s/ webmaster

We of the GCAS aim to preserve and protect archaeological resources through education. School is in session so a group of students from Stout Elementary School and their teachers have scheduled a field trip to the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site on Friday, November 22, 2019.

The GCAS traditionally provides volunteer guides for these field trips, coordinated by our very own Marilyn Markel. So please, GCAS members: take time to assist Marilyn in showing these young students some of the rich heritage in their area. No experience is necessary for any of these field trips; Marilyn will quickly get you up to speed. For hours and other details please contact Marilyn ASAP by telephone at 575-536-9337, or via email.

/s/ webmaster

Thanks to today's guest photographer, Chris Overlock, all of cyberspace can now share in the GCAS's exploits at our archaeology booth on September 28, 2019, at the Mimbres Valley Harvest Festival. [Photo by C. Overlock. L to R: G. Conlin, M. Gendron, M.Smith.]

Our Marilyn Markel outdid herself in providing 33 local children a hands-on series of fun projects in experimental archaeology. The volunteers running the GCAS booth introduced passers-by to our group's activities and encouraged them to examine our archaeological information displays.

Sales proceeds from GCAS T-shirts have been earmarked for our educational programs during the 2019-2020 school year. The funds generated by our used-book sales will be spent by our GCAS Library to replace scientific volumes that have either been damaged or lost. For this, the GCAS is grateful to all the visitors to our Harvest Festival booth for supporting our volunteer programs with their purchases. Thank you all so very much - we'll see you at next year's Harvest Festival! [Photo by C. Overlock. L to R: M. Gendron, G. Conlin, M. Smith, M. Markel.]

/s/ webmaster