By J. J. Lamb
1915 Section Foreman House Rehabilitation 2019 Jim Garrison Preservation award is announced at the Arizona Preservation Conference on June 13th, 2019.
The Vail Preservation Society (VPS) received its sixth award in 2019 this month! It is an honor to be recognized at the state and local levels with the following awards: Museum Association of Arizona’s Institution of Excellence, Greater Vail Chamber of Commerce Non-Profit of the Year, Tucson-Pima County Historical Commission Heritage Award for Voices of Vail documentary, 2019 Governor’s Heritage Preservation Honor Awards for both Voices of Vail film and 1915 Section Foreman House (SFH) Rehabilitation. And if that weren’t enough, the 1915 Section Foreman House rehab was personally selected by Governor Ducey to receive the highest preservation award in Arizona, the 2019 Jim Garrison Heritage Award!
Voices of Vail aids Vail’s educators in connecting our local history to the national story; connections absent from textbooks. The 1915 SFH has provided over 300 Cienega High students with hands on preservation trades training as they gained skills for a lifetime while making a local impact. The SFH is now a hub of student activity by Esmond Station K8 Museum, Garden and Art Clubs that utilize the building.
This is historic preservation at its best, serving present needs, providing experiential learning and inspiring the next generation. Vail Preservation Society, our board and volunteers, are proud to work with VUSD and our partners to provide these unique opportunities for youth.
Restoring buildings alone is not enough. Unless a historic building is integrated into today’s story, serving a vital, contemporary
VPS Board members, volunteers, and filmmaker Gerald Lamb accept the Tucson-Pima County Heritage Award for Voices of Vail Documentary at the Dunbar School Lander’s Pavilion on May 25th, 2019.
function as it did in the past, it will shortly loose relevance. We must purposefully build a bridge between the past and the present that lets people today write themselves back into their own community’s history. And, that building needs to serve a relevant need.
VPS’s next project, the rehabilitation of the 1908 Old Vail Store & Post Office is critically important to the revitalization of historic Vail Between the Tracks™. Cienega High Construction Tech and Transition School to Work students will play a vital role in the project. In a cookie-cutter world our few remaining historic buildings are a tangible reminder of Vail’s heritage, and provide a way for youth to engage in their community’s continuing story.
Vail is not “anyplace.” Our community is someplace special. Be part of putting historic preservation to work for Vail’s future by becoming a VPS member at www.vailpreservationsociety.org
