Black Pilots of America!

Bob and I took a trip to Pine Bluff, Arkansas, last month and joined in the annual “fly–in” celebration of the BPA!  Many of these pilots flew their own planes to the event and participated in taking people up for rides. President Brian Worthington greeted everyone and made sure that there was plenty of viewing of “Operation Skyhook” and delicious southern eating! We were delighted at the skill of these fliers at the Pine Bluff Regional Airport “Gider Field” as we saw balloon drops and more. The Bronze Eagles of Texas, Roscoe Draper Chapter from Philadelphia, other cities like Kansas City, were represented.  

We were invited by none other than one of the Founders of BPA, an Arizonan Les Morris, to attend.

—-Beverely Elliott, Executive Director

B.L.A.C.  Blue Lotus Artists’ Collective (B.L.A.C.) is creating a DATABASE.

They are located in downtown Tucson, AZ, and are issuing a call for Black artists working in any media in order to build a database for their 2023 – 2024 exhibition schedule. 

Please submit a resume and/or artist statement, contact information, and up to ten images of artwork with identification to: info@bluelotusartistscollective.com.   

Entry Deadline: August 31, 2023

Blue Lotus Artists’ Collective (B.L.A.C.)

https://www.bluelotusartistscollective.com/

15 E. Pennington Street             Tucson, AZ 85701

Instagram: @blac_tucson   /   520-400-4701

The City of Tucson, through a Certified Local Government Grant, has contracted with WestLand Engineering and Environmental Services, Inc. to conduct a city-wide survey of historic properties associated with Tucson’s African American community.

The first phase of the two-phase project is currently underway, and the intent of the first phase is to provide an inventory and database of Tucson’s surviving properties (buildings, structures, sites, and landscapes) built prior to 1978 that are associated with our African American Community. The inventory will serve as an informational and management tool to identify and preserve Tucson’s African American resources as well as provide a strategy to prioritize and identify areas for further study.

If you have information about Tucson’s African American historic properties or have any questions about WestLand’s data gathering and research, please feel free to reach out to either Jennifer Levstik at jlevstik@westlandresources.com or Kathryn McKinney at kmckinney@westlandresources.com

On June 14th, our museum advisory member Tina Jonson and interns (Emma, Melora, and Jenny) presented for the museum and introduced a pop-up museum for Geico associates to visit during their breaks and lunches. We value this partnership opportunity and look forward to future collaborations.

GEICO’s FastPitch campaign allows all associates to propose ideas that benefit the local community. We are thrilled to have been included in the “GEICO Fast Pitch Program.”

We want to express our gratitude to Veron Chapple and Michael Espino for inviting us to participate. Additionally, we would like to thank Larry Starks, the president of the Tucson Juneteenth Festival, for delivering a remarkable presentation on the history of Juneteenth in Tucson. 

“Juneteenth has never been a celebration of victory or an acceptance of the way things are. It’s a celebration of progress. “

—-(Former President Barack Obama)

We always enjoy community and partnerships, and we were honored to be invited to the Juneteenth Celebration on Tuesday, June 13, hosted by the City of Tucson’s Housing and Community Development Department (HCD). Museum interns Emma, Melora, and Jenny represented the museum at this event, and thank you, Emma, for the great presentation for AAMSAZ!

We wanted to thank Ernesto Portillo for the invitation to showcase the mission and purpose of AAMSAZ at the event. We appreciate Ann Chanecka, the interim director of HCD, for delivering a wonderful opening speech and Tucson Mayor Regina Romero for her inspiring remarks. Your dedication to the African American community and the official recognition of Juneteenth as a holiday contribute to the remembrance of our country’s progress for future generations.

During the event, Dr. Sanchez enlightened us with both heartbreaking and incredibly joyous facts about the experiences of African Americans. Her book The Meals and Memoirs, is a collection of African American Stories and Recipes from Southern Arizonans (including our ED Beverely Elliott). The book is Available on Amazon.com. You will love it and use it!

Please visit our website to watch the preserved Oral History of Dr. Sanchez and learn more about her important contributions to our understanding of African American history.