UPCOMING EVENTS
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SOUKIINI - September 9, 2006
Soukiini, now known as the annual fundraiser for the Mesa Verde Foundation, is a Keresan word that, literally translated, means "my friend." In the spirit of the American Southwest, Soukiini is an event of friends and beginnings. This southwestern feast and silent auction will be our fifth such benefit. The event has become one of the area^s premier social and philanthropic gatherings.
Reservations are required. If you are interested in attending, please contact: info@mesaverdefoundation.org
Friday, September 8
Park Superintendent^s Cocktail Party - 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.A complimentary bus will meetnon-drivers at the Park^s entrance parking lot (departing at 5:00 p.m.!) and givea guided tour on the way up to Spruce Tree Terrace. You will be welcomed by Park Superintendent Larry Wiese and Assistant Superintendent Betty Janes, offered hors d^oeuvres and cocktails, and have the opportunity to tour the Museum or view a short Park orientation film - just a few steps away. While other visitors have left the Park, you can watch the sun^s last rays fall into Spruce Tree House from the Chief Ranger^s deck - so close you can almost reach out and touch the warn stones across the deep valley - while you enjoy a cocktail and music at the top of Mesa Verde National Park.
Cost: $50 per person.
 Saturday, September 9
VIP Park Tours - 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. - Long House or Mug House - Both tours SOLD OUT!!!
Park Centennial Rangers willleadtwo tours of sites not open to the public. One such site is Long House which is located on Weatherill Mesa. You will wander through Long House which features a large central plaza, generally considered a dance or ceremonial plaza used for both secular and religious activities. Residents from nearby cliff dwellings may have journeyed to Long House when foot drum beats echoed through the canyons for special ceremonies. The many small rooms directly above the village were likely used for food storage, as their location may have kept rodents and other small animals from stealing food. Walls in the village have been stabilized but not reconstructed, representative of the changes in archeology over the past 100 years. 25 guests can go on this special tour. SOLD OUT!!!
The Mug House tour is limited to 15 participants. SOLD OUT!!!
Cost: $45 per person, including a box lunch. Participants will meet their ranger at 10:00 a.m. in the Far View Lodge lobby.
SOUKIINI - 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Don your finest western attire and head for the top of the hill in Durango! This year^s gala event will be held at Ft. Lewis College^s Center of Southwest Studies. As you drive in you will be greeted by volunteers (from the First National Bank of Durango, Ft. Lewis College and Mesa Verde National Park) who will place huge canvas "thank you" gift bags in your car. Sign in, visit the bar, then head to the Center^smuseum which is hosting the Mesa Verde Centennial exhibit featuring early photographs and artifacts from Mesa Verde, dating from 500 to 1300 A.D. - as well as a spectacular auction chaired by Mesa Verde Foundation Board member Kathy L^Amour. Guests are invited to shop and cocktail until the tented dinner is announced. This year^s live auction features a week in a private château in France, an evening at the Louis L^Amour Ranch with Charlie Daniels who will give you his guitar and sheet music,an "American Warrior" bronze sculpture (with Ben Nighthorse Campbell as the model) by Veryl Goodnight, and much, much more!
Our "Cliff Palace Sponsor" is the First National Bank of Durango.
Cost: $125 per person
Sunday, September 10
VIP Park Tours - 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. - Long House or Mug House - Mug House SOLD OUT!!!
Superintendent^s Tour - Join Mesa Verde National Park^s Superintendent Larry Wiese and learn first hand about Mug House, open for the first time since the founding of Mesa Verde National Park 100 years ago.Named for three mugs tied together with yucca rope found hanging inside one of its rooms, Mug House was rediscovered by the Wetherill brothers of Mancos, CO in 1889.The site was not completely excavated and stabilized until 1960-61 as part of the Wetherill Mesa Project, a joint project of the National Park Service and the National Geographic Society.
Mug House was built over several decades in the A.D. 1100s and 1200s and likely supported a population of 80 to 100 persons.Limited to 15 participants.
Cost: $100 per person, including a box lunch. Participants will meet Superintendent Wiese at 10:00 a.m. in the Far View Lodge lobby. SOLD OUT!!!
Archaeologist^s Tour - A special VIP tour with a Park Archaeologist to Long House for those who missed Saturday^s tour. AVAILABLE
Limited to 25 participants. Cost: $45 per participant, including a box lunch. Participants will meet thearcheologist at 10:00 a.m. in the Far View Lodge lobby.
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