The Mesa Verde Foundation strives to provide exciting and educational experience through our tours and events. Tours provide those seeking deeper experiences at Mesa Verde National Park and the greater Ancestral Puebloan region with in-depth experiences. Our events provide ways for people to engage further with the Foundation in communities throughout the Four Corners region.
JOIN US for the Mesa Verde Foundation Fall Tour!
Where: Mesa Verde National Park
When: September 8th-11th, 2023
The Mesa Verde Foundation is hosting our annual behind-the-scenes tour September 8th-11th, 2023. You are invited to join us for this once in a lifetime experience!
Join tour leaders Dr. Andrew Gulliford, Professor of History and Environmental Studies at Fort Lewis College, and Christopher Lewis, expert basket weaver and fiber artisan of the Zuni Pueblo, for a four-day tour of Mesa Verde National Park. Mesa Verde, one of 12 original UNESCO World Heritage sites, is home to thousands of ancient artifacts of Ancestral Puebloan tribes. During these four days, you will visit several cliff dwellings, and get an in depth look at the history of the Ancestral Puebloans who lived at Mesa Verde. The event includes guided tours of some of Mesa Verde’s most iconic sites, lodging (based on double-occupancy), six meals, an exclusive reception with the Park Superintendent at the superintendent’s residence that Jesse Nusbaum built on the rim of Spruce Tree Canyon in 1921, and a private viewing of artifacts from the museum’s collection.
Tour Leaders:
Dr. Andrew Gulliford
Andy is a Professor of History and Environmental Studies at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. He teaches courses on wilderness, national parks, and environmental history. Andy is the author of America’s Country Schools, Sacred Objects, and Sacred Places: Preserving Tribal Traditions and Boomtown Blues: Colorado Oil Shale, which won the Colorado Book Award. For the centennial of Mesa Verde National Park in 2006, he edited seven new books on Mesa Verde published by the Durango Herald Small Press. His most recent book, Outdoors in the Southwest: An Adventure Anthology (University of Oklahoma Press, 2014) won two New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards as well as the Colorado Book Award.
Christopher J. Lewis
Christopher Lewis lives in the village of Zuni Pueblo in southwest New Mexico. He is a member of the Badger Clan and a child of the Corn Clan. He is a Native scholar, fiber artist, basket and textile scholar. Christopher has worked the last 11 years to revive basketry in Zuni. He has also collaborated with other Pueblos to revive their textile arts. Christopher is a Native Scholar on the Cedar Mesa Perishables Project. He has studied Ancient Perishables such as baskets, textiles, wood, and feather work from the Greater Southwest housed in major museums.
Tour Cost: $1,250: MVF Fellow, per participant
$1,350: Non-member, per participant
Early Birds who register by July 1st, will receive $100 off the registration fee.
$70 per night single supplement for guests not sharing a room.
50% deposit required to register.
The tour has limited capacity and will fill up. Register now!
To register, or for more information, contact the Mesa Verde Foundation’s Executive Director, Shannon Clifford, at 303-321-3120 or by email at shannon@mesaverdefoundation.org
“Telling a More Inclusive Story: Creating New Interpretive Media at Mesa Verde National Park”
Tuesday, September 12th, at 4:00pm (MDT)
Presenters:
Kristy Sholly, Chief of Interpretation and Visitor Services, Mesa Verde National Park
Amy Ireland, Visual Information Specialist, Mesa Verde National Park
Moderators:
Monica Buckle (Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma), Executive Director of the Verde Valley Archeology Center and Museum
Camp Verde, Arizona, Mesa Verde Foundation Board Member
Shannon Clifford, Executive Director, Mesa Verde Foundation
Mesa Verde was the first national park established to preserve the rich cultural legacy of ancestral peoples. For much of the Park’s history, sites and cultural items were interpreted through the lens of western archeology. Now they are telling a more complete story that includes perspectives of the Pueblos and tribes with close ties to these lands. Today’s interpretive media highlights how multiple ways of knowing, including western and Indigenous science and oral traditions, complement each other to provide a deeper, richer understanding of this sacred landscape.
Kristy Sholly is the Chief of Interpretation and Visitor Services for Mesa Verde National Park. She has been an interpretive park ranger for over 25 years, sharing her love of our nation’s natural and cultural heritage in ten national parks, including Arches, Canyonlands, Death Valley, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Kenai Fjords, Mojave, Olympic, and Zion. Kristy’s expertise includes team building and collaborating with partners in the development of exhibits, film, and interpretive media. She is currently serving as Treasurer on the board of the Living Heritage Research Council.
Amy Ireland is a Visual Information Specialist for Mesa Verde National Park. Over her 30+ years with the National Park Service she has held a variety of positions, most recently serving as a project manager, interpretive planner, and writer on a wide range of interpretive media projects including exhibits, films, and publications. Amy has a BA in Cultural Anthropology from Oberlin College.
Register Now by clicking HERE!
For view all of our past webinars, please visit our YouTube page by clicking HERE.
University of Denver – Craig Hall, 2148 South High Street, Denver
6:00 p.m. – Cocktail Reception
7:00 p.m. – Program and Film Screening
Tickets are $50 each, and seating is limited.
Join us on the red carpet and enjoy a cocktail hour, hors d’oeuvres and Denver’s first public viewing of
Mesa Verde National Park’s new film. The film’s Indigenous narrative focuses on contemporary
Pueblos’ and Tribes’ connections to Mesa Verde, as told by members of those communities.
Reserve your seats at https://secure.givelively.org/event/mesa-verde-foundation/mesa-verde-foundation-denver-film-screening