AAMSAZ Updates from the E.D.

Thank you for continually inspiring and supporting AAMSAZ! We are grateful for all the comments and feedback. AAMSAZ is here for the community and do what we can to support it. “We are a movement, not just a museum.” I have so much to share with you in this October AAMSAZ newsletter. Get your calendars out, because we have several "save-the-date" and "coming-soon" events that you do not want to miss. If the name, Ruby Bridges, rings a bell and your students come home talking about STEM, I am happy to let you know that AAMSAZ is leading the cause. Anyone can tell you that community connections can make a big difference. When I learned that University of Arizona Athletics was inducting Fred Batiste into the Arizona Hall of Fame but could not find family members to let them know, I connected with a friend who once mentioned that her family used to live in Tucson. Turns out that my friend, Renee McDonald, was Fred Batiste’s daughter. Please read on, learn more, and join us when you can!

Sincerely,

Beverely Elliott

Executive Director, African American Museum of Southern Arizona (AAMSAZ)

Calendar of Activities

Supporting The Arts!

Alanna Airitam, April 16-October 29

"The Golden Age" by photographer Alanna Airitam is on exhibit at the University of Arizona Center for Creative photography through October 29. Ten large-scale portraits of contemporary African Americans as symbolic saints.

Visit to see The Golden Age at the CCP

Welcome Back!

Let your UA students know

The University of Arizona Black Community Council presents the

14^th Annual Welcome Back Event on Saturday, October 15, 2022, 5:30-8:30 PM at the UA Student Union North Ballroom. This is an event free to UA students (must show CatCard) that includes networking, prizes, speed mentoring, entertainment, and dinner.

Walk to School Day - Nov. 14

Title Sponsor, AAA, and Educational Sponsor, African American Student Services of Tucson Unified School District, support AAMSAZ in bringing the Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day to Southern Arizona. After learning about the amazing life story of Ruby Bridges, students at some schools in Southern Arizona will participate in the Walk to School Day on November 14 and will have a chance to incorporate a form of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) with their teachers. Ruby Bridges is the 6 year old African American girl in the Norman Rockwell painting, The Problem We All Live With, and the 1st grader who integrated a New Orleans school in 1960.

Fireside Chat with

Ruby Bridges in Tucson, AZ

Nov. 17th

AAMSAZ presents a Fireside Chat with Ruby Bridges, a Civil Rights icon, who will speak at Palo Verde High Magnet School on November 17th. For more information and sponsor packages, email Beverely Elliott.

SAVE-THE-DATE

November 26, 2022

Celebrate Small Business Saturday at the

Black Saturday Marketplace

10:00 AM – 4:00 PM

4343 E. 22nd Street

Come and enjoy vendors, food, entertainment, and more!

Support Tucson Local Small Businesses!

Hosted by AAMSAZ and

The Juneteenth Festival, Inc.

October is National Arts and Humanities Month - On Sept. 30, President Biden issued a proclamation designating October 2022 as National Arts and Humanities Month in celebration of the significance of the arts, humanities, and museum and library services to our nation.
10/1 International Coffee Day - Take a break and enjoy the day.
10/4 Yom Kippur starts in the evening and ends the evening of 10/5
10/5 World Teachers' Day Time to celebrate our teachers
11/2 BLAC Gallery Opening - Nov. 2, 2022, 100 N. Stone Ave, Suite 118, Tucson, AZ. Featured artists: Allison Miller and Willie Bonner
2/3/2023 A Chat about Coach Fred Snowden - Stacey Snowden chats about her dad and shares insights. More info forthcoming
February 2023- Musical Melodies for the Museum - A fundraiser to support AAMSAZ. More info forthcoming.

Now You Know!

Members of the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame induction class for 2022

Fred Batiste – Arizona Football and Track & Field student-athlete – 1949 to 1950
Willie Williams – Arizona Track & Field head coach – 1969 to 1982

The University of Arizona Athletics department inducted Fred Batiste and Willie Williams into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame. Established in 1976, the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame currently has more than 340 honored athletes who have entered into this elite group of student athletes. It takes 10 years for a student-athlete to become eligible along with teams and the exception is Championship Teams that are eligible immediately following their winning season.

Batiste and Williams Hall of Fame induction

Juneteenth Holiday for Pima County employees

The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted to create a Juneteenth holiday for Pima County employees. Thanks to the dedicated hard work of the Juneteenth Festival, Inc. Committee in Tucson and community supporters, Juneteenth is now a paid holiday for County employees. County employees can use eight hours of administrative leave with pay for the celebration of Juneteenth anytime during the month of June.

Read the article in The Chocolate Voice

In 1940 Benjamin O. Davis, Sr., became the first African American general officer, as brigadier general, in the U.S. Army and in the U.S. armed forces. Later, his son, Benjamin Oliver Davis Jr., was the first African-American brigadier general in the U.S. Air Force.
The Cort Theatre in New York City has been renamed the James Earl Jones Theatre. The Jones is the only surviving, still active, legitimate theatre on Broadway. Did you know that James Earl Jones is an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony) winner?
Megan Piphus Peace made history as the first African American woman puppeteer on Sesame Street.

Giving and Sharing

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Gifts in any amount are always welcomed. Please use our easy and secure online giving site.
Do you have a legacy story or an oral history to share? How about an African American or Black collection that you want to donate to AAMSAZ? Let's connect. Please email us and let us know at [email protected].
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