Governor’s Humanities Awards Recipients Announced

 NEWS RELEASE

(Missoula)  Seven Montanans will be recognized during the Governor’s Humanities Awards Ceremony on February 21, 2013 at 3 pm at the Montana Historical Society, Helena. Governor Steve Bullock will officiate. Honorees are John and Anna Brumley, Havre; Walter Fleming, Bozeman; Larry Lahren, Livingston; Mary Murphy, Bozeman; Lawrence Small, Billings; and Robert Swartout, Helena.

 A banquet follows the ceremony, with no-host cocktails at 6 p.m. and a dinner and program at 7 p.m. at the Montana Club in Helena. Call Humanities Montana at (406) 243-6022 or e-mail info@humanitiesmontana.org for reservations or further information.

 In 1995, Gov. Marc Racicot established the awards, which Humanities Montana presents, to honor achievement in humanities scholarship and service and enhancement of public appreciation of the humanities.

 John and Anna Brumley are responsible for identifying, preserving, and educating the public about the Wahkpa Chu’gn Buffalo Jump site near Havre. They have dedicated 50 years to sharing one of three recognized buffalo jumps in the state, providing tours and advocating for protection of the site. They model a commitment to public humanities for historical purposes.

 Walter Fleming is professor and chair of Native American Studies at Montana State University Bozeman. He is an award-winning teacher who has authored two influential books, Visions of an Enduring People and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Native American History. He has mentored many Native American students and traveled far and wide to share his insights with Montanans.

 Larry Lahren has served as a public archaeologist for over 40 years. He is a principal investigator on the Anzick Clovis burial site near Wilsall, one of the most important archaeological sites in North America. He has made it a special calling to share his knowledge of Montana’s past with citizens of all ages, including through his collection of essays, Homeland: An Archaeologist’s View of Yellowstone Country’s Past.

 Mary Murphy, a professor of history at Montana State University Bozeman, has been a model of the skillful scholar who reaches beyond the university to inform Montanans about their history in all its variety, including women’s history, Butte, and the Great Depression. A published author who received the Montana Book Award for Hope in Hard Times: New Deal Photographs of Montana, 1936-1942, Murphy has served on the Humanities Montana Speakers Bureau for 13 years and sat on the boards of the Montana Historical Society and Humanities Montana.

 Lawrence Small has been a higher education leader in Billings for over 50 years. He served as president of Rocky Mountain College for 10 years, taught history at Rocky for 30 years, and founded the Institute for Peace Studies in 1990. He is the co-author of Religion in Montana, the definitive account of this important strand in Montana’s cultural life. He combines in-depth knowledge of history with a commitment to public service.

 Robert Swartout has broadened our understanding of Montana’s ethnic history. A 30-year award-winning professor of history at Carroll College, Swartout is an acknowledged authority on Montana history, with a special commitment to sharing the stories of minority citizens. Among his many books and articles he has published The Montana Heritage: An Anthology of Historical Essays and is currently at work on a study of Montana’s ethnic heritage.

      Humanities Montana is the state’s independent nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Since 1972, Humanities Montana has provided services and grants to hundreds of Montana organizations in support of public programs in history, literature, values, and public issues. Among its many programs are its grants, Montana Conversations: Speakers Bureau and Speakers in the Schools, the Humanities Montana Festival of the Book, Letters About Literature, and the Governor’s Humanities Awards.