The Association for Gravestone Studies

Call for Nominations: Forbes Award and Oakley Certificate

We are seeking proposals for the 2013 Oakley and Forbes Awards. Deadline for Nomination Applications is December 15, 2012. Awards will be presented at the AGS Annual Conference which will be held June 18-23 at Williamette University in Salem, Oregon.

The Forbes Award is presented annually by the AGS Board of Trustees to honor an individual, institution, or organization in recognition of exceptional service to the field of gravestone studies. The Forbes Award is the highest honor bestowed by the AGS. The presentation is usually made at the Awards Banquet during the Annual Conference. A reception precedes the banquet, at which the recipient is the guest of honor. The President makes a presentation speech indicating why the person or organization was chosen and summarizing the work accomplished. A framed certificate is presented along with a photograph of Harriette Merrifield Forbes. The recipient usually makes an acceptance speech.

The Oakley Certificate of Merit is presented periodically by the AGS Board of Trustees to individuals and groups that have helped to advance the mission of the Association. The award consists of a certificate, presented by the Board of Trustees, as well as the gift of a book to the honoree's local library, in his or her name on behalf of AGS. Whenever possible the award presentation will be made by a local AGS member. Each year's recipients will have their names printed in the conference program book and annual report. In addition they will be acknowledged at the Awards Reception at the annual conference.

Please send your nominations, including the name, address, telephone, and e-mail address of the nominee and of the person or group doing the nominating. Describe the reasons for making the nomination, how the work reflects the AGS mission statement, and how the work has benefited the wider community. Include any clippings or photographs. If possible, have the local Historical Society or Preservation Commission comment upon the significance of the achievement.

Click here to download the Oakley Certificate of Merit form

Click here to download the Forbes Award form

Please send nominations to:
AGS Awards Committee, Anne Tait
c/o AGS Office
Greenfield Corporate Center
101 Munson Street - Suite 108
Greenfield, MA 01301
info@gravestonestudies.org

The Harriette Merrifield Forbes Award - 2012
was awarded at the AGS 2012 conference and annual meeting in
West Long Branch, New Jersey
to
Ruth Shapleigh Brown
who made an
Outstanding Contribution
to the Field of Gravestone Studies

Please join the AGS Board of Trustees in celebration of this
outstanding contribution to the field of gravestone studies.

The Oakley Certificate Of Merit (3) - 2012

An Oakley Award was awarded to
Marilyn Burgess
Leeds, Maine

***and***

An Oakley Award was awarded to
Jessica Crawford
Lambert, Mississippi

***and***

An Oakley Award was awarded to
Roland G. Jordan
Auburn, Maine

Please join the AGS Board of Trustees in celebration of these outstanding
contributions to the field of gravestone studies.

Harriette Merrifield Forbes Recipients

1977 Daniel Farber
1978 Ernest Caufield
1979 Peter Benes
1980 None Given
1981 Allan Ludwig
1982 Jim Slater
1983 Hilda Fife
1984 Ann Parker & Avon Neal
1985 Jessie Lie Farber
1986 Louise Tallman
1987 Pamela & Frederick Burgess
1988 Laurel Gabel
1989 Betty Willsher
1990 Theodore Chase
1991 Lynette Strangstad
1992 Ralph Tucker
1993 Deborah Trask
1994 Barbara Rotundo
1995 Dillon R. Dorrell, Sr.
1996 Historic Burial Ground Initiative, Boston, Mass.
1997 Vincent F. Luti
1998 Rosalee F. Oakley, Richard E. Meyer
1999 No award given
2000 James Deetz, Warren Roberts (posthumously), Edwin Dethlefsen (posthumously)
2001 Mary-Ellen Jones, M. Ruth Little
2002 John Sterling
2003 James Blachowicz
2004 Helen Sclair
2005 Terry Jordan (posthumously)
2006 The National Center for Preservation Technology and Training
2007 Gray Williams
2008 Roberta Halporn and Gary Collison (posthumously)
2009 David H. Watters
2010 Tom Malloy and Brenda Malloy
2011 William Fred Oakley, Jr.
2012 Ruth Shapleigh Brown

The Oakley Certificate of Merit

1997 Fred & Rosalee Oakley
1998 Fred Fredette, Friends of Center Cemetery
1999 Harriet Ryan & Phyllis Lohrum, Friends of Mount Hope Cemetery
2000 John O'Brien, Mary Reilly-McNellan, James A. Smith, Henry "Red" Sutowski,
Arthur and Frances Hyde, Charles Marchant
2001 Nate Crepeault, Alicia Paresi
2002 Juliana Fuchs, Penny Lambeth, Bonaventure Historical Society
2003 Melissa Fleming, Rebecca Gorman, Betty Myers
2004 Emma Dragon, Adopt-A-Plot (Hampden, Mass.), Robert Carlson, Craig Dolder,
Norman Saul
2005 None given
2006 Historic Richmond Foundation, Fred Burdick, Kimberly Kenney, Brandon Kenyon, Jennifer Cerasuolo, Bob Posson, Olde Historical Burial Ground Joint Committee of the First Presbyterian Church
2007 Gaynell Stone, Ph.D., Linda K. Lewis
2008 Minxie and Jim Fannin, Jeffrey Kuschka
2009 MoBarry, Molly DePue, Georgia Municipal Cemetery Association
2010 Dr. Indira Gesink, Eagle Scout Michael Martinez, Old Colony Burying Ground Volunteers
2011 Colonel Edward D. Baker Camp #6 Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, Dr. Jennifer (Perkey) Beisel & Dr. George Avery, Phippsburg Old Cemetery Restoration, Mark & Donald Cheetham
2012 Marilyn Burgess, Jessica Crawford, Roland G. Jordan

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