Welcome to the Summer issue of VAN (click on the bolded title if you prefer to read the entire issue from top to bottom or feel free to click on any of the sections below to access the articles) First I would like to call your attention to the special section we have on tributes to Abbott Lowell Cummings, the founding VAF president who passed away this spring. Included is a link to an online article with remembrances and images as well as a resolution that was passed by the VAF board to officially acknowledge his contributions.
Thanks to the dedication of many people on the local committee, the conference in Salt Lake City in June was spectacular. Included in this issue are essays from the University of Oregon and the University of Virginia ambassadors as well as an article from Access Award recipient Emmanuel Falguières. As is the tradition, all of the 2017 awards were announced at the closing banquet, and you can read the list of recipients in VAN and click on each award to read the recognition that was presented for each awardee.
Also in this issue is an installment of an occasional series called Field Notes. This article comes from the Janet Sheridan who shares some concluding thoughts from the field work that was completed for the New Jersey conference in 2014 and supported by a Ridout Fellowship. There is also an article about the collaboration in recent years between VAF and SAH.
There are some great opportunities this issue, such as a call for new board members to serve the VAF chapters and announcements of conferences in places such as Cleveland and Lynchburg that will be of interest to our members.
The member news section as always is packed with updates on publications, awards and activities that our members are doing to advance the field of vernacular studies. Please send me any updates you want to share for upcoming issues. And of course we have our fantastic bibliography. Happy reading!
Christine Henry, Newsletter Editor
