By Donna Ingham, past president
If the social media buzz following the 105th annual meeting of the Texas Folklore Society in San Antonio is any indication, the program was a smashing success. As TFS board member John Pelham said, “It was a great gathering. So many excellent presentations and such a wide variety of topics.” He’s right about that.
From the first session on Friday morning, March 29, to the last session on Saturday morning, March 30, those in attendance heard presentations ranging from a treatise on the folkloric values of family letters, examples of poems as “little pockets of folklore,” papers exploring the paradoxes and challenges of preserving cultural heritage, musical and storytelling tributes to TFS co-founder John Lomax and past president Américo Paredes, illustrations of historical costumed interpretation in theory and in practice, explanations of development and vision of places like La Bahia and the Alamo, visual representations of folk art and architecture, and an examination of the thematic interplay between cowboy folklore and Star Wars. Of special interest was the session provided by “New Voices: The Next Generation,” featuring offerings from two students and a recent university graduate exploring cultural, campus, and family folklore.
In addition to the formal presentations, of course, there were the evening hootenannies with music, poetry, and stories shared post-reception on Thursday and post-banquet dinner on Friday. Sounds of fiddle, guitar, harmonica, spoons, autoharp, accordion, and hammered dulcimer accompanied singers and the occasional impromptu dancers. The combination of enlightening papers and entertaining afterglow made for a near-perfect balance. As TFS member Lori Najvar summed up, “The best ever and everyone needs to check it out . . . Serious Fun!”
Presenters included long-time TFS members such as Jean Schnitz and Jim and Mary Harris and those fairly new to the Society such as Kim Lehman, Jill Davis, Scott McMahon, and Andrew Gray. Originally scheduled to present in 2020, the year the world shut down for the pandemic, newspaper columnist Cary Clack and poet Naomi Shihab Nye accepted the invitation to present this year.
Other San Antonio residents invited to share their knowledge and expertise were Kate Rogers, CEO of the Alamo Trust, and Graciela Sanchez, director of the Esperanza Center for Peace and Justice. Rogers not only offered our members a complimentary private tour of the Alamo on Thursday afternoon but also presented a paper on the plans for the Alamo as they continue forward with preservation and the building of the museum area.
Graciela Sanchez’s paper focused on the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center’s work to nurture the folk artistry of the women of the historic West Side and to preserve the stories of the elders of their community through their programs, “Mujerartes,” and the work of the “Corazones de Esperanza,” the wise ones who are the keepers of community stories and memories. She brought to us an awareness of the important cultural and folkloric work being done by the Esperanza Center.
One out-of-stater, Darci Tucker, appeared in costume as Jane Long, the Mother of Texas. Representing Texas A&M International University in the New Voices session were student Kelly Olson and recent graduate Gabby Walker. Tali Russell came from Texas Tech in Lubbock. Gabby’s response to the weekend: “It was amazing! Everyone was so welcoming!”
Of special note was a presentation during the Celebration Luncheon on Friday. Mary Fogel read a paper written by her late husband David Orton, a paper David was scheduled to present last year before he fell ill.
Appearing both as the entertainment for the Friday night banquet and as a presenter in the final session on Saturday was singer/songwriter Tish Hinojosa, the headliner of sorts and deserving of her standing ovation. But, in truth, every participant on the program rose to the occasion. As board member Dina Cordell de Lopez said, “It was over the top!”
The one most deserving of the accolades about the quality of programming at the 2024 meeting is Mary Ann Blue, immediate past vice president and newly elected president of TFS. A resident of San Antonio, she also did double duty as part of the local arrangements committee. She had a vision.
“I wanted the program of the 105th Annual Meeting to reflect the culture and folklore of San Antonio,” Mary Ann said, “and I am very pleased with how it turned out. We were off to a great start when Dr. Robert Flynn reached out to both Cary Clack and Naomi Shihab Nye, and they agreed to present papers. Then I reached out to Tish Hinojosa, who not only agreed to sing at the banquet but agreed to deliver a paper on her mentor and past TFS president, Dr. Américo Paredes. From the welcome on Thursday evening by the young musicians from the San Antonio Mariachi Academy to the closing session anchored by Tish’s moving tribute to Dr. Paredes, our city and its rich cultural heritage were well represented.”