On Thursday, February 19, the Amarillo Tribune will conduct a public discussion concerning the closure and legacy of the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum (PPHM), at the Embassy Suites in downtown Amarillo. “Behind the Headlines: Preserving Panhandle History” will be moderated by Amarillo Tribune Executive Editor and CEO Jackie Kingston, and feature panelists Author S.C. Gwynne, WT Vice President for Philanthropy and External Relations Dr. Todd Rasberry and Panhandle-Plains Historical Society members Will Miller and Ellen Jones. The discussion will also include interviews with WT President Dr. Walter Wendler and Center for the Study of the American Southwest director and WT professor of English, Dr. Alex Hunt.
HPPR’s Jenny Inzerillo spoke with Kingson about the upcoming discussion. (To hear the full interview, click the link at the top of the page.)
Kingston talked about the impetus for hosting this discussion, and some of the questions people have had regarding the closure of the museum. “Many people are aware that one of our region's gems, the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum, has been closed since March. In November, the decision was made that it would not reopen on WT's campus. Since then, there have been a lot of questions about the fate of the artifacts stored in the museum” Kingston said. “Our sense of identity is so tied up with the museum, and so we, as the Amarillo Tribune, wanted to provide a forum for people to come together and get their questions answered by the people who know the latest information about what's going on.”
Kingston went into detail about the panelists that will be participating in the discussion. “Folks from the Panhandle Plains Historical Society, which manages the collection of artifacts that are housed at the museum, will be joining us on stage for a panel discussion. We're also going to be joined by Dr. Alex Hunt from West Texas A&M University and Center for the Study of the American Southwest, lending his voice to the importance of the collection. Dr. Walter Wendler will join us and answer questions from the audience. Dr. Todd Rasberry from West Texas A&M University will join us as well to talk about the university's involvement in the funding mechanisms for this. There are many, many hats, many hands, many buckets that go into making sure that the PPHM has existed thus far, and many considerations that are involved with what happens next.” Kingston said.
“S. G. Gwen, author of Empire of the Summer Moon, has agreed to lend his voice to give us some context to why this collection is important not only because of the emotional connection that folks who live here on the High Plains have to it, but why it's important to the rest of the world to know our history. I’m really excited to lead this discussion and to see how we can advance that, and how we can get the community on board to make sure that we have a say in what happens next.”
“Behind the Headlines: Preserving Panhandle History” takes place on Thursday, February 19 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm Central at the Embassy Suites in Downtown Amarillo. The event is free, but a $25.00 donation is suggested. Limited in-person tickets will be available. More information on ticket reservations and the discussion can be found here.
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