The Johnstown Area Heritage Association is starting a new tradition -- the Heritage Preservation Awards. The first annual Heritage Preservation Awards Dinner took place April 10, 2010.

Heritage Preservation Awards
The Johnstown Area Heritage Association held the first annual Heritage Preservation Awards on April 10, 2010, honoring those who have made significant contributions to preserving, celebrating or promoting Johnstown's heritage. The 2010 honorees were: The late Rep. John Murtha Accepting the award: Mrs. Joyce Murtha and Col. John Hugya Click here to see a video presentation about the Congressman and the National Park Service that was shown at the ceremony. The late Rep. John Murtha and the National Park Service jointly received the award for Outstanding Achievement. Throughout his legislative career as a member of the House of Representatives, Rep. Murtha advocated for many initiatives related to this area's history and heritage. Highlights include: His indisputable leadership in establishing and nurturing a heritage infrastructure in this region that ultimately became a model for the National Heritage Area program, which today includes the Rivers of Steel in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Securing funding to preserve national heritage sites, including Fort Necessity National Park, Johnstown Flood National Memorial, Allegheny Portage National Railroad Historic Site, Johnstown Flood Museum, Gettysburg National Military Park, and Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater. Rep. Murtha also secured funding for the Great Allegheny Passage, a 150-mile system of biking and hiking trails that connects Cumberland, Md. to Pittsburgh. Authoring legislation to establish the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania.
National Park Service Accepting the award: Joanne Hanley, Superintendent, and Keith Newlin, Deputy Superintendent, National Parks of Western Pennsylvania The National Park Service owns and operates several major attractions in the area that interpret and present the area's history and heritage for visitors. The Johnstown Flood National Memorial in St. Michael preserves a portion of the failed South Fork Dam and the clubhouse of the South Fork Fishing & Hunting Club. Fort Necessity National Battlefield near Farmington interprets a key battle of the French & Indian War that was also the first event in Gen. George Washington's military career, as well as the development of the National Road, the first federally funded road in America. Allegheny Portage National Historic Site tells the story of the railroad and canal system that conquered the Allegheny Mountains. Flight 93 National Memorial preserves the site where Flight 93 crashed on September 11, 2001. Friendship Hill National Historic Site commemorates the life and accomplishments of Albert Gallatin, Secretary of the Treasury under Thomas Jefferson.
Claudia Jones Click here to see a video about this award recipient that was shown at the ceremony. Claudia Jones has worked tirelessly for the preservation and promotion of African-American history in Johnstown. A professor emeritus of biology at Pitt-Johnstown, Jones' accomplishments include: Ongoing research into Johnstown's African-American history, and serving as a resource for Black History Month for area churches and schools; the ongoing collection and preservation of photographs depicting African-American life in greater Johnstown from as early as the 1930s. Development of a slide presentation on local African-American history, which she has presented in a variety of venues. Active with the local chapter of the NAACP, where she introduced a project to recognize Heritage Members over 85 years of age while preserving their stories. Active participant in JAHA's African-American History Project, which built upon existing research about early African-American settlements in Johnstown. Founder of the Greater Johnstown Minority Scholars Club, and has held the title of coordinator. The organization was founded in 1984 to help guide and motivate students from area high schools and their parents to pursue upward mobility through higher education.
Susan Kalcik and the Slovak Heritage Association of the Laurel Highlands Click here to see a video about this award recipient that was shown at the ceremony. Susan Kalcik was instrumental in the founding of the Slovak Heritage Association of the Laurel Highlands (SHALH) in 1996, and has been active in the organization ever since. The organization's mission is to preserve, study, celebrate, share and teach the heritage of one of the largest ethnic groups in the region. The accomplishments of SHALH include: Presentations of lectures, re-enactments, museum exhibitions, and children's programs on Slovak culture A bimonthly newsletter on Slovak culture that is distributed to readers and libraries in more than 20 states Six membership meetings yearly at which educational programs are presented In addition to her activities through SHALH, Kalcik has demonstrated her commitment to the preservation of the Slovak culture in these ways: Helped direct the ethnic fieldworkers for the America's Industrial Heritage Project (AIHP) in Johnstown, overseeing the collection of material from the project; then spent a year full-time at the library of IUP, where she organized the archives of the material. Served for two years as executive director of the Bottle Works Ethnic Arts Center. Published several papers in scholarly journals on ethnicity, many of which focus on aspects of Johnstown and Slovak culture Currently writing a book on Johnstown Slovaks.
About the Heritage Preservation Award Dinner on April 10 The Heritage Preservation Awards were presented at a dinner event on April 10, which was held at the Frank J. Pasquerilla Conference Center. A volunteer committee organized the event, which was attended by about 400 people. JAHA thanks Concurrent Technologies Corporation for their support of this event. Also on April 10, a new exhibit, "Did You Know?" was unveiled in the second-floor galleries of the Heritage Discovery Center. The exhibit celebrates things that make Johnstown unique, and is drawn largely from JAHA's extensive archive of photographs, documents and objects that relate to Johnstown's history.
About the Heritage Preservation Awards JAHA solicited and received many nominations for the awards from the community before the nominations were closed on December 18, 2009. A volunteer committee made the final decisions on award recipients. Criteria for nominees were as follows: Nominees must have contributed to preserving, celebrating or promoting Johnstown's heritage May have made their contributions from any field, personally or professionally May be well-known, or relatively unrecognized Do not have to be a native or resident of Johnstown, but must have a clear relationship with its people and its past Must be living; no awards will be given posthumously, except in rare exceptions as determined by the committee May be individuals, corporations or organizations
The Heritage Awards Committee members are: Committee chair: Linda Thomson, President, Johnstown Area Regional Industries Dr. Walter Asonevich, President, Penn Highlands Community College Phyllis Bandstra, Executive Director, Goodwill Industries Jeffrey Lavine, Retired Chief Financial Officer, Pitt-Johnstown The Honorable Timothy Creany, President Judge, Cambria County Court of Common Pleas
The Steering Committee members are: Tammy & Howard Bernstein, Co-Chairs Mitchell G. Azar Karen Azer Marvin D. Baker Mary Ann Bennear Mary P. Borkow Ronald P. Carnevali, Jr., Esq. Lana Custer Edward Lentz Dreikorn III George Griffith Mary Ann Jacobs Michael Kane Elmer C. Laslo Elizabeth Mayer Danette Overdorff Mark E. Pasquerilla William Polacek Mary Anne Rizzo Edward J. Sheehan, Jr. Ernest R. Walker, Esq. Kathleen Wallace Dr. George Zitnay