Mission
The Friends of Pine Hawk seek to foster appreciation of indigenous cultural traditions and current initiatives and to promote preservation of local Native American ceremonial stone landscapes and artifacts.
To further this mission, we organize lectures, workshops, field trips, book discussions, and community service days, while sharing an expanding database of cultural resources related to indigenous history, folkways, and current events, including relevant early American history and culture. We enjoy collaborating with members of the local Native American communities and organizations with similar interests.
2024 Goals
The following goals seek to promote an understanding of and respect for the local indigenous people and their history in the region through education and through the recognition, protection, and preservation of its historic and archaeological resources.
Programs
- Deliver a high-quality, varied set of programs and activities every fall
- Offer videos and web-accessible virtual tours of archaeological sites and talks
- Co-sponsor cultural events or programs that explore and advance connectivity to contemporary Native American culture and perspectives
- Expand our adult education curriculum
- Continue the popular Book Discussion group.
Local Advocacy
- Support community stewardship events for the maintenance of significant local sites and trails
- Monitor and publicize as appropriate the effects of Acton’s bylaw regarding “Preservation of Archaeologically Significant Resources”. The bylaw was passed at Town meeting in 2022 and is designed to protect historical and archaeological assets
- Seek collaborations with the Acton Natural Resources Division, local land trusts, Native American groups, historical commissions and historical societies, and other organizations, as appropriate
- Continue to monitor the Concord Water Treatment plans at Nagog Pond for potential impact on sensitive areas
Resources
- Contribute to the Acton Boxborough schools’ development of local history curriculum resources
- Systematize, expand, and publicize resources available to community and organizations
- Develop a roadmap/model/best practices for surveying and protecting local ceremonial and cultural indigenous sites
Organization
- Deepen ties with Freedom’s Way and explore other funding opportunities
- Actively seek diverse perspectives and develop advisory relationships: Continue to reach out to our Native American friends and advisors for input and advice
- Wherever possible include tribal perspectives in Friends of Pine Hawk deliberations and program decisions
- Increase members’ core knowledge through external programs and field trips.
- Invite members with complementary skills sets (e.g. indigenous cultural knowledge, field archaeology, communications, graphic design)