March 31, 2008: Presidents Message

Spring Meeting:

Please plan on joining us in Northampton, Massachusetts April 25^th through the 27^th at the Clarion Hotel and Conference center for what’s sure to be another exciting meeting.  We’ve got a great lineup of speakers for Friday evening and all day Saturday including our keynote speaker Dr. Fred Meli who will update us on the latest findings and controversies at the Nipsachuck site.  Massachusetts State Coordinator Brenda Toomey has several field trips planned for Friday and Sunday that you won’t want to miss, so if you haven’t registered yet, please do so.  Also, remember to book your room early and be sure to mention that you are part of the NEARA Conference so that you get the special discounted rate.

Site Reports

Now that the spring is here, time to get back out into the woods.  Be sure to report your findings to our Director of Research Bruce McAleer at vbmm@rcn.com.  We strongly encourage you to file a site report so it can be added to NEARA’s extensive database of sites throughout New England, which is now being digitized thanks to the hard work of Chuck Flood, Ros Strong, Anne Wirkkala, Brenda Toomey, and others.  There is a site report template available on the NEARA website.  You can access it by clicking on the tab labeled “Report a Site” on the left hand side of the main page. 

NEARA Library

Lastly, if you’re doing research and looking for a hard to find book, check the extensive NEARA collection at the New Hampshire Technical Institute in Concord, New Hampshire.  Our collection is available to you through the inter-library loan system.  For more information on how this works check with NHTI Librarian Anne Wirkkala at awirkkala@ccsnh.edu.  Anne is a Board member at NEARA as well and will be happy to assist you.

I hope to see you at the spring meeting!

Dan Lorraine

NEARA President