Santa Fe Living Treasures
honoring elders in the community
Peace activist and minister Mary Lou Cook, along with friends, founded the Santa Fe Living Treasures program in 1984. Inspired by Gandhi’s advice, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world,” the group wanted to do something that wasn’t being done—express appreciation for the important contributions of our Elders. An all-volunteer organization that honored elders who have generously served our community with kind hearts and good deeds. Their oral histories and photographs are at the Fray Angelico Chavez History Library, Santa Fe, NM.
"We are our stories. And, to paraphrase Walt Whitman, we are large, we contain multitudes.
For inspiring evidence of such truths, look no further than this book, the third and final volume presenting the stories of individuals designated as Santa Fe Living Treasures." Excerpt of the foreword by Barbara Harrelson
Book III, “Living Treasures, Kind Hearts, Good Deeds” was published in 2021 and is currently sold out. The photographs here represent 10 years of photography, honoring up to six or seven individuals or couples a year from 2009 – 2019. It was an honor to be the Santa Fe Living Treasures photographer for ten years, and pleasure to serve on the SFLT committee. The committee hopes hope that the book will be a beacon of light in the midst of these troubling times. May the men and women displayed in this limited edition book become a treasure in your own lives and families – a keepsake to be handed down through succeeding generations. Visit the Santa Fe Living Treasures website for 35 years of story collection website