From Pima County Natural Resources Park & Rec:
Renowned writer Chuck Bowden to be honored at dedication ceremony July 25
Pima County residents are invited to attend the Chuck Bowden Mount Lemmon Community Center Dedication Ceremony at 10 a.m., Saturday, July 25.
Bowden, an award-winning writer and reporter who spent most of his adult life in Tucson, died in Las Cruces, N.M. on Aug. 30, 2014. A one-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, Bowden focused on violence in Ciudad Juarez, the disappearing water table in the Southwest, the migration of displaced people in Mexico and the hummingbirds of Patagonia.
He had a particular love for the Sonoran Desert and the trails on “Frog Mountain,” which is the original Tohono O’odham name for Mount Lemmon. That love was clearly reflected in one of his books, “Frog Mountain Blues.” Bowden loved to throw a snowball on top of Mount Lemmon and then return to his Tucson home to bask in the afternoon sun.
“Chuck was a journalist’s journalist and was highly regarded by many renowned writers for drilling deep into subject matters where few dared to go,” said Pima County District 4 Supervisor Ray Carroll. “Whatever Chuck Bowden did, he did with all his heart. He was a man full of grace and guts.”
In addition to Carroll, members of the Bowden family and local author and family friend Bill Broyles are expected to speak at the dedication. List of speakers below:
Supervisor Ray Carroll, District 4
George Bowden (older brother of Chuck Bowden)
Peg Bowden (sister)
Bill Broyles – writer and friend of Chuck Bowden and Research Assistant at the UofA Southwest Center
Molly Molloy – partner and professional collaborator of Chuck Bowden and Academic Librarian at New Mexico State University
Light refreshments will be served at a reception following the ceremony.
Contact:
Kelly Cheeseman
Recreation Program Manager
520-724-5208
Kelly.Cheeseman@pima.gov
Carolyn’s note: The Mt. Lemmon Community Center was renamed after Chuck Bowden by the Pima County Board of Supervisors on April 7, 2015. The Center is at 12949 N. Sabino Canyon Parkway in Summerhaven on Mt. Lemmon.
Bowden died at age 69 on August 30, 2014 at his home in Las Cruces, New Mexico, but he formerly lived in Tucson. I knew Chuck and reported on his death: https://blogforarizona.net/r-i-p-legendary-author-charles-bowden/, as well as his memorial services last fall.