Friends of SSILA,

It’s hard to imagine, but our last in-person meeting was in New Orleans in 2020! Last January at our online Business Meeting we discussed future meeting formats. There was broad support for gathering in person and celebrating the LSA’s centennial celebration in New York in January, 2024.

That meeting will be financially challenging for many. SSILA has offered Travel Awards in the past based in part on financial need, but we generally receive requests totaling $13,000 to $17,000 and have had a total budget of just $3,000 to give out. This year I am very happy to report that Stephen R. Anderson and Janine Anderson-Bays have pledged up to $5,000 in matching funds to SSILA. To take advantage of their offer, we are currently seeking donations of any amount for travel assistance or for our general fund: the matching funds will be used specifically to assist with travel to the LSA.

SSILA is a non-profit 501(c)3 charitable organization. Donations may be deductible for U.S. federal income tax purposes. For donations of more than $295.00, or amounts not listed on the donation form, please contact our Secretary-Treasurer Mary Linn at secretary@ssila.org.

The call has already gone out for session proposals. In a few weeks we’ll send a call out for abstracts. Please also make a note of the different awards SSILA gives. In addition to travel awards, we give the Best Student Presentation Award, the Mary R. Haas Book Award, the Victor Golla Prize, the Ken Hale Prize, and the Archiving Award.

Thank you for your continued support of SSILA!

Jack B. Martin

SSILA President