Cynthia Buckingham

Title

Cynthia Buckingham

Quote

“The success of Utah Humanities depends on the people of Utah, who are open-minded, curious, and willing to get involved. They’re accustomed to digging in, getting their hands dirty, getting the work done. They’re life-long learners, but it goes beyond the idea of taking an extension course: it’s being actively involved in something that you’re interested in, and you want to share with someone else. And that – just seeing that energy, and enthusiasm, and hard work is inspirational.”

Story

Let me tell you about my first trip outside the Wasatch Front.

It was probably my first month or two here. School was still in session. I went down to Blanding to describe Utah Humanities to a group of people, including a couple who hadn’t yet applied for a grant but were considering it.

I must admit that I am not a natural public speaker. I had trouble taking the required speech course in college because getting up in front of a group of people just was not my thing.

I drove to Blanding expecting a small gathering of interested people. Instead, they had maybe a couple hundred people gathered in the high school auditorium with a stage. My jaw dropped. It was trial by fire; I took a deep breath and started: “Here’s what Utah Endowment for the Humanities is about, and we want to get you all involved.”

That was my first experience with driving outside Salt Lake City and appreciating the amazingly varied scenery of Utah on the way down to Blanding.

I felt great that it was over! We had a grant application the next year for what they called “San Juan Education Days.” It was modeled after BYU Education Days.

Folks in Blanding and Bluff and surrounding areas wanted to do something similar for that part of the state: for all the people who had been making the long drive to Provo. It was a great application by someone who had obviously never written a grant proposal before, but the board approved it.

It was so exciting. It was like, “Oh! It works. It’s magic, isn’t it?" The way people are willing to get involved and work that hard for something that benefits the community. They did it for three or four years, I think, and it became very important to southeastern Utah.

Date

May 7, 2024

interviewer

Randy Williams

Profession

Director

From

Utah Humanities