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About Us

Purpose

The Friends work to restore and preserve the old lime kilns and historic buildings of the Cowell Lime Works Historic District through fundraising, coordinating volunteers, and soliciting donations of materials. The Friends bring the site's rich history to life through tours and other educational programs.

The District encompasses some 30 acres at the main entrance to the University of California, Santa Cruz. The district includes four lime kilns, the cook house, cooperage, hay barn, Cardiff House, worker cabins, and many other buildings and structures from the 19th century. In 2007 the district was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Leadership

Board of Directors

  • Frank Perry, President — Coauthor, Lime Kiln Legacies: The History of the Lime Industry in Santa Cruz County, California
  • Don Lauritson, Vice President — Senior Planner (Retired), City of Santa Cruz
  • Jim Burns — Director of Public Affairs (Retired), UC Santa Cruz
  • Cynthia Mathews — Former member of Santa Cruz City Council, 1992-2020 (six four-year terms); Former Board Member, Museum of Art & History, Santa Cruz
  • John McKelvey — Licensed architect and member of Santa Cruz City Planning Commission
  • Rainbow Mitchell-Fox — UCSC alumna; Past Board President, Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History
  • Emmy Mitchell-Lynn — Member of Capitola Historical Museum board, the Soquel Pioneers board, and Museum of Art & History publications committee
  • Frank Zwart, FAIA — Campus Architect Emeritus, UC Santa Cruz

Staff Liaison

Development

  • Clea Hermanson (Assistant Director of Leadership Annual Giving, UC Santa Cruz)

Ex-Officio Board Member

Advisory Board Members

  • Karin Goetter Beck (Archaeologist; Author, Lime Light: The Lime Manufacturing Industry in 19th Century Oroville, Butte County, California)
  • Ashley Carniglia (Former Curator of Education, Museum of Art & History, Santa Cruz)
  • Peg Danielson (Executive Assistant, Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks)
  • J. Cameron Monroe (Associate Professor of Anthropology, UC Santa Cruz)
  • Sally Morgan (Archaeologist and former Staff Liaison for the Friends)
  • Robert W. Piwarzyk (Coauthor, Lime Kiln Legacies: The History of the Lime Industry in Santa Cruz County, California)
  • Jenifer Lienau Thompson (Former Executive Assistant, Ocean Conservancy; Former Director, Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History)
  • Mark Traugott (Professor Emeritus of History, UC Santa Cruz)