Nominations open for 2026 Living Treasures honors in Los Alamos County

Los Alamos has honored 108 people in 34 ceremonies since 1999, and organizers are again asking residents to name the unpaid work that keeps the county functioning. Nominations for the 2026 Living Treasures of Los Alamos honors are open, with three new Treasures to be selected for recognition in September.

The 2026 ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 27, at the Betty Ehart Senior Center and will be open to the public. Living Treasures was founded in 1999 by local residents Rosalie Heller and Karen Nielsen Brandt, who modeled it after a Santa Fe recognition program. The goal was to spotlight older community members whose service helped maintain and improve the quality of life in Los Alamos.

That emphasis on service still defines the award. Organizers say a nominee’s career is not the point; what matters is the volunteer work done outside of paid employment, especially the kind of steady civic labor that rarely gets noticed until someone names it. The program is intended to recognize role models and mentors whose service reflects commitment, perseverance, heart, wisdom and hope.

Residents can submit nominations through May 31, and the selection page lists June 1, 2026, as the closing date. New nominations, along with those already on file, will be evaluated in June before the board selects the next class of Treasures. Nomination letters should describe the nominee’s volunteer areas of service, how many years the person has been involved in community activities, how the work has affected people in Los Alamos and how the county is better because of it. Nominees must be current residents of Los Alamos County, and supporters may send additional letters if others can speak to the person’s service.

The program also keeps previous nomination letters on file for 10 years, creating a record of community appreciation that can carry candidates forward over time. That long memory has helped sustain a tradition that often spotlights the volunteers behind clubs, nonprofits, faith groups and civic projects across town.

Living Treasures itself depends on the same kind of volunteer spirit it honors. The organization is run by an all-volunteer board and financed solely through donations. Recent honorees have included Dee Morrison, Shelby Redondo and Georgia and Gerry Strickfaden in 2025, along with Joyce Nickols, Don Cobb and Barbara Calef in 2023.