ASOR mourns the passing of long-time member and trustee, Carolyn Midkiff Strange.
Susan Ackerman, ASOR Past President
Carolyn Midkiff Strange was an inspiration and brought a surge of passionate energy to every part of ASOR she touched. There was nothing that she thought ASOR could not do, or at least could not do better, if we threw out hearts and souls into it—and she used her huge heart and generous soul to lead by example. When we were evicted from our long-time office space at Boston University in 2017, she made the lead gift that we needed to buy a building that would become ASOR’s permanent home, and she inspired the rest of us to raise the funds to cover the rest of the purchase price, even when there were many (myself included) thought it could not be done. Indeed, I will never forget the aftermath of one Development Committee meeting, when the building funding looked grim, and Carolyn (short, sweet, diminutive Carolyn!) took me by the shoulders, shook me, and said, graciously but forcefully, “We can do this.” Well, she did, and the James F. Strange Center in Alexandria, VA— named in honor of her late husband and life partner, Jim Strange—is a lasting tribute to her grit and determination.
And she didn’t stop. She inspired our diversity, inclusion, and equity work, especially when the need became urgent in 2020, once again through her determination that “we can do this” and through her commitment to put her money where her heart and soul demanded: and so she established an endowment to fund excavation scholarships for BIPOC students and gave contributions to support other diversity initiatives. Her fund-raising passion also led her to be an enthusiastic member of the ASOR Development Committee and a moving force when it came to raising monies from others, especially donations to “ASOR 2025 – Strengthening our Foundation | Expanding Horizons – A Call to Action,” an initiative celebrating our 125th year as an organization.
Most recently, Carolyn has donated funding to establish the Mary Elizabeth Strange Endowment for Diaspora Heritage Educational Programming. Moreover, in 2014, Jim and Carolyn Strange jointly established ASOR’s Strange and Midkiff Familes Excavation Fellowships, designated to support the participation of ASOR members as volunteers or staff on excavation projects. The fund has now awarded 24 excavation fellowships, with a total of $46,500 disbursed to grantees.
Carolyn and Jim, each members of ASOR for over fifty years, each members of the ASOR Board of Trustees, and each generous donors, are testaments to what is best in ASOR—and an inspiration to us all.
Teddy Burgh, chair of the Membership and Outreach Committee, ASOR Trustee, and member of the DEI Committee
My time with Carolyn goes far beyond obligatory cliches and customary superlatives. We didn’t spend a lot of one-on-one time together, but our brief conversations and interactions are memorable. It wasn’t that she said anything profound. There were no remarkable quotes. What resonated with me was Carolyn’s passion and sincerity. Both were palpable. After some of my previous experiences and interactions at ASOR conferences, as well as with various people on excavations, I am extremely sensitive when it comes to trust and sincerity. Many people know what to say and how to say it to present a specific persona or image. Yet, their true feelings can be just the opposite. When I met Carolyn, I will admit that I was guarded and cautious. However, I began to realize that she was for real. Her actions echoed her words. What was also impressive was Carolyn’s desire to learn and see change in the organization. She was extremely candid about what she didn’t understand and wanted to comprehend other points of view. She was open to having difficult conversations. Carolyn not only listened, but she heard what was being said and worked to bring about overdue changes in the organization.
Debora Heard, member of the DEI Committee and the William Leo Hansberry Society
Carolyn Strange was not only a highly-valued member of the DEI Committee, she modeled the self-journey each of us should be undertaking to make this world a better place for all of us. She demonstrated that one could learn what one could not comprehend. In the wake of the protests over the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, Carolyn found that she could not comprehend the racism, discrimination, privilege, social injustice, and inequality that the protesters were claiming was embedded in US society, but she wanted to know. She was open to learning what she did not understand. She would tell anyone who would listen that reading Ibram X. Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist opened her eyes and changed her life. Yet, one book could not teach her all that was to know, so every month at our DEI meetings, she would show us what new book she was reading dealing with topics like the perpetuation of racism within the church, social inequality, and systemic forms of racism and discrimination. Carolyn also understood that knowledge alone does not produce change. She took that next step that many neglect. She asked, “What can I do?” and she spent the rest of her life committed to ways to answer that question.
The first part of her action plan was education. While Carolyn always downplayed her role in archaeology, often saying, “I’m not a scholar,” her modesty did not extend to giving her opinion. In fact, one of Carolyn’s best qualities was her direct, straightforwardness; she was a “truth teller.” As a result, exposing others to the belief-shattering knowledge that she was acquiring was not always easy for her listeners to receive, so she bought books to give in the hopes that the recipients would receive a similar revelation and join her in the work of changing minds and, more importantly, changing society, which leads to the second part of her action plan which was “action.”
Carolyn believed that it was a responsibility as a person, and also as a Christian, to DO all that she could to effect positive change for all people. As a member of ASOR’s Board of Trustees and DEI Committee, she actively worked to ASOR toward greater diversity and inclusivity in its values, its membership, and its impact on the research and disciplines under its purview. She also funded initiatives that would help ASOR begin its own journey of transformation and evolution.
Carolyn Strange was a person who gave her whole heart to what she believed, and she truly believed in diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, fairness, and justice. The DEI Committee will sorely miss her, but her contributions to the committee and on ASOR, at large, are a part of her legacy that must be continued. As long as we continue in the work to which she dedicated the last years of her life and as long as we commit ourselves to our own uncomfortable journeys of seeking to understand the lived lives of people of different backgrounds than ourselves and doing the work to improve the lives for all of humanity in whatever small way that we can, we will keep Carolyn Strange and her legacy alive.
Kate Larson and Julia Troche, co-chairs of ASOR’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.
Among Carolyn’s many legacies to ASOR is her unwavering commitment to building a more inclusive and equitable field of archaeology and study of the ancient world. She pushed herself and others to confront uncomfortable histories through self-education and intentional reflection. She also didn’t hesitate to step forward as a lead donor on numerous diversity initiatives, among them ASOR’s BIPOC fieldwork scholarships that have enabled 13 black, indigenous, and people of color to participate in archaeological excavations since 2022. This sort of financial and institutional support helps ensure those from a wider range of backgrounds, lived experiences, and perspectives can continue to broaden and invigorate our field.
Carolyn was an inaugural member of ASOR’s DEI Committee when it was established as a standing committee by the Board of Trustees in 2021. She provided moral accountability and clarity to the committee from day one, entering all conversations with humility and grace. Her encouragement, calm but strong presence, unwavering support of the work of the committee, and commitment to inclusion permeated our work. She never hesitated to recommend a book, share her own journey, and embrace humility. She is missed profoundly.
Eric and Carol Meyers, ASOR Trustees
Carolyn Strange was a dear friend over the course of more than fifty years. From the early 1970’s to the early 1980’s, she and her family sank deep roots with the Meyerses in the Upper Galilee, and later in the Lower Galilee at Sepphoris near Nazareth.
Carolyn never took the label of being a Galilean lightly: it was her heritage and one that fueled her dedication to inclusivity, tolerance, and commitment to those in need. In recent years she especially devoted time and attention to ASOR and the Albright where she had spent so many years. Her efforts and contributions have enabled both to prosper and grow in a time of great challenge for the Middle East.
In many ways these past years she has enjoyed new friends and new ties that have bound her to the lives of all sorts of individuals, not only to us Galileans but to ASOR and AIAR types from all over the US and globe. And she won their hearts through her charm and straightforward talk.
She has left a legacy, and we all celebrate it. She will always be in our hearts and memories.
Yehi shema mevorekhet, may her name be for a blessing,
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