Grit and Memory: Preserving the Stories That Built Our Communities
Whether from indifference or irreverence, holding in equal regard all the triumph and tragedy of our past, for better or for worse, Tacoma—Grit City prevails.
The 2026 NWA Annual Meeting gives us an opportunity to gather, collaborate, and learn from the work of archivists from across our membership. Our 2026 meeting will be held in Tacoma, Washington, also known as Grit City. The theme for 2026 is Grit and Memory: Preserving the Stories That Built Our Communities. Grit is the ability to overcome obstacles and challenges in our work: burnout, understaffing, budget cuts, backlogs, growing large workloads with shrinking resources, and many other challenges. How does grit help us to overcome these challenges and preserve the stories of our communities? At the same time, others have critiqued the concept of grit, so we ask, what does it mean to critique the concept of grit in the archival profession? Do we always have to be so gritty and make do with what we have? Or, can we find creative ways to identify and remove obstacles that should not be there for ourselves, our colleagues, our profession and our users?
Hotel Information:
Marriott Tacoma Downtown
1538 Commerce Street
Tacoma, Washington, USA, 98402
Photos: Interior, exterior, and guestroom
Group room rate: $269.00/night
Reservation deadline: May 22, 2026.
A group reservation link will be included in the confirmation email sent to each conference registrant. If you have problems accessing this page, email orouse@pugetsound.edu.
Travel Information:
Nearest major airport to Tacoma:
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)
17801 International Blvd
SeaTac, Washington, USA, 98158
Driving directions to Marriott Tacoma Downtown:
From the South (e.g., Olympia / Centralia / I-5 South)
Get on I-5 North toward Tacoma/Seattle.
Take Exit 133A for E 26th St toward Stadium District/City Center.
Keep right at the fork and follow signs for City Center.
Turn left onto S 15th St.
Turn right onto Commerce St.
The hotel will be on your left at 1538 Commerce St.
From the North (e.g., Seattle / Everett)
Take I-5 South toward Tacoma.
Use the right 2 lanes to take Exit 133A for E 26th St / Stadium District.
Keep right and follow the signs for City Center.
Turn left onto S 15th St.
Turn right onto Commerce St.
The hotel will be on your left at 1538 Commerce St.
Special Events (Reception, banquet, other meals):
The Opening Reception for the conference will be hosted by the University of Puget Sound in the Collins Memorial Library on Wednesday, June 24 at 6:00pm.
MIPoPS (Moving Image Preservation of Puget Sound) will host the seventh annual Archival Screening Night at Collins Memorial Library (Archives & Special Collections Seminar room, 2nd floor) on Thursday, June 25 from 7:00-9:30pm.
Collins Memorial Library
1500 N Warner St
Tacoma, WA, USA 98416
Group Tour Information:
The Washington State Historical Society has generously organized a complimentary tour of their Research Center for conference attendees on Wednesday, June 24 at 3:00pm.
If the 3:00pm tour fills up, a 1:00pm time slot will be added.
Be sure to navigate to the Research Center on Stadium Way, not the Washington State History Museum on Pacific.
Washington State Historical Society: Research Center
315 N Stadium Way
Tacoma, WA, USA 98403
For more information, including driving directions, visit: https://www.washingtonhistory.org/research/research-center/.
Pre-Conference Workshop:
The SAA registration page for the pre-conference workshop "Managing Digital Records in Archives and Special Collections" will posted shortly.
Program Committee:
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Nikki Koehlert (co-chair)
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Tabitha Masters (co-chair)
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Erik Bauer
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Mariecris Gatlabayan
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Heather Mulliner
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Ben Murphy
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Olivia Rouse (local arrangements)
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Sabrina She
