James Dellcort Conlon died after a brief illness on Friday, July 17, 2009, in New York at the Presbyterian Hospital and Columbia Medical Center. The son of Phyllis Dellcort Conlon of Vestal, NY and Michael J. Conlon of Endwell, NY, James was Director of the Visual Media Center for Art History, Archaeology, and Historic Preservation at Columbia University.
He was born in Binghamton, NY in 1972, attended schools in Vestal, NY and after completing his BA degree in Classics and Religion at the University of Rochester and a year in Jordan as a Fulbright Fellow, he earned an MA degree in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures from Indiana University and a postgraduate certificate in the preservation of Archaeological Sites and Historic Buildings from Columbia University. While directing the Visual Media Center at Columbia, James participated in conservation projects across the Near East, taught courses in preservation, and explored new ways to recover and preserve the relationship between heritage places and local communities. He was also an active member of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), an organization of professionals dedicated to the conservation of the world's historic monuments.
In recent years James lived in Astoria, NY where he practiced and taught Taekwondo, and participated in projects to support the artistic and cultural life of his community. His interest in the diverse ethnic and cultural life of Astoria, led him to create and co-direct Buzzer Thirty-a physical space for art exhibitions, readings by poets and writers, seminars, lectures, and media classes. He loved his family and work, his home in the city, the support of many friends, the history and culture of the Near East, all types of music, basketball, and his remarkable and loyal cat, Solomon.
In addition to his parents, James Conlon leaves his brother, Sean P. Conlon and fiancée, Deedy Noiman of Cincinnati, OH; his sister, Dr. Margaret M. Conlon and her husband, David Mudd of Lawrenceburg, KY; his aunt, Carol Ganner and uncle, William Ganner of Palm Harbor, FL; nieces, Anna Daisy Mudd and Lucy Conlon; his nephew, Vincent Conlon; cousins, William Ganner, Jr. of Sarasota, FL, Christi Ganner of Palm Harbor, FL, Kathy Stephenson of Atlanta, GA; and his special friend, Jacqui Khiu of Brooklyn, NY.
The family will receive friends at the Bednarsky Funeral Home, 96 Glenwood Ave., Binghamton, NY on Wednesday, July 22, from 11am to 1pm. A memorial service will follow at Newman House, 400 Murray Hill Rd, Vestal, NY at 3pm. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made for the relief of flood victims in Yemen, in care of the Yemen Red Crescent Society, Head Office Bldg. 10, 26 September St., Sanaa, Yemen.
Al Ghurfa, Yemen 2004
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