Dear Members and Friends of the Public Choice Society:

James M. Buchanan was co-founder of the Public Choice Society and our founding President from 1963-64. Vincent Ostrom was our fourth President, serving in that role in 1967-69, and Elinor Ostrom sat as the Society's eleventh President from 1982-84.

One year ago I passed along the news that Jim Buchanan had passed away. A very large number of memorials were quickly published, both online and in print. Among the best of these is "James Buchanan: An Assessment", an online symposium led by our Past President (2002-04) Geoffrey Brennan and hosted by one of the Society's sponsors, Liberty Fund. You might also want to view this nine-minute documentary, which we showed during the plenary luncheon at the Society's 50th Anniversary conference last March.

The Ostroms, after long and productive careers together, both passed away in the summer of 2012. A new documentary is currently being produced to commemorate their lives and works. The writer and director is Barbara Allen, a political scientist and Senior Fellow at The Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis, who is also an award winning film maker. The documentary is scheduled for completion in 2014. Please visit the project's promotional website and consider making a contribution to the crowd-funding effort.

Finally, in 2013 we said goodbye to Mrs. Betty Tillman. For decades as Jim Buchanan's assistant, Betty was a fixture at the Public Choice Society's annual meetings. Her warming presence anchored the Society's sense of cohesion and collegiality, and she made vital administrative contributions that kept the Society going. You can read more about Betty, her charm, and her contributions, in the current issue of Public Choice (gated), where brief tributes are offered by Donald Boudreaux, Dwight R. Lee, Richard B. McKenzie, Karen I. Vaughn, and Richard E. Wagner, all commissioned and edited by Editor in Chief William F. Shughart II.

Please join me in thanking those scholars who are working to shape and propel the legacies of these important figures in our Society's heritage. Thank you for your attention and for your participation in the Public Choice Society.

Sincerely yours

Edward J. Lopez
President, Public Choice Society
Professor of Economics
BB&T Distinguished Professor of Capitalism
Western Carolina University

January 10, 2014