2025 Los Alamos Living Treasures Georgia and Gerry Stringfaden. Photo by Jim O’Donnell

BY CRAIG MARTIN

Georgia and Gerry Strickfaden’s Los Alamos roots go way back. Gerry moved to Los Alamos at the age of five, but “Georgia has the honor of being born in the middle of Central Avenue,” Gerry jokes. At the time, of course, the old Army hospital stood there.

Although they were contemporaries at Los Alamos High School, Gerry Strickfaden and Georgia Wilder never met there. Several years later, when both were enrolled in Eastern New Mexico State in Portales, they got to know each other when they shared a ride to Los Alamos in a roommate’s car. When spring break came around, Gerry had a car and offered Georgia and four other women a ride back to Los Alamos. On the return to Portales, the four other women were gone. “He was a sane drive and a good conversationalist,” Georgia said. Five years later, they married in Los Alamos.

Early in their marriage, Georgia ran into an old high school classmate, Margaret Wohlberg, who was the first executive director of the Los Alamos Historical Society. Margaret suggested that Georgia become a docent at the new museum. “What’s a docent?” Georgia asked. But with experience as a schoolteacher, Georgia immediately took to the idea of telling stories about Los Alamos. Her enthusiasm led Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory to hire her, along with Alice Mann, as guides to show prospective employees and especially and their families around Los Alamos. As tour guides, they focused on giving a sense of the community to the newcomers, but they found there was a lot of interest in the history of the town, too.

Although the lab offered her a more lucrative job in statistics, Georgia looked in a different direction. “I thought about it, but I’d have to be inside all day. I couldn’t stand the thought of not being outside.”

Georgia had found her niche and in 1985 she established Buffalo Tours, later renamed Atomic City Tours. Over the next few decades, Georgia drove thousands of new arrivals and tourists around town in her little van. She helped them understand the real Los Alamos, telling the complete story from the Ranch School boys, the families that gave the town its unique flavor, and the residents’ connections to the surrounding communities. Georgia noted “Many people said I had changed their perception of the Manhattan Project from being ‘five guys in a room’ to that of a community-wide effort that included extensive collaboration, families, and recreational activities.”

A friend who accompanied her on several tours noticed that Georgia approached tour audience differently, tailoring the tour based on the questions they asked.  “I came away from each tour on a high,” Georgia said.

Georgia’s passion for telling Los Alamos stories reached beyond her hometown and in she in 2015 she was named “Tourism Professional of the Year” by the New Mexico Hospitality Association. Locally, the County Council proclaimed January 8, 2020, as “Georgia Strickfaden Day” in Los Alamos.

When Gerry switched his employment from the Zia Company to what was then Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, he had the fortune of being assigned as officemate to Harlow Russ. Russ helped to develop and assemble the Little Boy and Fat Man atomic bombs that were dropped on Japan in August 1945 and later wrote a book about his experiences. Russ shared stories and showed Gerry the artifacts of Project Alberta that Russ had included as photos in the book, helping spark Gerry’s never-ending interest in the engineering history of Los Alamos.

Gerry’s contributions to historical education are not as visible as Georgia’s, but he has tirelessly searched through Army Corps of Engineer’s records to document the significance of buildings, roads, trails, and artifacts. For years served on the Fuller Lodge-Historic Districts Advisory Board and helped shape the County’s policies and protections of its historic resources.

Together, Georgia and Gerry have organized and guided more than 20 fundraising tours of the Trinity Site, offering onsite tours while presenting background information and providing unique insights from their experiences and research. They also collaborated on documenting the historical significance of the United Church and the Women’s Dorm. Recently, they partnered with Lemonade Living to expand the use of the historic Grant and Lujan Cabins at the Los Alamos Stable Area for individuals with disabilities.

Georgia and Gerry share widely divergent interests in different modes of transportation. Georgia learned to be an equestrian and is known for exploring the canyons and mesas of the Pajarito Plateau on horseback. Her enthusiasm led to her extensive involvement in the Los Alamos Stable Owners Association. As a young engineer, Gerry served on pit crews for race cars around the state. Eventually this led to an interest in restoring old cars and his well-researched restorations are completed with minute attention to historical details.

The Strickfaden home reflects their love of New Mexico and its history. The walls of their passive solar house, designed by Gerry, are decorated with art and photographs from around the state; the bookshelves and tabletops covered with seemingly every book ever written about Los Alamos or the latest editions of New Mexico Magazine. Of course there is also a large garage, currently the home of Gerry’s latest project, restoring an Alfa Romero from its thousands of pieces.

With their kind and genuine spirits, they continually contribute unrecognized acts of thoughtfulness to their friends and neighbors. Remaining active in the United Church, County boards, and the Stable Owners Association, together the Strickfadens continue to shape not only how the story of Los Alamos is told, but the future of the community. Together and individually, they bring infectious enthusiasm to any project to which they turn their attention. For many years, they have been making Los Alamos a better place.