University of Arizona

                                             Special Collections will be closed December 20, 2023 through January 1, 2024 in observance of the University Holiday break.

Up with People Archive

Special Collections at the University of Arizona is honored to be the repository for the Up with People Archive. The Up with People Archive includes materials from the Up with People organization, the International Alumni Association, as well as the personal papers of the UWP Founder and Chairman Emeritus J. Blanton Belk and his wife Elizabeth "Betty" Belk.

Over the dynamic 45 year history of Up with People, a substantial amount of archival materials have been generated and are now stored for posterity in Special Collections on the University of Arizona campus. The collection contains a vast array of materials from photographs, print publications, records, Up with People scores and musical arrangements, to programs and bumper stickers. Highlights include songs such as “Up with People” in at least four different languages, photographs of casts starting with Sing Out in 1965, the 1985 cast performance for Pope John Paul at the Vatican, and volunteer work conducted in the 2000s. Other notable materials include a piece of the Berlin Wall, publications such as PACE Magazine, Up with People News, and business records which document the work Up with People has accomplished as an important international organization that promotes understanding between cultures through education and entertainment.

Help support the Up with People Archive by making a donation to the Up with People Archive Endowment or the Up with People Tree of Nations Endowment. Donations of $250 and above to the Tree of Nations Endowment have an option of adding an inscription to the tree, with more details provided when the donation is received.

  • $250, inscribed leaf
  • $500, inscribed acorn
  • $1,000, inscribed stone