From 1981 to 1997, Leland's family lived in Almaden. Leland, now in her 20s and living in San Francisco, is keeping childhood memories of various locations in Almaden alive with a community-based art project called a collective memory map. Using a digital map of Almaden, Leland has marked specific locations where some of her, as well as other residents', most vivid memories have taken place. The interactive map is designed to allow users to click on an area, view photos and read about an event that occurred at the location.

Golden Oaks Park, now Fontana Park, is one of the locations Leland has highlighted on her map. The park was the site of Leland's "bandage incident." Leland said she clearly remembers when she and a friend were rollerskating in the park when they were in elementary school. Her friend scraped her knee and needed a bandage. Leland and her friend devised a plan to get a bandage. Leland was to run to the nearest home and pretend she was on a scavenger hunt. Both girls were both ecstatic when the plan worked, though Leland now realizes she probably could have just said her friend was hurt and needed help, and any neighbor would have given her a bandage.

Leland decided the map would be much more interesting if she collected memories from other Almaden residents, too. Since beginning the project in November, she has had about 10 other residents, mainly friends and friends of friends, contribute memories to the map. She would like to collect as many different memories for the map as possible.

Memories submitted by other residents include where they were during the 1989 earthquake and stories about getting bright pink peppermint ice cream from Mellow McGee's, which used to be in the Via Valiente shopping center.

Leland began this project because of her interest in the relationship between place and memory.

"I like the idea of walking through Almaden and remembering something that happened in a certain spot," Leland said. "I like to see what psychological space has to do with physical space."

She graduated from Leland High School in 1997. She earned a bachelor's degree in photography from the University of Oregon and then went to Iowa for graduate school.

Currently she is an intern at a nonprofit art gallery in San Francisco and works with interactive community-based art like the memory map.

To get Almaden residents involved in the project, Leland passed out fliers and made postings on community message boards. She is also getting help from her friends who still in Almaden, via word of mouth.

Leland isn't sure how long her community art projectwill take to complete.

"I want to let it unfold on its own; I don't want to force it," Leland said. "I think it will be better if it unfolds slowly. It will let people think and remember things, and reading other peoples' memories sparks my imagination, too."

She is, however, sure she is enjoying her exploration into her childhood in the Almaden Valley.