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ArtsWestchester Celebrates 2016 Arts Award Winners

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. --ArtsWestchester recently celebrated the 2016 Arts Award honorees at a luncheon in Tarrytown.

Deborah Iarussi, left, accepted the Community Award for the Sills Family Foundation, with ArtsWestchester CEO Janet Langsam, right.

Deborah Iarussi, left, accepted the Community Award for the Sills Family Foundation, with ArtsWestchester CEO Janet Langsam, right.

Photo Credit: Leslye Smith
Waddell Stillman, left, accepted the Arts Organization Award for Historic Hudson Valley, with Deputy County Executive Kevin Plunkett.

Waddell Stillman, left, accepted the Arts Organization Award for Historic Hudson Valley, with Deputy County Executive Kevin Plunkett.

Photo Credit: Leslye Smith
ArtsWestchester Board Member Barbara Elliot, left, and Sherry Wiener, right, present the Education Award to Rye Arts Center, which was accepted by Rye Arts Center Executive Director Meg Rodriguez.

ArtsWestchester Board Member Barbara Elliot, left, and Sherry Wiener, right, present the Education Award to Rye Arts Center, which was accepted by Rye Arts Center Executive Director Meg Rodriguez.

Photo Credit: Leslye Smith
ArtsWestchester CEO Janet Langsam, left, with Hon. Mayor Mike Spano, right, who accepted the Community Award for the City of Yonkers.

ArtsWestchester CEO Janet Langsam, left, with Hon. Mayor Mike Spano, right, who accepted the Community Award for the City of Yonkers.

Photo Credit: Leslye Smith

The 2016 Arts Award Recipients are: 

  • The Emily and Eugene Grant Arts Patron Award: Donald Cecil and, in memory, Jane Cecil. Donald Cecil and his late wife Jane of Harrison have given extraordinary support to the arts and education in Westchester, including the Emelin Theatre, Westchester Philharmonic and the Jandon Scholars Program
  • The Arts Organization Award: Historic Hudson Valley. HHV welcomes more than 300,000 visitors annually at five National Historic Landmarks in Westchester.
  • The Community Awards: Sills Family Foundation. Its support of community-based arts activities has enabled ArtsWestchester to bring an after-school program to WestHab PEAK (Promoting Excellence and Achievement in Kids), where kids are engaged in artistic endeavors. 
  • The City of Yonkers. Yonkers has championed the arts as part of a consistent strategy to reinvent itself as a magnet for a younger demographic that is searching for affordable housing and attractive neighborhoods. 
  • Katonah Museum Artists’ Association. For more than 25 years, it has supported 300+ active artist members with juried, curated and open exhibition opportunities at community venues.
 
  • The Sophia Abeles Education Award: Musician Ray Blue. Award-winning saxophonist, composer, arranger and educator Ray Blue from Peekskill founded the nonprofit Cross-Cultural Connections. Its outreach brings arts programming to Peekskill children. 
  • The Education AwardsMusician Fred Smith of Peekskill. Trumpeter and jazz historian, Smith has more than a half century of experience in music.
  • Rye Arts Center Rye Arts Center. Its dedication to STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math)-based learning has advanced artistic opportunities for artists, children and adults. 
  • Arts Alive Artist Grantees: Photographer John Rizzo of Dobbs Ferry. The photojournalist will produce a documentary and photo exhibition about soldiers living in Westchester County.
  • Visual Artist Esther Lo. The multi-faceted artist will create a series of clay bust sculptures that feature community members of diverse backgrounds. 
  • Dancer and Choreographer Debralyn Press. Founder of Sleepy Hollow Performing Artists, Press will create a dance piece that will have an anti-bullying message. 

Click here for more information about ArtsWestchester.

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