Roanoke and Hollins Announce 2018 Perry F. Kendig Award Nominees

Artists, arts advocates, and arts and cultural organizations are among the nominees for the 2018 Perry F. Kendig Arts and Culture Awards.

Co-sponsored by Hollins University and Roanoke College, the Kendig Awards program recognizes exemplary individuals, businesses, and organizations in the Roanoke Valley that support excellence in the arts.

This year's winners will be announced at a special awards ceremony to be held at Hollins University's Wyndham Robertson Library on Wednesday, Sept. 12, at 5:30 p.m.

Here are the nominees for the 2018 Kendig Awards:

Nancy Agee

Agee is the president and CEO of Carilion Clinic and president of the American Hospital Association. She has supported artists, performers and educators in the Roanoke Valley for more than 30 years.

Artemis, Artists & Writers, Inc. 

A publisher of literary and art journals, and host of local exhibitions and events for 40 years, Artemis has showcased literary and visual artists from Southwest Virginia and beyond. Recent publications have introduced the culture of the Roanoke Valley to Europe, Australia and Asia, and their free workshops, internships and festivals have inspired creativity and fellowship for all ages and all levels of experience.

Rita Bishop

As the superintendent for Roanoke City Public Schools (RCPS), Bishop has fostered partnerships with Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, Opera Roanoke, the Jefferson Center, Southwest Virginia Ballet and others. Through her leadership, advocacy and service, leaders from the VH1 Save the Music Foundation have supported RCPS programs with hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Dotsy Clifton

For more than four decades, Clifton has supported many of the region's arts organizations. As a volunteer, she has served on the board of directors of The Roanoke Women's Foundation, The Grandin Theatre, Center in the Square and Mill Mountain Theatre, where she was board chair. Clifton has been praised as a true conduit, realizing that the arts and history of this region humanize and connect its citizens in many ways.

Doug Jackson

Jackson first became involved in Roanoke's arts and cultural scene with the Roanoke Arts Commission. He played a key role in developing the city's first Arts and Cultural Plan as well as Book City Roanoke, and has volunteered for Roanoke Valley Reads and CityWorks (X)po. He is also a published author who has won the James Andrew Purdy Prize for Fiction and the Artisan Center of Virginia's Award for Excellence.

Jefferson Center

A premier performance venue, educational hub, and center for community life, the Jefferson Center's mission is to provide broad access to inspirational performing arts, transformative arts education, and vibrant community space. Its Music Lab program, which offers music education to students of all ages, is a nationally recognized model for arts education beyond the classroom. The Jefferson Center also is home to more than 15 regional nonprofits and small businesses.

Cynthia and Mark Lawrence

The Lawrences have connected arts organizations with business and have helped both succeed on projects that yield community-wide benefits. Their participation in organizations such as Mill Mountain Theatre, Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, and the Taubman Museum of Art have positively impacted the culture of the Roanoke Valley and brought together countless artists and other influential Roanokers.

Amanda Mansfield

Mansfield has made a major impact on the Roanoke theater scene for more than 12 years. She has performed for numerous production companies in the area, and has led successful program development and fundraising efforts for Roanoke Children's Theatre, Center in the Square and Mill Mountain Theatre. She was responsible for significant increases in the annual operating budgets for all three organizations.

Maury Strauss

Strauss's support of and dedication to arts and culture in Roanoke spans a broad spectrum, including the Taubman Museum of Art, The Jefferson Center, Roanoke Children's Theatre (which he helped establish), Opera Roanoke, Temple Emanuel, Mill Mountain Theatre, Virginia Western Community College and many other organizations. Through Strauss's generosity, the Taubman has created the Sheila and Maury L. Strauss Art Venture Endowment.

Margaret Sue Turner Wright

Having curated a dozen art shows and establishing organizations such as Plein Air Roanoke and 202 Figurative Group, Wright has welcomed hundreds of artists, patrons, and enthusiasts to Roanoke. Locally, she has donated many of her paintings to auctions that have raised several thousand dollars for hospitals and arts institutions. She has also donated paintings for charity fundraising events around the country, including Back to the Roots, hosted by Shriners Hospitals for Children.

Named for the late Perry F. Kendig, who served as president of Roanoke College and was an avid supporter and patron of the arts, the Kendig Awards were established in 1985 and presented annually by the Arts Council of the Blue Ridge through 2012. Hollins University and Roanoke College first partnered the following year to bestow the honors, and congratulate the 2018 slate of distinguished nominees.

For more information about the Kendig Awards, visit https://kendig.press.hollins.edu/.