STUDS TERKEL "HUMANITIES HEROES" ANNOUNCED
10/17/2006
CHICAGO -The Illinois Humanities Council, in conjunction with Illinois mayors, is proud to announce the recipients of the 2006 Studs Terkel Humanities Service Award. This award recognizes individuals who have made a lasting contribution to the cultural life of their communities by keeping the doors to the historical society open, reading books to children after school, and drawing connections between the past and future of their communities.
These local "humanities heroes" were selected by their mayors for their outstanding efforts to champion the humanities in their communities -- from Carbondale to Chicago and from Springfield to Skokie. Through these awards, the IHC was able to recognize the exemplary efforts of 75 individuals from all over the state. Many of these recipients were involved in creating awareness about local or regional history in their communities through the establishment of historical societies or museums. Others were noted for their outstanding dedication to education, formal and informal; to literacy and library programs; and to creating awareness for cultural heritage, music, literature, and the arts.
"The IHC could not have identified the 75 Studs Terkel medalists without the help of Illinois mayors," said IHC Executive Director Kristina A. Valaitis. "These champions of the humanities make their communities and our whole state more vibrant."
The Illinois Humanities Council launched the Studs Terkel Humanities Service Award program in 1999 in honor of its 25th anniversary. Nominations are made by Mayors and Village Presidents, who are asked to recommend individuals, primarily volunteers, who have championed the humanities in their communities. The program is now run on a biennial schedule. Since 1999, more than 400 recipients have been named.The program is now run on a biennial schedule. Since 1999, more than 400 recipients have been named.
The awardees of the Studs Terkel Humanities Service Award will receive an engraved medal of recognition at ceremonies held in their communities this fall. The medals are struck in solid bronze by the Medallic Art Company -- the company that makes both the Pulitzer Prize and the Peabody Award -- and engraved with the names of the recipients and their communities. Please contact the Mayor or Village President’s office for ceremony dates and times.
Named after the prize-winning oral historian and author Studs Terkel, the awards reflect the spirit of this prominent son of Illinois. Terkel, a modern-day renaissance man who has been an actor, playwright, jazz columnist, film narrator and disc jockey, is most admired for documenting 20th-century America through the words and voices of ordinary people who, like the recipients of the Studs Terkel Humanities Service Award, have done extraordinary things in their communities. View a list of the awardees, the towns in which they live, and the mayors who nominated them.
For additional information, contact the IHC at 312.422.5580 or email. You can also visit our website at www.prairie.org.
The Illinois Humanities Council is a nonprofit educational organization [501 (c) 3] dedicated to fostering a culture in which the humanities are a vital part of the lives of individuals and communities. Organized in 1973 as the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, the IHC creates programs and funds organizations that promote greater understanding of, appreciation for, and involvement in the humanities by all Illinoisans, regardless of their economic resources, cultural background, or geographic location. The IHC is supported by state, federal, and private funds.
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