A St. Lawrence graduate who has worked as an advocate for the arts will receive
a prestigious award for that work.
Lucy Tower Funke '56, of New Berlin, New York, will receive the M. Jacquie Lodico
distinguished service award from the Alliance of New York State Arts Organizations
on November 27, at a "Celebrate The Arts In New York State" ceremony held at the
Russian Tea Room in New York City. The award will be presented by Kitty Carlisle
Hart, who received an honorary degree from St. Lawrence in 1992.
The Alliance states, "Lucy Tower Funke is a most familiar name, not only in Chenango
County, but also within the entire State of New York as a tireless advocate for the
arts. She began her tenure as Executive Director with the Chenango County Council
of the Arts in 1981, and by the time of her retirement from the Arts Council in
1999, she had become a venerable and distinguished member of the Alliance, along
with many other statewide efforts. Her services has included the Advisory Committee
of the New York State Arts & Cultural Coalition, the New York State Peer Advisor
Program, the New York State Council on the Arts as a panelist for both the Local
Arts Partnership Program and the New York State Council on the Arts Appeal. Her
community efforts have included Board of Directors seats on the Chenango County
Chamber of Commerce; an overflow of involvement with education councils, two
arts festival events, and has served as a Rotary International Program Chair,
and on the Leadership Chenango Administrative Council, United Way Senior Citizens
Funding Committee, and the Chenango Non-profit Leadership Forum. The most permanent
record of her legacy is the restoration and renovation of a 500-seat arts theater
in Norwich. Lucy is currently serving as Director of The Sam and Adele Golden
Foundation, awarding grants to individual professional artists and arts
organizations working with artists. She has been a vital contributor from its
inception and has been guiding its mission for the last three years."
Funke, who earned her St. Lawrence degree in French, is a member of the University's
Alumni Executive Council.