Long Wharf Theatre to Honor Barbara Pearce with 2015 Founders Award, 6/15

Long Wharf Theatre will honor Barbara L. Pearce, former chair of the Board of Trustees and a board member for over 30 years, with the organization's Founders Award.

The ceremony will be held on Monday, June 15 at 7 pm during the theatre's 2015-16 season preview event, taking place on Stage II. The Founders Award was created to acknowledge those organizations, businesses and individuals who have made long term outstanding contributions to Long Wharf Theatre. The theatre's founders were known for their commitment and dedication and the award seeks to honor those who mirror the same qualities. To RSVP to the event, call the box office at 203-787-4282.

"I have been involved at Long Wharf Theatre for 33 years, and am proud of its reputation for world- class theatre. Many of my efforts over the years have focused on both raising money and awareness, both to promote the theatre's importance to New Haven, to Connecticut, and to the arts community worldwide. I have every hope that Long Wharf will continue to delight and engage audiences for years to come," Pearce said.

"Barbara Pearce has been an indelible and essential member of the Long Wharf Board over three decades. Her contributions are far too many to mention and her impact on this theatre and this community has been profound and long lasting. We all thank and honor her for her service," said Artistic Director Gordon Edelstein.

"Barbara's passion for Long Wharf is evident from her leadership of the 50th anniversary committee," said Joshua Borenstein, Managing Director of Long Wharf Theatre. "She led that group with tremendous energy and dedication, and all of us are very thankful for her successful efforts."

"On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I want to congratulate Barbara on her Founders Award. Barbara has been tireless in her support of Long Wharf Theatre over the years, but what many people might not realize is that she contributes her times and efforts not just toward Long Wharf and the arts, but towards many kinds of organizations. She really believes in giving back, and she has certainly done that over her years of service at Long Wharf Theatre. We look forward to continuing our long relationship with her," said Sandy Stoddard, the chair of Long Wharf's Board of Trustees and a colleague at Pearce Real Estate.

Barbara Pearce is the President and CEO of Pearce Real Estate. She is a graduate of Harvard College, Harvard Law School, and Harvard Business School. She majored in Psychology, rowed Varsity Lightweight Crew, and won her HBS Section Marketing Prize. She practiced law at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher, & Flom before returning to New Haven to work in the business, which was started by her father.

She has been extremely involved as a community leader in Connecticut. She has chaired many Boards, including The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, Long Wharf Theatre, the Connecticut Business and Industry Association, the United Way of Greater New Haven, and the Hospital of Saint Raphael. She founded Women Organizing Women Political Action Committee (WOW), of which she is the current President. She has served on the Connecticut Real Estate Commission, the Committee to Visit Harvard College, Campaign Chair of the Greater New Haven United Way, and Chair of the National Arts Stabilization New Haven Fundraising Committee. In addition, she served as a NEA panel member reviewing theatre grants. She also attended the National Critics Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center.

Barbara holds honorary degrees from Albertus Magnus College and the University of New Haven, and has been honored by Glamour Magazine, the Connecticut Council on Philanthropy, Junior Achievement and was named a Woman of FIRE (Finance, Insurance and Real Estate) in 2011. She is currently Chair of ArtSpace, the New Haven-based visionary and dynamic non-profit organization which champions emerging artists and builds new audiences for contemporary art, and Chair of the Burry Fredrik Foundation, which was created to support professional theatre in Connecticut. In 2014, she was named by the Arts Council Of New Haven as a recipient of its Arts Award for decades of contributing her time, energy and impassioned leadership to organizations that promote New Haven as the regional epicenter of the arts. She is a Trustee and former Chair of Long Wharf Theatre and co-chair, with Linda Lorimer, of the Theatre's current 50th Anniversary committee. She is a marathon runner who lives in Guilford with her attorney husband, Norm Fleming. They have two grown children.

For more information, visit www.longwharf.org or call 203-787-4282.

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