IHS Will Honor 2010 Indiana Living Legends at Gala

Indianapolis—The Indiana Historical Society is pleased to announce the list of individuals who will be named Indiana Living Legends in 2010. Raymond Leppard, Bill and Rose Mays, and Judge Sarah Evans Barker will be honored at the annual Indiana Living Legends Gala, which will take place at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center on July 16, 2010. The History Center, home of the IHS and the Indiana Experience, is located at 450 W. Ohio St. in downtown Indianapolis.

Each year, the IHS honors extraordinary Hoosiers for their statewide and national accomplishments in a variety of areas and disciplines. This year’s honorees were selected from more than 150 nominations by a committee of civic and corporate leaders, volunteers and IHS trustees.

The Living Legends Gala also serves as a fundraising event that assists the Indiana Historical Society in fulfilling its mission to be Indiana’s Storyteller™ by providing programs and resources throughout the state. In addition to the generous corporate sponsorship of Fifth Third Bank and OneAmerica Financial Partners, Inc., individuals and companies are invited to support the IHS mission by attending the event.

The black-tie event includes a reception with the Living Legends, a gourmet dinner, dessert and coffee, and a ceremony. The cocktail reception will begin at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 7 p.m. and the program at 8 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased individually or by table—cost to attend is $250 per person or $2,500 for a table of 10. Interested attendees may purchase patron-level tickets for $350 per person or $3,500 for a table of 10. All but $75 of each ticket price is a tax-deductible gift in support of IHS statewide educational programs.

For additional information or to receive an invitation, please contact the IHS Development Department at (317) 233-6578 or visit www.indianahistory.org.

Since 1830, the Indiana Historical Society has been Indiana’s Storyteller™, connecting people to the past by collecting, preserving, interpreting and sharing the state’s history. A private, nonprofit membership organization, IHS maintains the nation’s premier research library and archives on the history of Indiana and the Old Northwest. IHS also provides support and assistance to local museums and historical groups, publishes books and periodicals; sponsors teacher workshops; and provides youth, adult and family programming.

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For more information, images or to schedule an interview, contact Amy Lamb, Media Relations Manager, at (317) 232-1878 or alamb@indianahistory.org.

2010 Indiana Living Legends

Raymond Leppard

Conductor Laureate Raymond Leppard served as music director of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra for 14 years, from 1987 to 2001. During his tenure with the ISO, he led eight recordings and two tours to Europe and initiated Indianapolis On-The-Air, a nationally syndicated radio broadcast of ISO performances that airs on more than 250 stations across the United States.

Maestro Leppard has a long association with the English Chamber Orchestra and has appeared with the New York Philharmonic on numerous occasions, toured with the Chicago and Detroit symphonies and has conducted many other major orchestras, including the Boston Symphony, The Philadelphia Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, Israel Philharmonic and the BBC Symphony.

A prolific recording artist, he has earned such international prizes as the Deutsche Schallplattenpreis, a Grammy Award, a Grand Pro/Am Music Prix du Disque, and the Edison Prize. Maestro Leppard has composed a number of film scores, including the music for Lord of the Flies, Laughter in the Dark, and Hotel New Hampshire. The Queen of England has honored Maestro Leppard with the title Commander of the British Empire. For his services to Italian music, the Republic of Italy has conferred upon him the title of Commendatore della Republica Italiana.

Born in London, Raymond Leppard was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge. He lives in Indianapolis and became a U.S. citizen in 2003.

William and Rose Mays

William G. “Bill” Mays followed in his father’s footsteps, earning a degree in chemistry from Indiana University. After working as a chemist and a manager at several companies, William started his own business, Mays Chemical, in 1980, a company that produces chemicals for the auto, food and pharmaceutical industries. Today, it’s one of the 20 largest chemical distributors in North America. In 1990, William purchased the Indianapolis Recorder, the nation’s fourth oldest black newspaper. William also invests in other minority-owned businesses and serves on a wide variety of for-profit and nonprofit boards and organizations.

Dr. Rose Mays, William’s wife, is professor emeritus at the Indiana University School of Nursing at IUPUI. From 1973 until her recent retirement, Dr. Mays specialized in teaching pediatric nursing. For eight years, she served as the school’s associate dean for community and international affairs and implemented a program of research and community service focused on health promotion and disease prevention for vulnerable adolescents.

Over the course of her career, Dr. Mays has demonstrated a sustained commitment to fostering diversity within her profession, her workplace and her community. Additionally, she serves on various boards and local service organizations. Dr. Mays earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Evansville and her master’s in pediatric nursing from IU. Her doctorate in nursing science is from the University of Texas at Austin.

Judge Sarah Evans Barker

Sarah Evans Barker was appointed as judge to the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana, in March 1984 and served as chief judge between 1994 and 2001. Prior to that, Judge Barker was a U.S. attorney and both an associate and partner at the Indianapolis law firm of Bose, McKinney & Evans. She started her career as an assistant U.S. attorney after serving as legislative assistant to Sen. Charles H. Percy in Washington, D.C.

Active in a wide variety of judicial and bar-related organizations, Judge Barker currently serves as president of the 900-member Federal Judges Association. Since 1998, Judge Barker has been involved in shaping programs to educate judges in the fields of science, technology and health.

Judge Barker is active in many civic, educational, cultural and religious organizations, including the IHS Board of Trustees, the board of directors of Clarian Health Partners Inc., and the advisory board for the Spirit and Place Festival. She received the Trailblazer Award from the Indiana Commission for Women, is a Distinguished Alumna of Indiana University and holds 10 honorary degrees. Judge Barker is a member of the Downtown Kiwanis Club of Indianapolis and the Lawyers Club.

She was born in Mishawaka and is a graduate of IU and the American University School of Law. She and her husband, Kenneth R. Barker, have three children and two grandchildren.

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