Michael Shirley seen here holding his 2021 Margaret Stephens Award for Volunteer Excellence.
Michael has played an important role in supporting the arts community through his long years of membership and contributions as a Director, Lifetime Member, and Volunteer of the Community Arts Council of Richmond (CACR). One of Michael’s recent selfless acts of volunteerism for the arts was during the 2020 Pet-takular Portraits fundraiser when he painted 11 animal portraits in the space of 4 weeks to raise money for the CACR and the Richmond Branch of the BC SPCA.
While we were not able to present the award trophy and certificate in person, we were able to hold a virtual celebration during our 2021 Annual General Meeting where past President Natasha Lozovsky-Burns presented the award to Michael. Congratulations, Michael!
The Margaret Stephens Award is created to celebrate the life of the late Margaret Stephens, a past Director and Lifetime Member of the CACR who tirelessly contributed to the arts community and the community of Richmond through volunteerism until her untimely passing in 2019. Her passion for the many projects that the CACR created and championed over the years still inspires those of us who remember her.. It is our hope that with this award, her legacy of inspiring arts volunteers will carry on.