September 14, 2007 Contact: Hoosier Salon, 317-253-5340
For Immediate Release Amy Kindred, Donnae Dole,
Kathy Cunningham
Ann Barton, 317-888-2746
Pam Hicks, Greenwood, recently was honored with Sagamore of the Wabash and Distinguished Hoosier Award recognition from Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels. The duo awards were presented for her leadership, loyalty, dedication and significant contributions to Indiana and her community.
Hicks was saluted for 50 years of volunteerism with the focus on 40 years of volunteering as a member of the state Hoosier Salon Board of Directors.
“For 40 years Pam has ‘lived out’ the mission statement of the Hoosier Salon Patrons Association: ‘to promote Hoosier artists and their art,’” said Jerry Semler of Indianapolis, vice president of the Hoosier Salon Board. “Her commitment to the Hoosier Salon is legendary. What is more astounding is that she has served as board president for 15 other organizations and as a past board member and officer of five other organizations during this time. Pam has championed many causes and chaired numerous events. Her commitment to Hoosiers through the arts and other areas make her a worthy recipient of the Sagamore of the Wabash and the Distinguished Hoosier awards.”
Hicks joined the Hoosier Salon Board in 1968. “Pam is the individual to whom all associated with the Hoosier Salon seek out to ‘confirm’ the organization’s history,” said Rae Harris of Frankfort, the Hoosier Salon board president. “She assists with a variety of current board activities and is an adviser to the board about the future. She is a leader, a worker both on the front line and behind the scenes, and a valued colleague.”
Since joining the Hoosier Salon, she has served as board president twice, as chair of the preview and awards gala for the 2002 opening at the new Indiana State Museum and as honorary chair for the 75th Anniversary gala. She also has served as the Annual Exhibition chair (nine years), awards chair (17 years) and publicity and public relations chair (20 years). She has worked on the Annual Exhibition, the association’s major showcase and fund-raising event, every year since 1968. For many years she mobilized over 200 volunteers statewide to work on the Annual Exhibition, gave programs and tours for thousands of visitors and organized the statewide tours following the exhibit. In 1994 she raised the initial $20,000 plus a $20,000 grant from the Indiana Arts Commission to launch the Hoosier Salon’s Educational Outreach program, which is growing successfully in schools throughout the state. She was a founder of the Hoosier Salon Guild in 1977 and served as its president from 1983 to 1985.
Her interest in the arts is not limited to the Hoosier Salon. She served as president of the Southside Art League Board in 1989 and 1992. She helped raise $47,000 for the purchase and renovation of two historical buildings for the first permanent home for the league, formed in 1964. In 1989, for this effort, the league received the first Greater Greenwood Pride & Progress Foundation’s coveted “Pride & Progress Award,” which recognizes organizations and businesses for maintenance and/or revitalization of business property.
She was affiliated with the Indiana Federation of Art Clubs from 1971 to 1999 and state president from 1979 to 1981.
As a volunteer extraordinaire she currently serves as vice president/administration and president-elect of the Alliance of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, as a member of the Presidents Roundtable, on the Women’s Executive Committee of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the South Group of the ISO board, as a member of the National Delta Delta Delta Leadership Committee and on the board of the Little Red Door Circle of Friends.
As a veteran volunteer she is a past board president of the Indianapolis Civic Theatre, Masquers of Civic Theatre, Indianapolis and Johnson County Alumnae Panhellenics, Indianapolis Zoo Guild, PBS-WFYI Channel 20/20 Club, Phi Delta Theta Mother’s Club, South Indianapolis Alumnae Chapter of Delta Delta Delta and Southport Active and Associate Chapters of Kappa Kappa Kappa.
She has served as a board member/officer for the Edyvene Repertory Theatre, Business and Professional Women, Indianapolis Day Nursery Association, South Group Symphony and the Junior Achievement Auxiliary. She also has been active with the Heartland Film Festival.
Hicks has served on the Franklin College Board of Trustees since 2000 and on the Alumni Council from 1982 to 1989 and as Alumni Council president from 1987-1988. She received the Distinguished Alumni Citation in 1991. Since 1983, she has been the curator of the Franklin College art collection, which involves oversight of the collection, exhibitions and tours. She served on the campaign committee for the college’s Johnson Center for Fine Arts, which raised over $9 million for its completion. In addition, she was chairman for acquiring and commissioning paintings and sculpture for the facility. She earned a BA degree from Franklin, with majors in speech and theater and a music minor.
From 1999-2001 she helped initiate and served on the Regional Arts Advisory Committee for the Indiana Arts Commission/Central Indiana Community Foundation collaboration and as a member of the Governor’s Arts Awards Committee. The Regional Arts Partnership initiative promoted participation and support for the arts in Indiana, giving access to services and funding opportunities which enhanced arts organizations and school programs. In its first three years, over $850,000 was awarded annually to area arts organizations. She was a founding member of the Executive Committee and Grantmaking Chair for the Greater Johnson County Community Foundation and liaison to the Regional Arts Advisory Committee.
Other longtime commitments include Kappa Kappa Kappa (local and state levels) and Delta Delta Delta Sororities (local, state and national levels).
She is especially proud of her service and association with Riley Hospital for Children while State Art Chairman for Tri Kappa. She chaired the dedication and open house for the new Burn Ward in 1970. Art prints were chosen to be placed on the outside glass walls for badly burned children in isolation, in order for them to have diversion and perhaps some enjoyment during their ordeal. She helped plan and present the gifts of artwork in the Burn Ward and the Waterfall Carrousel and artwork in the lobby. Hicks also directed the placing of the Tri Kappa mobile art cart in the Children’s Ward at Riley. She was also responsible for Tri Kappa’s art collection, fine arts scholarships and competitions and cultural programs.
Hicks has a love for writing and she served as editor of Cross Keys, the state magazine of Tri Kappa, and as the assistant editor of The Trident, the national magazine of Tri Delta.
Hicks has given 24 years of national service to Tri Delta in Indiana in the role of alumnae district officer and collegiate district officer. She helped to establish four new chapters (Purdue University, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and Valparaiso University collegiate chapters and Valparaiso alumnae chapter). She was also instrumental in overseeing the building of the Tri Delta house at Purdue University.
She has received many honors and awards. Among them, she was chosen as an Outstanding Young Woman of America; was given a Women in Communications TSP Matrix Table Award and is a Rotary Paul Harris Fellow.
At one time, she owned Pam’s Dance Studio and taught all forms of dancing in private and class lessons.
Semler cited Hicks’ devotion to the memory of her husband. David A. Hicks, known to many as “Mr. Junior Achievement,” was president and CEO of Junior Achievement of Central Indiana for 36 years. “Pam obtained a $50,000 lead grant from the Lilly Endowment Inc. for the JA Worldwide Pioneers’ (retired executives) ‘Living History Initiative’ project in 2001. The mission is to preserve the archives and write and publish the History of JA. The archives are now housed at IUPUI (Indiana University/Purdue University/Indianapolis) in the Ruth Lilly Library. In 2004 the new JA Worldwide Archival Museum was dedicated at the global headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo. Pam serves as national co-chair for the book.”
“Faith and family are of utmost importance to Pam,” said Harris. A member of the Community Church of Greenwood, she is the mother of Dean A. Hicks (Rita), broker/owner of Century 21 Realty Group—Ruch, Hicks, Greenwood, and grandmother to Joshua A. Hicks and the late Nathaniel David Hicks.
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