Howard B. and Mary Anne Fedrick “Friend of the Arts” Award

 

Manny and Sue Pons, of Wilkes-Barre, have been named winners of the 2025  Howard B. and Mary Anne Fedrick Friend of the Arts Award,”  by the Board of Directors of the Fine Arts Fiesta.

Initiated in 1997 by board member, the late Howard B. Fedrick, the “Friend of the Arts Award” is designed to honor an individual or organization for their longstanding commitment and/or generous support of the Fine Arts Fiesta in addition to their general contributions to the cultural and artistic life of the local and regional community.

For the past 30 years Mr. and Mrs. Pons have served as volunteers and have been generous supporters and sponsors of The Fine Arts Fiesta. Mr. Pons served on the Board of Directors for more than 10 years.  In addition to Manny’s support of Fiesta, he has overseen construction on art galleries and as an engineer and architect, he has taken great interest in preserving historical homes in the region that reflect our history and culture in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Mr. and Mrs. Pons also are great supporters of the Northeastern Philharmonic and participate with various choral groups locally.  Manny and Sue Pons exemplify a commitment to the importance of community engagement in the arts and its value to enriching our community.  The Board of Directors thank Mr. and Mrs. Pons for their outstanding contributions to the arts and the Fine Arts Fiesta.

Fine Arts Fiesta Howard B. and Mary Anne Fedrick Friend of the Arts Past Award Winners

1997 Ken Marquis

1998 Kevin and Helen McDonald

1998 Al Groh

1999 Ruth B. Schooley

2000 Dr. Robert S. Anderson

2001 Roger Lacy

2002 William Hogan Sr. and Sons

2003 Murray Popky

2004 Lee Vincent

2005 Wyoming Valley Art League

2006 The City of Wilkes-Barre and Pat McHugh

2007 The Little Theatre of Wilkes-Barre

2008 Tom and Dorothy Womelsdorf & Family

2009 Alan and Robert Finley

2010 The Osterhout Free Library and Brian J. Benedetti

2011 Mary Ellen Fowler, Flossie The Fiesta Clown

2012 Charles Barber/The Luzerne Foundation

2013 Irem Shrine Stewards and Dorothy Carr (posthumously)

2014 David, Natalia, and Julia Kerr

2015 Micky Nieman

2016 Gina Prokop-Malsky and Jane Lampe Groh (posthumously)

2017 Willian and Esther Davidowitz

2018 The Sordoni Family

2019 Irene Muldoon

2020 Debbie Grossman

2021 Joel Zitofsky

2022 Gus Genetti Jr. and Eileen Carlin Halsey (posthumously)

2023 The Maslow Family Foundation

2024 Susan Najaka Braden

2025 Manny and Sue Pons

2025 Mary Anne Fedrick (posthumously)