April 9, 2003

BIRMINGHAM, AL — The second annual Alys Robinson Stephens Patron of the Arts Award was presented April 5 to Wyatt Rushton Haskell, founding member of the law firm of Haskell Slaughter Young & Rediker.

Alys Stephens Center Executive Director Caron Thornton presented the award during the center’s annual Starlight Gala. The honor is given to a person who has made a significant contribution to the arts in Birmingham and specifically to the Alys Stephens Center. This newly established annual tradition aims to honor the spirit of the center’s namesake and inaugural patron, Alys Robinson Stephens, a strong and caring woman known for her love and devotion to the arts, said Thornton.

“As we reviewed our relatively short history, one person rose above all others, Wyatt Rushton Haskell,” Thornton said. “From the beginning, Wyatt has continuously made major contributions to the center. He worked diligently to secure the great collaboration we now have with the Birmingham Music Club, and has made persistent efforts to build dynamic relationships with the Chamber Music Society, the Alabama Ballet, Alabama Symphony Orchestra, the Folger Library and the Alabama Shakespeare Festival.”

Haskell is the chair of the Alys Stephens Center Advisory Board. He has served actively on the fundraising and sponsorship committees and has been the presenting sponsor of several performances. He has hosted performances in his home and assisted with endowment efforts.

Haskell also has been an active member of many civic arts positions in addition to the Alys Stephens Center, including the Board of Trustees of the Birmingham Museum of Art, the Board of Directors of the Alabama Symphonic Association, the Alabama Ballet, the Birmingham Music Club, the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, and the Trustees’ Committee of the Folger Shakespeare Library, Washington, D.C.

He is a “lifetime member” of the UAB Presidents Society, a member of the Friends of UAB Legislative Network and a Fellow of Trinity College, University of Oxford, England.