Roanoke College, Hollins University announce winners of 40th annual Kendig Awards

Local muralist Jon Murrill ’09, the Roanoke Cultural Endowment and Charles Price, former longtime board president of the Harrison Museum of African American Culture, are this year’s recipients of the Perry F. Kendig Awards. 

The awards, which have been co-sponsored by Hollins University and Roanoke College for 13 years, are meant to recognize the people and organizations that support the arts in the greater Roanoke region. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Kendig Awards. 

Kerry Edmonds, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Hollins University, joined Roanoke College President Frank Shushok Jr. to present the awards during a ceremony in Olin Hall Galleries on Oct. 14. John Carlin, anchor for WSLS 10 and vice president for institutional advancement at Center in the Square, was the event’s emcee. 

“It’s a privilege to host the 40th anniversary of the Kendig Awards alongside our long-standing partners of Hollins. Together, our institutions affirm the central role of arts and education in shaping the character and community of Virginia’s Blue Ridge,” Shushok said. 

Murrill received the Individual Artist Award. A graduate of Roanoke College and Radford University, Murrill is known for the larger-than-life works of public art he has created across the Roanoke Valley and beyond. He currently works as a professional muralist and holds the role of the City of Roanoke’s Muralist in Residence. 

Murrill is nearing the end of his most recent project: painting a mural on all four sides of the community space at Roanoke College’s Maroon Village. He recruited student volunteers to join him during the process, allowing them to learn spray paint techniques and even help create the mural. He is also giving a lecture on public art in Olin Hall at 5 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 24 that is open to the general public. 

“My roots are in education, so there’s a really special place in my heart for shared experiences,” Murrill said. “Awards like this really mean a lot because it shows that people are noticing the excitement and encouragement we have on public art.” 

Edmonds and Shushok then presented Charles Price with this year’s Individual or Business Arts Supporter Award. Price served as the board president of the Harrison Museum for nearly 20 years and is still on its board, working to enhance its exhibitions and ensure that it keeps its status as a “vital educational and cultural resource,” Carlin said. Price has served on many other boards, including those for the Roanoke Higher Education Center, Total Action for Progress and Center in the Square. Price received extended applause and a standing ovation from the audience. 

"A leader with vision and humility, he’s worked tirelessly to preserve history, mentor young people and bring the community together through the arts,” Carlin said.  

The Roanoke Cultural Endowment, a nonprofit community endowment comprised of funds from both the City of Roanoke and private sources, was presented with the Arts and Culture Organization Award. The endowment was formed in 2015 by way of a resolution from the Roanoke City Council. Its goal is to raise $20 million for an endowment that will serve as a permanent source of funding for arts and cultural nonprofits in the region. It has currently raised around $8 million. 

“This award is really an award that belongs to everybody in this room. We exist to lift up the arts and cultural organizations in Roanoke, and to be sure they are here for another 40 years, and in perpetuity after that,” said Nancy Gray, board member for the Roanoke Cultural Endowment and president emerita of Hollins University.  

The Kendig Awards are named for Perry F. Kendig, Roanoke College's seventh president and an advocate for the arts. Four members of the Kendig family—Louisa Kendig Adkins ’10, Beth Kendig Alexander, John G. Kendig and Bill C. Kendig ’80—were presented Legacy Awards. 

Elizabeth Hall McDonnell, Hollins University Trustee Emerita, and Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo '78 were honored with the Horizon Award, a special recognition created for the 40th anniversary. This award is given to individuals whose support for the arts extends beyond the Roanoke region but still has a significant impact close to home. 

McDonnell was only at Hollins for two years before she left to study drama and art in Florence, Italy, but she has remained an avid supporter of the university. She and her husband James McDonnell III made a gift to help fund necessary renovations in the Hollins Little Theatre, which is now dedicated to the couple. Additionally, she endowed a faculty chair in the theater program and two visiting professional artist positions.  

Cassullo is a longstanding trustee of Roanoke College, where she has established the Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo Professorship in Art History and the Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo Center for Art. She also facilitated the arrival of visiting artists and new artwork on campus, and she has been recognized as a Lifetime Distinguished Associate, a member of the President’s Advisory Board and a recipient of the Roanoke College Medal.  

The Hollins University Talmadge Singers performed at the conclusion of the award ceremony.  

This year’s nominees for the Individual Artist Award also included Linda Atkinson, Samuel Reed Carter IV, Bryce Cobbs, Aaron Matthew Garber, Lee Hunsaker, Tom Landon, Gina Louthian-Stanley, William Penn, Sue Steele Thomas and Margaret Sue Turner Wright.  

The nominees for the Individual or Business Arts Supporter Award also included Cyrus Pace, Cindy Petersen, Bobby Sandel and Dorsey Taylor. 

The nominees for the Arts and Culture Organization Award also included the Center for Studying Structures of Race at Roanoke College, Dusk/Dawn Productions, Five Points Music Foundation, Grandin Theatre and Showtimers of Roanoke Valley.