FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jo Ann Lloyd
(805) 756-1511
Sheila and Yosef Tiber Awarded Cal Poly 2003 President’s Arts Award
SAN LUIS OBISPO – Generous and tireless supporters of the arts,
Sheila
Tiber and her husband, the late Yosef Tiber, have been selected to
receive the Cal Poly President’s Arts Award for 2003 in recognition
of
their significant contributions to the arts and cultural environment of
San Luis Obispo.
Yosef Tiber, a retired physician, passed away in September 2001. His
legacy, however, continues to play an essential role in drawing
high-quality arts events to the Central Coast.
Sheila Tiber remains a committed patron of the arts and dedicated
supporter of several other causes.
The President’s Arts Award will be presented during a special ceremony
on Feb. 22, before the Moscow Festival Ballet company’s performance
of
“Giselle” in Harman Hall in the Performing Arts Center.
“Sheila and Yos have provided inspiration and vision for the entire
community,” said Cal Poly President Warren J. Baker. “Their
recognition
that the arts enhance our humanity has enriched us all, and for this we
gratefully express our appreciation.”
The Tibers have been members of the Cal Poly President’s Round
Table
since 1982. In 1993, they established the Sheila and Yosef Tiber
Scholarship Fund at Cal Poly, which provides annual scholarships to
incoming and returning students. Yosef also served as a member of the
College of Liberal Arts Advisory Board.
Harry Hellenbrand, chair of the President’s Arts Award Nomination
Committee and dean of the College of Liberal Arts, said, “The Tibers
were a unanimous choice of the committee. They have done so much for Cal
Poly Arts, the Cohan Center -- the arts community in general on the
Central Coast. We all wish Yos were here to celebrate with us, but we
are with him in spirit. They are so deserving.”
The Tibers were among a handful of visionaries whose early dedication
and diligence led to the founding of the Performing Arts Center San Luis
Obispo. Yosef Tiber served on the board of the Foundation for the
Performing Arts Center from 1997 to 2001.
“Throughout their time in this community, Yosef and Sheila Tiber
have
brought passion and generosity to their many commitments, not least of
which has been the artistic and cultural life of San Luis Obispo
County,” said Warren Sinsheimer, who served with Yosef Tiber on
the
Board of Directors for the Foundation for the Performing Arts Center.
Sheila and Yosef Tiber were charter subscribers and contributors to Cal
Poly Arts, a nonprofit organization operated by Cal Poly and a major
presenter of performing arts events on the Central Coast.
“Sheila and Yos Tiber have been an unflagging source of support,
encouragement and advice since Cal Poly Arts’ inception,”
said Ralph
Hoskins, director of Cal Poly Arts. “They are the most perfect friends
an arts organization could ask for: loyal, involved, honest,
knowledgeable, generous and enthusiastic. Especially enthusiastic.”
In 1988, the Tibers traveled to Japan with the Cal Poly Wind Orchestra
(formerly the Symphonic Band), at the invitation of orchestra director
and Music Professor William Johnson. While planning the trip for the
75-member ensemble, Johnson anticipated the possibility of illness or
an
accident among the members of the group, and recalled that Yosef was a
retired physician and Sheila a former nurse.
“Our first night in Tokyo, Yosef called to inform me that one of
our
students had been injured,” Johnson said. “We went to the
hospital with
the young man. Yosef showed me the X-rays, and it was obvious that the
student would have to remain in the hospital for the remainder of the
trip. Yosef took care of all of the hospital arrangements, and three
weeks later we returned to Tokyo, picked up the young man from the
hospital, and returned home. It is people like the Tibers that you never
forget.”
They have sponsored numerous concerts and other events at both Cal Poly
and in the community. They have supported the Mozart Festival and the
San Luis Obispo Symphony for more than 25 years. Yosef Tiber served on
the symphony board.
The Tibers are longtime supporters of Cuesta College and several
community programs.
Sheila Tiber lives in San Luis Obispo.
The President’s Arts Award, established in 1988, honors a person,
family
or organization that has contributed significantly to the cultural
environment of San Luis Obispo County. Honorees are selected for their
exceptional commitment and devotion to the arts and the community.
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