AWARDS

About Maureen: Maureen M. Patton is the Executive Director of The Grand 1894 Opera House, the official Opera House of the State of Texas in the historic city of Galveston, TX.  She oversees The Grand’s administration, programming, and fundraising, including the initial $2.2 million capital campaign (1986), the Centennial Campaign ($2.75 million of 1994), and a recent campaign that raised almost $7 million in contributions and pledges (2008). In the midst of the latter campaign, she found herself guiding a significantly damaged theatre after Hurricane Ike tore through the Island. The Grand’s 2008 early reopening, which received national media attention, served as an economic catalyst for the Island as well as an emotional inspiration for Galvestonians. Mrs. Patton holds a B.A. degree in Music and a Master’s Degree in Music Theory and Composition. Before assuming her present position, Mrs. Patton was a voice instructor and director of opera workshop programs at Midwestern University and Galveston College in addition to performing extensively as a soloist. She actively works with many community-building organizations and has served or is currently on the boards of the Galveston Chamber of Commerce, Galveston Park Board Tourism Committee, Galveston Rotary Club, and many more local and regional organizations. Mrs. Patton is a past president of the Board of the League of Historic American Theatres (LHAT) and an LHAT Board Emeritus Member, as well as a governing member of the Board of the Southwest Performing Arts Presenters (SWPAP). She has served and/or is currently serving on the Arts Review Panels for the Texas Commission on the Arts and the Mid-America Arts Alliance, as well as the Cultural Arts Council of Houston, and received the first League of Historic American Theatres Annual Outstanding Individual Contribution Award. With her extensive background in the not-for-profit arena, she offers a unique perspective not only as a grantee but as a thoughtful grantor.