- ArtsQuest held its annual Linny Awards on Thursday, Nov. 9
- Ten people were recognized including percussionist Pablo Bastisa and Dr. Lee Riley of St. Luke's University Health Network
- The awards are presented by ArtsQuest to distinguished individuals from the region for their longtime commitment and dedication to the arts
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — As a teen, percussionist Pablo Batista recalls saving his money to buy salsa records from a family-owned shop on Third Street.
"Most of the money that I made, I'd take it to Ralph Cleaners, which used to be on Third Street," Batista said. "In the back, they used to sell music from New York... salsa artists like Celia Cruz, Tito Puente, Ray Barreto. I was also super excited to see the cover art and liner notes. That was the beginning of my passion for playing."
Performing artist of the year
Batista, the winner of the Performing Artist of the Year Linny Award, was among 10 locals and businesses that were honored on Thursday during a ceremony at ArtsQuest.
The awards are presented by ArtsQuest to distinguished individuals from the region for their longtime commitment and dedication to the arts.
Over the years, Basita, who has been afflicted with retinitis pigmentosa since his early 20s and is legally blind, has recorded on Grammy-winning albums and worked with artists such as Alicia Keys, Manny Oquendo and Libre, Jill Scott, Patti LaBelle, Teddy Pendergrass.
The Puerto Rican maestro also slayed his drum set when he opened for salsa legends El Gran Combo at Musikfest's 40th celebration in August.
"I'm really proud to represent Latinos when I perform. This award is important because I was born and raised here. I never dreamed that this city would grow to be this beautiful and developed," Batista said.
"When I was growing up, there was no arts and culture in Bethlehem. Now it's probably one of the most amazing places for music in the East Coast. Musikfest is an amazing festival, and to participate, for me, it's really significant since I was born and raised on the South Side."
Honoring legacies
Dr. Lee Riley received the Visual Artist of the Year award and spoke about how his late grandmother, Evelyn, inspired him.
Evelyn, who created elaborate works using pastels and watercolors, had studied at the Philadelphia Art Academy and Chicago University, along with working alongside artists in Mexico.
"I had lived with her for a couple of years when I was young, but never knew she was an artist. When she passed there were a couple of pieces of her work around the house. There were six cousins and we all wanted a piece of her work. That's when I decided I wanted to make something for my daughters."
Riley, who works at St. Luke’s Cancer Center, started creating art with his wife after a run-in with the late Marlene "Linny" Fowler.
"I met Linny through a fundraising event here in the South Side and I would have never known the Banana Factory was anything other than a banana factory. It was after that charity event that I came up with the idea that I wanted to make something for my daughters," Riley said.
The Linny Awards are named after Fowler, who was an artist and philanthropist, and one of the largest donors to ArtsQuest.
"When I was growing up, there was no arts and culture in Bethlehem. Now it's probably one of the most amazing places for music in the East Coast."Percussionist Pablo Batista
Other winners of the night
Also at the Linny Award ceremony: Liberty High School senior Isabelle Morales received the Student Artist Scholarship Award and Beth McFadden received the Arts Educator of the Year Award.
Morales attended the ceremony with her mother, who beamed with pride as her daughter posed with her shiny award on the red carpet.
"My mom has stressed the importance of going to college because neither my father nor her ever were able to go. She really regrets not getting an education, so it matters to me to get this scholarship," said Morales, who plans on attending Moore College of Art and Design.
Barb and the late Jack Yaissle received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Jack Yaissle, a Lehigh University alumnus, founded Cornerstone Financial Consultants. He died in 2020 after a 14-month battle with brain cancer.
The couple volunteered and supported local charities such as ArtsQuest, ArtsQuest Foundation, Lehigh University and St. Thomas More Church in Allentown.
Barb Yaissle, who graduated from Pottsville Hospital School of Nursing, said ArtsQuest has helped the community in many ways.
Chuck and Cindy Yeoman were the recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award, volunteer category. The couple has resided in Williams Township since 1992. The couple spent many years as volunteers with the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts, with Chuck Yeoman as a Scoutmaster and Eagle Scout Coach and Cindy Yeoman as a Den and Pack Leader.
Over the years, Cindy Yeoman also volunteered with ArtsQuest as an usher, as a ticket taker, with festival set up/take down, with beer tapping and as a stagehand. Chuck Yeoman is a board member of the Friends of Levitt Pavilion at SteelStacks and an ArtsQuest volunteer.
Brenda and John McGlade, received the Philanthropy in the Arts award and split their time between Bethlehem and Marco Island, Florida. The McGlades are longtime supporters of the arts, including ArtsQuest (John McGlade was an ArtsQuest Foundation Trustee), the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, Zoellner Arts Center, Community Music School and Artist Naples in Naples, FL.
Boyle Construction, which has been in construction management in the Lehigh Valley since 1977, received the Business Supporter of the Arts award.
Its Building Better Together Committee invests in local organizations, such as ArtsQuest, that help support people in the community where employees, customers and partners live, work and play.
Looking ahead
Any individual, business or community group interested in nominating a person for the Linny Awards can do so at www.artsquestfoundation.org/linnyawards.
Winners will be selected by the ArtsQuest’s Performing Arts Board, Visual Arts Board and the ArtsQuest Foundation Board of Trustees and are announced in July.
Proceeds from the Linny Awards go to support the nonprofit ArtsQuest Foundation, which Fowler helped found in 2003.
The foundation is focused on supporting and strengthening the long-term sustainability of ArtsQuest, the nonprofit that presents Musikfest and more than 4,000 other programs, events and educational classes annually in the Lehigh Valley.
