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| Emeritus |
Emeritus Honorary
Members of the Symphony Board
The Emeritus category of Board membership
recognizes and honors individuals who, through
long involvement, propelled the Symphony to new
levels of artistic quality, community presence,
and organizational resilience. Though no longer
actively serving on the Board, their impact
remains strong.
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From the
November 2010
concert program
Paul and
Marjory Vickery
Paul Vickery
served as medic
in a surgical
team during
World War II. On
his return, he
became a student
at SMU. There,
fellow student
Marjory noticed
him in the
library one day
and accidently
dropped a book
in his path.
Unknown to her,
he had noticed
her a few days
before, dressed
in an eye
catching tennis
outfit and was
very willing to
pick it up. They
lived happily
ever after for
the next 63
years. “Darn
expensive book,
though,” was
Paul’s
afterthought.
Marjory would
just smile
inscrutably.
Paul and his
father founded a
company that
eventually
became the
biggest
distributor of
floor coverings
in the
southwest. He
passed away in
August this
year. Marjory
put her passion
into education.
She was the
first woman to
be elected to
the Board of
Trustees for
LISD leaving
quite a few
local good ole
boys wondering
how they let
that happen. She
was also the
first woman to
be elected to
the Texas State
Board of
Education on the
Republican
ticket. Her work
is acknowledged
in the name of
the Vickery
Elementary
School in Flower
Mound
Both were
fervent
supporters of
the Symphony
with both
financial help
and with hard
work as
volunteers.
Marjory is a
past Chair of
the Symphony
Board.
Leland
Mebine
At a recent arts
awards meeting,
Leland Mebine
was seated next
to a boy around
four years old.
It was one of
those events
where grownups
drone on for
hours and days
and weeks. To
relieve the
boredom, the boy
silently built a
throne of hymn
books on his pew
that, by the
last award, had
truly impressive
height and
enabled him to
see between the
grownup heads
blocking his
view. Upon
leaving, Leland,
now 97, gravely
shook the
youngster’s
hand. Leland
respects
creativity and,
anyway, may have
slipped him a
hymnbook or two.
The boy solemnly
shook back. Not
every day, do
you shake hands
with somebody
who worked as a
biochemist for
NASA and became
Deputy Assistant
Secretary of the
Air Force, the
civilian
equivalent to a
3-star general.
Leland and his
wife Mary were
avid supporters
of the Symphony.
Mary served as
Chair of the
Symphony’s board
and was a
dynamic
fundraiser.
Leland is no
longer an active
volunteer. "When
I became 90," he
says, "I gave up
all my positions
because I
thought younger
people should
have the
opportunity to
do these
things.”
He still attends
Lewisville Lake
Symphony
performances,
paints with what
is now 30 years
of
post-retirement
experience, is
an agile
correspondent
via Facebook and
Skype and three
mornings a week
goes to the Y to
exercise
Lee Vander
Waal
Lee Vander Waal
came across as
an open,
cheerful
salesman. People
did not always
notice that he
was a lot more
astute than he
liked to imply.
Like any really
good salesman he
was a shrewd
judge of what
makes people
tick. That made
him the
Symphony’s
master talent
scout. Just
about any
volunteer who
has been working
with the
Symphony for a
while will say
Lee talked them
into joining
with arguments
that gradually
moved from
persuasive to
irresistible. He
also used his
business skills
to cajole the
organization
into adopting a
more viable
structure and
smarter
budgeting.
Symphony’s
musicians are
paid
professionals
while the
volunteers who
run the business
and operations
side are unpaid.
Lee helped
ensure the
volunteers’
efforts were
recognized and
business, once
completed, often
turned into
enjoyable social
gatherings. The
Board decided to
raise a glass to
Lee and vote him
in as the only
Emeritus
Honorary member
to be chosen
posthumously.
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