In its 20th year in operation, the Avalon Foundation has grown to become the largest arts non-profit organization on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, and has contributed to an active and vibrant community that you’d expect to find in a city much larger than the Town of Easton.  For such a small-town place, there’s always something going on here in Easton to make it such an active and vibrant community.

During the warm season, the Avalon Foundation ventures beyond the doors of the Avalon Theatre to provide outdoor events and celebrations that dot the Easton spring and summer calendars. Maybe you attended the Multicultural Festival in early May, or browsed local artists’ work at the Arts in Easton Banner Auction later that month.  Perhaps you took your kids to Easton’s Carnival & 4th of July Celebration, or purchased a piece from the 10th annual Plein Air Easton Arts Festival and Competion.  Purchased produce from the Farmers’ Market one sunny Saturday?  Brought your lawn chair and took in a free outdoor concert on Harrison Street?  Not only are these all the work of the Avalon Foundation, these are the passions of Suzy Moore, the Avalon Foundation’s House Manager for nearly 12 years, who you would have undoubtedly met at one of these events.

One of the hardest-working (and boundlessly energetic) employees of the Foundation, Suzy Moore, was recently awarded the key to the Town of Easton for all she does in making our community such a lively place to be. In his statement awarding her the key to the Town at an event during Plein Air, Mayor Robert C. Willey recognized the many outstanding contributions that Suzy has made in improving the quality of life in Easton.

“For more than a decade, you have worked tirelessly to build year-round arts programming of the highest caliber,” Mayor Willey said. “You have been responsible for countless concerts, brought the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD to Easton, and built an outreach program that ensures that students from Talbot County Public Schools have an in-Theatre experience.”  Underscoring her contributions to growing Plein Air-Easton into be the largest outdoor painting competition in the country, the Mayor thanked Suzy for being a “trusted friend of this Town and its residents.”

“Although Suzy may have been quite surprised by this honor, nobody else was,” said Al Bond, Executive Director of the Avalon Foundation. “If anything, considering how long and how well she has contributed to the life our community, many of us believe such recognition is long overdue.”

“I am so fortunate to have grown up on the Eastern Shore and after I left the area for 13 years, it was great to come back and see how my community had grown”, said Suzy.  “The Avalon Theatre was a big part of my life as I went on my first official date at the theatre when it was a movie house. The transformation that happened during my time away was striking.  Downtown Easton had become a bustling town with a great performing arts venue and many excellent restaurants and businesses to make it the vibrant town that it is today. This fall it will be 12 years that I have been a part of that and I feel so proud of the work that we do at the Avalon Foundation, from presenting world class performers on the Avalon stage to the free summer concerts on the streets to the 2,000 public school students that we bus in for our Outreach program. I am so proud to be part of the fantastic and hardworking crew at the Avalon Foundation and it brings me great joy to bring the arts to the community that I love so very much. Having my hard work and passion acknowledged by Mayor Willey and the Town of Easton is a great honor and makes me want to do even greater things. Stay tuned!”

The Avalon Foundation would not be the tremendous success it is today without the hard work and passion that Suzy shows every day.  We could not be happier for her and her achievement, and the next time you see her, be sure to congratulate her on such a great achievement.  Way to go Suzy!

*photo credit to Attraction Magazine