The Elizabeth O'Neill Verner Awards

The board of the South Carolina Arts Commission is pleased to announce the 2008 recipients of the Elizabeth O'Neill Verner Awards, the official Governor's Awards for the Arts. These annual awards recognize outstanding achievement and contributions to the arts in South Carolina, and are the highest honor the state gives in the arts. The honorees, in their categories, are:

• Arts in Education – Roy S. Fluhrer, Greenville
• Arts Organization – Arts Council of Greenwood County, Greenwood
• Government – Jay Hodge, Cheraw
• Individual – Kwame Dawes, Elgin
• Individual Artist – Jill Eathorne Bahr, Charleston
• Business – First Citizens Bank, Columbia
• Lifetime Achievement – John Jakes, Hilton Head

The awards will be presented during a special ceremony in Columbia Wednesday, April 16, followed by an awards luncheon at the Columbia Marriott Hotel. The benefit luncheon is presented the S.C. Arts Foundation and sponsored by Carolina First.