Zoe Talbert Award

The Zoe Talbert Award is designated to honor a WSL Past President of Keynote status (a member with 25 years or more in the WSL) who has served in one or more of the following capacities: WSL Ball Chairman, ETSO President, TASO President, served as a member of ASOL Volunteer Council, served as a member of the Texas Commission on the Arts, and continues to participate in leadership roles to promote symphonic music and music education.

ZOE TALBERT AWARD

Laura Hyde
2008 Recipient

The Women’s Symphony League of Tyler recently honored Laura Hyde with the Zoe Talbert Award. In 2002, an award was established to recognize a WSL Past President with 25 years of service or more that had chaired various committees on a local, state, and national level. The award was named for Zoe Talbert, one of the 1955 charter members of the Women’s Symphony League.

Laura Hyde is a tireless volunteer who continues to provide outstanding service, support and promotion of symphony orchestras on the local, state and national level. Laura joined the Women’s Symphony League of Tyler in 1982. She was the 1996-1997 President of the league. She has served as Vice-President of membership, administration, and social activities. Laura has also chaired the fall fundraiser, ball underwriting, and style show.

Laura served as Secretary of the East Texas Symphony Orchestra Association Executive Board. She was also a director of ETSOA.

At the state level, Laura has represented Tyler on the Texas Association for Symphony Orchestra’s Board of Directors. She served as TASO President, Vice-President, conference chair, and delegate.

In addition, Laura currently represents Tyler on a national level as a member of the Volunteer Council for the League of American Orchestras.

Recipients of this prestigious award have their names placed on a perpetual plaque and are honored at the WSL Ball.

Recipients of the Zoe Talbert Award:

Mildred Witte
2005-06
Local Level – Women’s Symphony League

• By-Law Chairman and Long Range Planning
• Season Ticket Sales Chair and Kinderkonzert Chair
• President-Elect and President 1988-89
• Instituted a “Placement “ program
• Instituted “Active” and “Associate” membership
• Season Ticket Sales Chair – won ASOL Season Ticket Sales Campaign “Red Hot Season” –only “sold out” year for ETSO
• A financial supporter of the East Texas Symphony Orchestra through the annual fund
• Chaired the Season Ticket Sales for the second time in 2001-2002

She joined the Board of Directors of the East Texas Symphony Orchestra Association in 1987.

State Level - She joined TASO in 1987 as the delegate from the WSL of Tyler.

• By-laws Chair
• TASO Conference Chair 1993-94
• President of TASO 1994-95
• Underwriting for Juanita Miller State Youth Competition 2001 and advisory member of the TASO board
• Supervised and aided her daughter in the design and activation of the TASO website last year
• Appointed to the Texas Commission of the Arts by Governor Rick Perry in 2001 to serve for a period of 6 years.
• Artistic Advisory Chairman for North East Texas

National Level - She was nominated and elected to the Volunteer Council of the American Symphony Orchestra League in 1993 and served through 2001.

• Editor of the newsletter “The Recorder”
• Chair of the Education and Program Committee for the Volunteer Conference Track of the 1999 ASOL Conference in Washington, D.C.
• Chaired the Symphony Store for ASOL Conference
• She continues her leadership role by mentoring several leagues/guilds in southeast Texas and Louisiana within ASOL Mentoring Program.

She has held numerous leadership roles in many civic associations in Tyler. During all her volunteer activities through the years, she has been married to Tyler periodontist, Doug Witte and raised SIX children.