Lorene Harrison | |
---|---|
Born | Lorene Cuthbertson 1905
Sterling, Kansas, United States |
Died | 2005
Anchorage, Alaska, United States |
Nationality | American |
Occupation(s) | Singer Milliner Educator |
Lorene Harrison (1905–2005) was an American educator, singer, choir director, and milliner. In 2009, she was inaugurated into the Alaska Women's Hall of Fame. [1]
Lorene Cuthbertson was born in 1905 in Sterling, Kansas and attended Sterling College. [2] [3] In 1928, she relocated to Anchorage, Alaska to teach music and home economics. [2] She married Jack Harrison, a railroad engineer, in 1930, in Estes Park, Colorado and the couple had two children: Carol Anne and Peggy. [2] She sang frequently, performing at private and public events like weddings and funerals. [3]
Harrison raised her children and taught music and theater and privately tutored singers. [2] [3] After Jack died in 1968, Harrison opened her own boutique in Anchorage, called Hat Box which sold women's clothing and hats. [2] She designed her own hats and she operated the store for 30 years. During World War II, Harrison worked with the United Service Organizations (USO). [3] Ruth M. Jefford played violin in the USO orchestra, after being recruited by Harrison. [4] At the war's end, Harrison started the United Choir of all Faiths which evolved into the Anchorage Community Chorus. [2] [3] She worked with the Anchorage Concert Association, Anchorage Symphony Orchestra, and the Anchorage Opera. As a promoter of music and performer she worked with Eugene Ormandy, Leonard Bernstein, Marilyn Horne, George Szell, Van Cliburn, Fred Waring, and Isaac Stern. [3]
The Alaska Center for the Performing Arts named a lobby in Harrison's honor in 1988. During her later years, Harrison lived in the Anchorage Pioneer Home. [2] In 2000, she co-authored a biography with Dianne Barske titled, Mostly Music: The Biography of Alaskan Cultural Pioneer Lorene Harrison, which was written by Dianne Barske. [5] Before her death, a gala was held in her honor at the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts. [3] She died in 2005. She is buried in the Pioneer Tract area of the Anchorage Memorial Park. [2] In 2009, she was inaugurated into the Alaska Women's Hall of Fame. [1]
In 2001, the Anchorage Cultural Council instituted an award named in her honor, which it bestows for lifetime achievements in the arts. Harrison was its first recipient. [6]