TACA To Honor Three at April 25 Silver Cup Award Luncheon

Sharon Young and Stephen B.L. Penrose will be honored April 25 at a luncheon presented by The Arts Community Alliance as this year’s 46th TACA Silver Cup Award recipients.

TACA also will present a special Tribute Award to Morton H. Meyerson, recognizing his decades-long legacy of support for the arts in Dallas.

“We’re thrilled to announce that Sharon and Steve will be recognized at the TACA Silver Cup luncheon for their exceptional dedication to our arts community in Dallas,” Maura Sheffler, TACA’s Donna Wilhelm Family president & executive director, said in a statement. “Both honorees exemplify a selfless spirit of giving to arts organizations and artists and we are all beneficiaries of their steadfast support.”

Co-chairs for the luncheon are Lindsay Billingsley and Marguerite Hoffman. The event will take place at the Omni Dallas Hotel.

“I’m honored to be co-chairing this event alongside Marguerite Hoffman,” Billingsley said. “No one is more deserving of this award than Sharon Young, who is unwavering in her support of the arts and gives back to the arts community with passion, heart, and a well-thought-out strategy. Sharon is a relationship builder who wakes up each day with a clear vision and great hope for the future. I love Sharon dearly and am thankful to call her my mentor and friend,”

“Steve is the ultimate humble and effective arts board member who’s sought after for his strong work ethic and savvy financial acumen,” Diane Brierley, 2004 Silver Cup luncheon honoree, said. “Steve is known for his quiet generosity and support for a wide range of organizations that include the Dallas Opera, the Dallas Theater Center, the Dallas Zoo, the Fine Arts Chamber, CASA and a host of others. It’s been my privilege to work on boards with Steve and to be able to call him a friend. I’m thrilled that he will be recognized by TACA with this much-deserved recognition.”  

Rare TACA Tribute Award to be presented to Morton H. Meyerson

The TACA Tribute Award is given selectively and at the discretion of the Silver Cup Selection Committee, which is composed of past Silver Cup honorees.

The award is given to honor a person whose lifelong commitment and generosity to the arts is exceptional, but who does not otherwise qualify for the Silver Cup Award itself.

Since the Silver Cup Award’s founding by Annette Strauss in 1979, it has been bestowed only a handful of times, most recently to former Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings in 2019 while he still held elected office.

“Few have made more lasting contributions to the arts in Dallas than Mort Meyerson,” 2023 Silver Cup Luncheon honoree Joe Hubach said. “His decades-long legacy is most visible in our world-class symphony hall that bears his name in the Dallas Arts District. Mort worked tirelessly to pursue his vision, collaborating with city officials and acclaimed architect I.M. Pei and acoustician Russell Johnson to design a venue recognized the world over and enjoyed by so many today. More recently, Mort has led DSO search committees, including the effort that secured the renowned, current conductor Fabio Luisi. He remains a major counselor and contributor to the Dallas arts and culture landscape to this day, and I’m proud he is receiving the TACA Tribute Award.”

Trustee and advisor to DMA, Booker T. Washington High School, and Nasher Sculpture Center

Young co-founded Quadrant Capital Partners Inc., a real estate investment firm, along with her husband, Michael.

She’s been involved in the arts community in Dallas for more than 20 years, serving as a trustee at the Dallas Museum of Art; as a member of the advisory board of Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts; and of the Nasher Sculpture Center’s program advisory council.

TACA said her service at the Dallas Museum of Art has included chairing the Art Ball and TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art and serving on multiple DMA committees. At Booker T. Washington, Young co-chaired the opening fundraiser of the newly renovated and expanded building, served on the school’s advisory committee for 12 years, and was a co-founder of Flyinghorse, the annual talent showcase and fundraiser.

Currently, Young serves as the chair of the Program Advisory Council at the Nasher Sculpture Center and is a former co-chair of the Nasher Prize. Previously, she served on the Planned Parenthood North Texas board, as treasurer and chair of the Administrative Management Committee.

Long-time board member for Dallas Opera

Penrose retired from Exxon Mobil Corp., where he spent 33 years in financial and general management roles in corporate affiliates in the United States and abroad.

A lifelong supporter of the arts, Penrose is a member of the boards of the Dallas Opera, which he has served as treasurer (2017-2023) and chair of the Audit Committee (2015-2017); the Dallas Theater Center Endowment Fund, which he served as board president; the Dallas Opera Foundation; the Presbyterian Village North Foundation; the Dallas Zoological Society, which he served as treasurer (2009-2018); and Dallas CASA, a nonprofit agency advocating for abused and neglected children in the Dallas court system, which he served as treasurer (2007-2010, 2012-2018) and board chair (2010-2011).

He has served as a trustee of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra since 2013.

National leader in computers with a love of music

Meyerson credits his success to the work ethic, principles, and love of music instilled by his parents.

A third-generation Texan whose family immigrated from Eastern Europe in the 1890s, he was the first college graduate in his family, earning a B.A. in economics and philosophy from The University of Texas at Austin.

Meyerson trained in the emerging field of computer software in the U.S. Army, which served as the foundation for his successful career as a national leader in IT and computer integration. During his tenure with H. Ross Perot’s EDS, he rose from a systems engineer trainee to president and vice president of the company.

He later served as General Motors’ chief technology officer and chair, president, and CEO of Perot Systems.

He is a trustee of The Morton H. Meyerson Family Foundation and continues his pursuit of tzedakah, the Hebrew word for the just and righteous giving required of Jews.

Meyerson is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, a member of The Philosophical Society of Texas, and a Legend in the Texas Business Hall of Fame. He has served on many governing boards, including as chair of the building committee of the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center.

Since its founding in 1967, TACA has worked to establish North Texas’ cultural community as one of the strongest in the nation.