[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Page 14233]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                        TRIBUTE TO JILL CHARLES

 Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, today I rise to pay tribute to a 
woman of great dedication, compassion, and courage. Jill Charles, 
Artistic Director of the Dorset Theatre Festival and a Dorset, Vermont, 
resident, will long be remembered by those whose lives she touched as 
an accomplished artist, a loving mother, a giving mentor, and a dear 
friend.
  It is our good fortune that Jill chose to bring her talent and love 
of theatre to Vermont. In 1968, she arrived in Dorset to work as an 
apprentice for Fred and Pat Carmichael's Caravan Theatre at the Dorset 
Playhouse. Subsequently, she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 
theatre from the University of Kentucky and was awarded a Master of 
Fine Arts degree in directing from Boston University. After the 
Carmichaels retired in 1976, Jill, with co-founder John Nassivera, 
established the Dorset Theatre Festival.
  Jill was well known and highly respected for her work with young 
artists and for the guidance she provided for hundreds of pre-
professional actors, designers and technicians who apprenticed under 
her direction during her twenty-six years as Dorset Theatre Festival 
Artistic Director. Her interest in the professional growth and 
emotional well-being of each member of the company was repeatedly 
reflected in her attention to matters large and small, and in countless 
acts of personal support and kindness.
  A woman whose compassion and respect for others extended beyond her 
professional endeavors in the theatre, Jill was dedicated to her 
community and to the many humanitarian interests that she held dear. 
She was a dedicated foster parent for many years, and remained in 
contact with those children to whom she provided a home. She also was 
actively involved with the Second Chance Animal Shelter in Bennington, 
Project Pave (a support group for abused women), Race for the Cure, and 
the Dorset Congregational Church choir. She was also a founding member 
of the Cantare a capella singing group in Dorset.
  The arts and humanities are a powerful force in bringing us together, 
in stretching our horizons, and in improving the quality of our lives. 
Jill Charles embodied the gifts of the arts and humanities. She will be 
greatly missed, but her presence will continue to be felt as her touch 
ripples outward like the action of a pebble tossed in a pond.

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