Heather Beal-Himes

Outstanding Working Artist

Heather is a dancer, choreographer, actress, director, and curator who received her B.A. in dance from Columbia College Chicago and her MFA in Dance from Washington University in St. Louis. She is a certified Dunham Technique Instructor. She has toured worldwide teaching and performing Dunham Technique. She has performed in many productions at The Black Rep and several productions at the St. Louis MUNY. She has choreographed Eubie, Ragtime, The Musical (American Stage), Dontrell, Who Kissed The Sea (Nebraska Rep) Feeding Beatrice (The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis), First Date (University of Southern Indiana), Ain’t Misbehavin’, The Me Nobody Knows, Rivers of Women, Le Freak C’est Chic, Purlie, and Dreamgirls (The Black Rep). She is best known for her work #triggerwarning and Black AF, a dance critique of police brutality against Black folx in America.

Elizabeth Mannen Berges

Major Contributor to the Arts

Elizabeth is the lead trustee for the Berges Family Foundation (BFF). As such, her desire is for St. Louisans and its visitors to benefit from diverse, high-quality, and distinctive arts experiences and creative learning opportunities. BFF funds organizations that demonstrate excellence in the arts, create strong community connections, and enable arts learning for young people with lasting and measurable impact.

Elizabeth’s other charitable pursuits are co-chairing the Brickline Greenway Campaign, as a trustee of the St. Louis Symphony, and as a trustee of the BJH Board.

Shawna Flanigan

Outstanding Teaching Artist

Shawna is the Artistic Director of Theatre at COCA (Center of Creative Arts) and oversees theatre education, productions, visual art education, exhibitions, and the intersections between art forms. Since joining COCA in 2001, she has been engaged in many areas of COCA’s programming, creating community collaborations and spearheading new initiatives. She wrote the curriculum in both theatre and visual art and leads teaching for those areas. During her tenure, Flanigan has produced over 40 theatrical productions and directed eight plays with multi-generational casts for COCApresents, COCA’s signature performance series. She has presented at four national arts education conferences and served on panels across the country. In addition to her role at COCA, Shawna is adjunct faculty at East Central College, where she has taught for four years. She earned a BA in Theatre from Knox College and an MFA in Directing from
DePaul University.

meridith mckinley

Outstanding Arts Professional

Meridith is co-founder of Via Partnership, a St. Louis‐ based consulting group that develops comprehensive public art strategies and facilitates public art projects. Meridith’s involvement in public art grew out of her deep interest in how the arts can build community and how public policy can ensure the sustainability of the arts. With her extensive experience in strategic planning, community engagement, and curation, Meridith has worked with communities across the United States and Canada to develop public art plans and create new public art programs and has commissioned award-winning public art for public and private clients. She is also a frequent speaker on contemporary public art practice — including presentations at TedXStLouis, Americans for the Arts, the National Parks and Recreation Association, and the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis – and was a co-convener of the international conference Monument/Anti-Monument. She serves on the board of Laumeier Sculpture Park.

Luisa Otero-Prada

Community Impact Artist

Luisa is a visual artist based in St Louis, MO since 2004. Drawing inspiration from her native Colombia, Luisa fills her canvases with vibrant flora and colorful abstractions. She weaves different aspects of her identity into her paintings to create enchanting passages that resonate with people from all walks of life. Otero Prada attended La Salle University in Bogota, Colombia where she majored in Architecture. She attended the St. Louis RegionalArts Commission Community Arts Institute in 2016 and their Teaching Artist Institute in 2020. Luisa is active in St. Louis community, serving different audiences through Arts organizations as Missouri History Museum, St Louis Art Museum, Contemporary Art Museum, Artscope, PEACE weaving Wholeness, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Mid-America Arts Alliance, Latinx Arts STL, St Louis Art Fair, Zuka Arts, Portfolio Gallery and St Louis Artists Guild. She currently is the Youth Programs Coordinator for Bread and Roses Missouri.

Alexa seda

Emerging Artist

Alexa is a rising star in the St. Louis arts scene, weaving together her passion for theater and urban design. As a co-producer at EncoreSTL, she brings fresh energy to both classic and original plays, even spearheading the Cuéntame storytelling initiative, in collaboration with the Latinx Arts Network. But Alexa's vision extends beyond the stage. With a Master's in Public Health specializing in Urban Design, she's committed to creating equitable spaces through creative placemaking. Her "La Fiestecita de Encore Theatre" block party series bridged cultural divides with free music and dance, celebrating the vibrant intersection of Latinx and Black communities. As a Senior Planner with the City of St. Louis, Alexa's focus is clear: using theater and design to address the challenges faced by communities of color, building vibrant, inclusive spaces where everyone thrives.

Photo credit for all Honoree headshots: Lois Ingrum