Thank you for joining us for our 2026 Annual Meeting

The Lillian M. Bradshaw Award recognizes a current Dallas Public Library staff member who has rendered exemplary service to learning, literature and library service. This year's honoree was Lucy Benitez. 

Lucy has served as a leader in DPL for the past ten years. She is currently the Bilingual Lead Advisor on the Storytime Board, she serves as the Bilingual Representative on the Rising Star Committee, and she serves on the Spanish Translation team for the DPL department. She previously served on the Employee Advisory Council, developing events and activities to foster and develop staff morale within DPL.

The award includes a $1,000 scholarship from the Friends to pursue continuing education or professional development.

The A.C. Greene Award recognizes a community volunteer who has rendered exemplary service to libraries, literacy and learning throughout our Dallas community. This year, Lee Dixon was recognized as the A.C. Greene Award recipient. 

Lee is a volunteer primarily at the Lakewood Library, and she started volunteering after her retirement. Lee has served over 1,400 hours over the last ten years!

Her team at Lakewood says: “Working with Lee is like watching a book-shelving machine in action. In just a couple of hours, she can shelve every single book in the entire collection—and she does it correctly.”

The Robert L. Solender Award recognizes current Friends of the Dallas Public Library members who have rendered exemplary service to lifelong learning, reading and supporting/promoting libraries. Pat Porter, our first recipient, was honored at our May Board meeting for her ongoing service that exemplifies Solender's values of support for libraries, public service, and lifelong learning.

Those who know Pat know that she’s the first call for events, and she will always say yes. She’s a fighter for the organizations and the people around her, and she is an incredible sounding board for advice.

Our next recipient was a group of volunteers who have shown incredible spirit for the entire Dallas Public Library system under difficult circumstances--The Skillman Southwestern Branch Library Friends. 

The Skillman Southwestern Branch Library closed its doors in October 2026, and we all know that it was a beloved location. That branch had an incredible branch friends group. They have moved to other branch friends groups to share their experience and provide guidance for a number of new branch friends groups who are forming. 

They also gifted $25,000 to the Friends of the Dallas Public Library to start the Skillman Southwestern Branch Friends Fund. This fund will allow ALL branches in the system as well as branch friends groups to apply for grants to cover small or unexpected expenses.