Carol Treiber - Obituary

he fought for the arts before it was cool to fight for the arts. She didn't play an instrument or paint, but she worked tirelessly to make sure others had the funding to do those things. Carol Treiber of Harwood, who died Tuesday at age 77, is being remembered as a tireless advocate and a friend to everyone in the arts. "There are people in the performing end of things whose contributions are obvious," said J. Ernest Green, music director of the Annapolis Chorale. "Carol, in ways that are harder to see, had no less of an impact. She forever changed the arts community." Treiber was the first head of the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County, running the organization for 14 years, until 2007. She had spearheaded the predecessor to the council since 1982. "Carol accepted County Executive (Robert) Neall's challenge to transform a small county office into a strong, well-respected nonprofit organization and she was totally successful," said longtime friend Ardath Cade, the county's former Human Services Officer and widow of the late state Sen. John Cade. Treiber took the arts council from its infancy to a group that currently doles out about $350,000 in grants to schools and arts groups. At first, it wasn't even certain the arts council would survive, but Treiber kept the group going by sheer force of will, said Linnell Bowen, executive director of Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts. Without Treiber, many of the arts programs in the county wouldn't exist, said April Nyman, who took over the arts council from her. In the wake of her passing, the arts council's executive committee established a Carol Treiber Scholarship Fund to provide annual awards for organizations in her honor. "If you saw Carol, you identified her with the arts," Nyman said. "She was the champion for the artists, the arts groups and the patrons." Accomplishments Treiber's achievements included bringing the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra to Anne Arundel Community College for five years, continuing the Arts-in-Education program in the schools and coordinating the annual Artist Institute with teachers and artists. In addition, she: Was a 1999 graduate of Leadership Anne Arundel. Received the YWCA's TWIN Award in 2001. Was president of the Parole Rotary Club. Was a founding trustee member of the Wiley H. Bates Legacy Center. Worked with the Annapolis and Anne Arundel Chamber of Commerce, Marys Mount Manor and the Maryland State Arts Council. Was co-chairman of Maryland Arts Day. Established the "B.I.G." project to collect and ship educational books to developing countries. Launched a Rotary program to provide dictionaries to county third-graders. Treiber's death "breaks my heart," Bowen said. "She fought for the arts when it wasn't cool to fight. She was a force. I can't say enough good about her." Green was also saddened by Treiber's passing, and said going the arts council's annual Mardi Gras fundraiser without seeing her would be depressing. "It's not only the loss of a friend, it's that the arts and arts community is losing an incredible champion." Before she died, Treiber spoke briefly about her legacy. She said she was happy to have helped existing arts groups and nurtured new ones. "I just had a wonderful career," she said. "In my next life, I'd come back and do it again." For all of that, Treiber's career in the arts began by chance when she was a temporary administrative assistant for the county. Prior to that, she'd worked at the National Security Agency, where she met her husband, Wallace; raised four children; and spent three years working at the European Defense Command in Germany. Treiber said she met hosts of terrific people and loved every minute she spent working in the arts. "She knows everybody," said her longtime friend, Pat Barland, a county planner. She was "just very passionate about life in general. She certainly left her mark." Cade echoed this, saying: "Through the years of illness, Carol has served … as a model of living each day to its fullest. She's a very special person." --- Visitation is scheduled for 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. Monday at the George P. Kalas Funeral Home in Edgewater. A Mass of Christian burial is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at Holy Family Catholic Church in Davidsonville. Carol Flynn Treiber, age 77, a fifty-five year resident of Harwood, died on Tuesday, December 13 at her home surrounded by her loving family after a lengthy illness with ovarian cancer. Born on December 23, 1933 in Boston, MA to the late Kathryn Condon and Edward Flynn, Carol attended Dorchester High School for Girls, Framington State College and Anne Arundel Community College. During her career she worked for Brown, Brothers and Harriman of Boston, The Foreign Service Institute at the U.S. State Department, the National Security Agency, the Owensville Health Center, European Defense Command, Germany and the Anne Arundel County Arts Commission. Carol has served as the Executive Director for Anne Arundel County Cultural Arts Council. During her tenure she guided this organization through its transition from a county agency to a well recognized, professionally run, non-profit organization whose mission is to encourage and invest in the visual and performing arts and historic preservation for the people of Anne Arundel County. Through her dedication to education, advocacy and financial support, Carol established the Arts Council’s signature Mardi Gras celebration as a fundraiser to promote arts awareness in the business and private sectors. Carol was the past president of the Parole Rotary Club. As a Rotarian, she helped establish the “BIG” project, which collects and ships educational books to Third World countries. She also initiated the Dictionary Project, ensuring that third graders in the Parole area received a dictionary. In recognition of her devotion to the arts, Carol received an Annie Award for Lifetime Achievement in support of the arts. She was presented with the 2004-05 Rotary International, District 7620, Centennial Award and in 2008 she received from Leadership Anne Arundel a Community Trustee Award in recognition of exemplary service and commitment to the community. Carol enriched our lives and inspired us with her spirit. She will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by her many friends and family. Carol was preceded in death by her sisters, Marilyn Sweeney, Pauline Young and Marjorie Flynn. She is survived by her husband of fifty-five years, Wallace Treiber; four daughters, Diane Treiber, Darlene Bryant and Marie Treiber, all of Harwood and Carol Stauder of Liberty, SC and four grandchildren, Douglas and Patrick Bryant, Elizabeth Stauder and Emily Treiber. Friends are invited to Carol’s Life Celebration at the George P. Kalas Funeral Home, 2973 Solomons Island Rd., Edgewater, MD on Monday, December 19 from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9pm. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Holy Family Catholic Church, 826 W. Central Ave., Davidsonville, MD on Tuesday, December 20 at 10:30am. Interment Lakemont Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Parole Rotary Foundation, P.O. Box 6327, Annapolis, MD 21401 (please write Anne Arundel Community College Scholarship Fund on the memo line).