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Dr. Rachel Harris, executive director of St. Ã山ǿ¼é’s Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts, was honored March 20 with the Olean Zonta Club's Yellow Rose Award.

 

Harris was surprised with a yellow rose by Paula Bernstein, assistant director of the Quick Center for the Arts and a Zonta Club member.

 

Since moving to Olean in 2024 with her husband, Seth, Harris has been deeply committed to serving the St. Bonaventure community through her role at the Quick Center.

A gifted soprano, Harris has more than 30 performances to her credit, from Handel’s "Messiah" to "The Music Man" to "The Marriage of Figaro." She has performed with the Syracuse Opera, Tri-Cities Opera and LSU Opera. Harris holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from LSU (2005); a Master of Music in opera from Binghamton University in conjunction with the Tri-Cities Opera Artist Residence Training Program (1988); and a bachelor's degree in vocal performance from SUNY-Fredonia (1985).

"If the yellow rose represents friendship, joy, positivity, it also was a symbol of gratitude, well wishes and fresh beginnings. There is no one who represents that more than Rachel Harris," Bernstein said in her nomination. "She has empowered other females throughout the community to break through to find their own voices as we celebrate who we are through art, music, dance and more."

Bernstein, who received her own yellow rose a few years ago, said that the outreach of the Quick Center under Harris' direction has been far reaching. "She has been here for a little over a year and has brought positivity, joyfulness and friendship to the entire campus as her word for the center is 'welcome.'"

Olean Zonta is a club under the auspice of Zonta International, an international women’s advocacy organization.

Since 1999, the yellow rose has been the inspiration and symbol of Zonta Rose Day, which falls on March 8 to coincide with International Women's Day. The yellow rose also served as a symbol of the pro-suffrage movement.

Founded in 1919, Zonta International is a women’s advocacy organization that has more than 29,000 members in 63 countries. The mission of Zonta clubs around the world is to make a global and local impact.

The Olean Zonta chapter has raised tens of thousands of dollars locally to support women undergoing treatment for breast cancer as well as supporting breast cancer research. The chapter also provides support for local women through donations of hygiene products to local food banks.