Lois Colleen Maddox (July 5, 1919 – 1999) better known as Connie Boochever was a performer, director and producer of

community theater Community theatre refers to any theatrical performance made in relation to particular communities—its usage includes theatre made by, with, and for a community. It may refer to a production that is made entirely by a community with no outside hel ...

and lifelong patron and advocate for the arts.

Early life and education

Lois Colleen Maddox was born in Decatur,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, on July 5, 1919, to parents Kenneth and Flora Maddox. She later became known as Connie while attending

Hurley Medical Center Hurley Medical Center is a teaching hospital serving Genesee, Lapeer, and Shiawassee counties in eastern Michigan since December 19, 1908. Situated in Flint, Michigan, it is a 457-bed public non-profit hospital. The emergency department is an A ...

where she became a registered nurse.

Career

Boochever worked as the chief surgery nurse on a military base where she met her future husband

Robert Boochever Robert Boochever (October 2, 1917 – October 9, 2011) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and a justice of the Alaska Supreme Court. Education and career Born in New York City, Booc ...

. She was a member of the first Alaska State Arts Council and then served as a governor’s appointee on the Council for 11 years. She founded

Juneau The City and Borough of Juneau, more commonly known simply as Juneau ( ; tli, Dzánti K'ihéeni ), is the capital city of the state of Alaska. Located in the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle, it is a unified municipality and the se ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

’s Community Theater and the Juneau Arts and Humanities Forum. She also founded Juneau Douglas Little Theater and served as its president. She was a board member of the Arts Alaska and the Alaska Repertory Theater.

Awards and honors

She was named Juneau’s Woman of the Year in 1973. She received the Governor’s Award for the Arts for outstanding achievement in the arts in 1982 and was honored, in that year, by both houses of the State Legislature for her contributions to the arts in Alaska. In 2012, she was inducted into the

Alaska Women's Hall of Fame The Alaska Women's Hall of Fame (AWHF) recognizes women natives or residents of the U.S. state of Alaska for their significant achievements or statewide contributions. It was conceived by the board of directors of the Alaska Women's Network (AWN) i ...

for her contribution to the arts in Alaska. The Connie Boochever Artist Fellowship was created in 2001 by her family in her memory.

Personal life

Boochever met first lieutenant and legal officer Robert Boochever while working on a base. They were married on April 22, 1943. Skier

Hilary Lindh Hilary Kirsten Lindh (born May 10, 1969) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from the United States. A specialist in the downhill event, she was a world champion and Olympic medalist. Life Born in Juneau, Alaska, Lindh learned to ski and ...

is one of their grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boochever, Connie 1919 births 1999 deaths 20th-century American actresses American stage actresses American patrons of the arts Actresses from Alaska People from Juneau, Alaska People from Decatur, Illinois Actresses from Illinois Philanthropists from Illinois 20th-century American philanthropists