(The following text is an excerpt from the book Chinese Americans in Irvine 1971-2021.)
Born and raised in Taiwan, Anne immigrated to the United States in 1979 with her husband. She joined the Bowers Museum’s Board of Governors in 1996 and has had an enormous impact on the Museum’s success. With her demur personality and small frame, Anne makes large miracles for the museum. She sets the highest example of leadership and commitment for others to follow, and it is all done as a volunteer with great love for the museum and its future.
Anne’s exceptional leadership was recognized by her colleagues who unanimously elected her to Chairwoman of the Bowers’ Board of Governors in 2010; she is the first Chinese American woman elected Chair of any accredited museum in California, and perhaps the United States. Anne also works with the Development Committee overseeing all the fund development activities of the museum. She is by far the museum’s number one fundraiser, personally raising millions of dollars in donations over the years.
Anne has done more to enhance Chinese American museum friendships than anyone on either side of the Pacific Ocean. Through her efforts, the Bowers has organized and traveled over 10 major Chinese exhibitions and several smaller ones to the United States. As part of these exhibitions, Anne has hosted over 350 leading scholars from China to the United States and developed deep friendships with all of them. She has brought several important exhibitions to the Bowers including the legendary Terra Cotta Warriors from Xi’an（twice!）, and most recently the work of internationally renowned couture fashion designer, Guo Pei. In doing so, she negotiated the complex contracts and almost single-handedly raised the necessary funds to make these great exhibits a reality. In thanks for her phenomenal efforts and diplomacy, Anne was made an Official World Ambassador for Shaanxi Province, China.
Using her contacts at the Shanghai Museum, Anne initiated a Junior Ambassador program at the Bowers to provide volunteer opportunities for high school students interested in culture and art. These students commit to a training program at the Bowers in public speaking, touring techniques, and learning the details of the exhibitions. After completing the year-long program, in the summer, the students travel to China and volunteer as docents at the Shanghai Museum.
As the driving force behind Bowers Museum’s annual Gala for nearly 20 years, Anne has raised millions of dollars to support the museum’s exhibition and education programs. Over the years, Anne earned the museum’s “Charles and Ada Bowers Award for Excellence” so many times that it was renamed the “Anne Shih Award for Excellence”.
Born with an inherently adventurous personality, Anne has traveled the world. She has been to Africa over a dozen times, mostly on safari, camping in tents. She participated in the zero gravity program with Russian cosmonauts at Star City outside of Moscow and made over a dozen trips to Tibet to be the first to organize an exhibit of Tibetan treasures to ever come to the USA.
In 2017, Anne was awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor which is presented annually to a select group of individuals whose accomplishments in their field and inspired service to our nation are cause for celebration.
The Medal has been officially recognized by both Houses of Congress as one of our nation’s most prestigious awards and is annually memorialized in the Congressional Record.
Later that same year, Anne was presented another prestigious award by the Association of Fundraising Professionals for her philanthropic efforts on behalf of the Bowers Museum and other charitable organizations.
In 2020, Anne received the Arts and Culture Visionary Award from the Asia Society of Southern California.
Anne Shih has established a well-deserved reputation in Orange County as an ambassador of cross-cultural understanding and appreciation for the arts. Her grace, elegance and passion always shine through, even during challenging circumstances such as her successful battle with cancer.（Courtesy of Bowers Museum）
Anne Shih initiated the Jr. Ambassador Internship program at Bowers Museum
施劉秀枝創辦「少年大使」項目培育文化藝術新血
劉秀枝在台灣出生、長大。1979 年隨丈夫移民美國。1996 年加入董事會後，對寶爾博物館的成功產生了至關重要的影響。個性恬靜、身材瘦小的她，為寶爾創造了一個又一個奇跡，她的領導力和獻身精神堪稱楷模。因著對博物館及其未來的熱愛，她不計報酬，一直以義工的身份默默奉獻。
2010 年，董事會全票一致通過，推選劉秀枝擔任董事長，這是董事會對其卓越領導力的充分認可。劉秀枝成為加州乃至全美國所有官方認證博物館的第一位華裔董事長。劉秀枝還監管博物館發展委員會事務，參與和指導所有有關博物館發展的活動和項目，是博物館截至目前的籌款冠軍，個人籌款數額高達數百萬美金。
在增進中美博物館友誼和文化交流方面，劉秀枝是大洋兩岸的第一人。通過她的不懈努力，寶爾博物館先後邀請到 350 多位文博界傑出的專家和學者來美演講，並與他們結下深厚的友誼，還舉辦了十多個重量級的中華文化藝術展，這其中包括轟動全美的兩次兵馬俑展，以及近期展出的、轟動效應幾乎超過兵馬俑的郭培高定時裝。為了能讓這些展覽成行，劉秀枝曾無數次單槍匹馬籌集資金，不眠不休、反復幾十次地修改合同。為了表彰她在中美文化交流中的傑出貢獻，陝西省文物局授予她「陝西文化遺產大使」證書，她是全球第一位獲此殊榮者。
為了給那些在美國出生、對文化藝術感興趣的中學生提供做義工的機會，劉秀枝通過她在上海博物館的人脈，設計和創辦了「少年大使」（Junior Ambassador）項目。學生們在寶爾博物館接受演講、導覽技巧和展品講解方面的培訓。為期一年的培訓結束後，這些學生在暑期前往上海博物館做導覽義工，至今已有百位學生結業。
二十多年來，劉秀枝一直是寶爾博物館「年度募款晚宴」的幕後推手，她已籌集了數百萬美金，用以支持博物館的展覽和教育項目，因此，她被數次授予「寶爾卓越貢獻獎」，而這個獎項也因她的貢獻而更名為「劉秀枝卓越貢獻獎」。
生來就具有冒險精神的劉秀枝，巾幗不讓鬚眉，不僅是「美國探險家俱樂部」（The Explorers Club）會員，多次帶領寶爾博物館的高端會員前往世界各地參加探險旅行，深入非洲原始部落，為那裡的孩童捐款捐物。還在莫斯科星城與俄羅斯宇航員一起挑戰零重力，並十多次涉足西藏高原，交涉展覽，成為將西藏文物珍寶帶來美國展覽的第一人。
2017 年，劉秀枝獲頒美國移民最高榮譽獎 「艾利斯島傑出移民勛章」（Ellis Island Medal of Honor）。獲獎者是那些在各自領域取得驕人成就並為國家做出傑出貢獻的人，其中包括美國總統、國會議員、諾貝爾獎得主等。該獎已被國會兩院正式認定為美國最負盛名的獎項之一，每年都會收入美國「國會議事錄」（Congressional Record）。
同年，劉秀枝又獲頒另一著名獎項，由籌款專業人士協會（AFP）頒發的「全美年度慈善籌款大獎」。
2020 年，為了表彰劉秀枝在中美文化交流中所作出的貢獻，由洛克菲勒家族創辦的美國亞洲協會（Asia Society），特別為其頒發「「2020 年度藝術與文化突出貢獻獎」。
劉秀枝是橙縣久負盛名的跨文化藝術推廣大使，即便是在極具挑戰的情況下，包括在與癌症進行抗爭的時候，她的魅力、優雅和熱情始終如一。（寶爾博物館提供）