The Huntington Museum of Art has named Rick Horton as its Volunteer of the Year for Fiscal Year 2026.
“Rick is a volunteer docent who helps people fall in love with the art on display at the Huntington Museum of Art,” said HMA Director of Education Cindy Dearborn. “Rick is someone who gives so freely of his time and is reliable and dependable. He takes volunteering seriously, but he is also a lot of fun. He goes the extra mile by further researching exhibitions and subjects, often finding some tidbit of information that he knows will be interesting to his tour groups.”
Horton is retired from the United States Army as a Sergeant Major and retired from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a Contracting Officer. When not volunteering at HMA, Horton is cheering on Marshall University at sporting events.
The Volunteer of the Year is chosen by HMA’s staff through a vote. Staff members seek to award volunteers who regularly go above and beyond and work continuously to uphold HMA’s three-prong mission of art, education, and nature.
“Out of the 130 tours given so far this year, Rick has led 30 of them volunteering for 65 hours,” Dearborn said. “Rick has participated in numerous training sessions and field trips and is also a volunteer at the Hilltop Book Fair.”
As a volunteer tour guide, Horton makes an impression, Dearborn said. “I received a packet of thank you cards from first-graders specifically for Rick. They were all so cute, full of pictures of their favorite parts of their visit and one even had a drawing of Mr. Rick with his group of students.”
For more information on becoming a volunteer for the Huntington Museum of Art or to learn about membership, visit hmoa.org or call (304) 529-2701. HMA is fully accessible.
West Virginia residents may obtain a summary of the registration and financial documents from the Secretary of State, State Capitol, Charleston, WV 25305. Registration does not imply endorsement.