The 21st annual presentation of the Margaret K. Williams Arts Awards will take place Thurs., Nov. 6 at the Tacoma Art Museum. The reception will begin at 5:30 p.m., followed by the awards ceremony at 6:30.

Recipients are Amelia Haller for Arts Education, Carla Barragan for Excellence in the Arts and Mardie Rees for Career. The event is sponsored by the Pierce County Arts Commission and the Pierce County Arts & Cultural Services Division.

Haller is an award-winning poet, writer, teacher and mentor. She is the author of eight books and has been published in numerous magazines and anthologies. In addition to writing, she plays the guitar, makes pottery and does both sumi and water color painting. She has instructed at Tacoma Community College and Metropolitan Park District and taught seminars at the Pacific Northwest Writers Conference, Evergreen State College, Washington Poets Association and the National League of American Pen Women.

Barragan is a choreographer and performing arts educator who is currently choreographing and directing BQdanza in Tacoma and the Pacific Northwest, as well as teaching in the Bethel District as a full time theatre specialist. She also teaches dance classes for Metro Parks. Her Latino cultural background is present in her choreographic work. She understands the culture deeply since she grew up in Ecuador and taught for two years in Mexico. Her work often speaks about the nuances of this culture.

Rees is a figurative sculptor, currently at work creating a life-sized bronze “Saint Anthony and Child,” which will be displayed in the lobby of St. Anthony’s Hospital under construction in Gig Harbor. She has participated in numerous shows throughout the Pacific Northwest and Southern California, and her “Jacob’s Struggles” series participated in a nine-month tour of Southern California. Her body of artistic work, including several bronze sculptures, endeavors to capture the emotion, spirit and inner being of her creations.