CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) - Lisa Schaffner, former anchor of WRIC-TV in Richmond, was honored Saturday with the Robert Gallimore Distinguished Service Award for a broadcast career that spanned 25 years.
The award, named after the Associated Press Chief of Bureau in Richmond between 1967 and 1985, is presented annually to someone who has made significant contributions to the broadcast industry in Virginia.
Following stints in Athens, Ohio, and Green Bay, Wis., Schaffner’s career took her to Richmond, where she became the main news anchor for WRIC-TV8, anchoring the ABC affiliate’s 4:30, 6 and 11 p.m. newscasts. During her 23-year tenure with TV8, she covered the administrations of seven governors, the mass shooting at Virginia Tech as well as the wrath of Mother Nature including Hurricane Isabel, tropical storm Gaston and the deadly Petersburg tornado.
Schaffner also hosted a weekly series called “Lisa’s Friends,” which profiled children available for adoption. Her work resulted in nearly two dozen adoptions.
Schaffner left WRIC-TV in October of 2008 to join the United Network for Organ Sharing as the public relations and marketing director. UNOS is a national non-profit based in Richmond that matches organs from deceased donors to those on the national waiting list.
But she continues to cover Richmond through her column, Giving Back, in Boomer Life Magazine in which she highlights various nonprofit organizations and how people can get involved and give back to the community through volunteering. Schaffner was named 2011 National Philanthropy Day Volunteer of the Year by the AFP of Central Virginia.
She currently serves on several Richmond area boards including: Venture Richmond, Commonwealth Parenting, Chesterfield Public Education Foundation, LifeNet Health Advisory Board, Virginia High School League Advisory Council, Richmond CrimeStoppers and Breath Matters.
The Gallimore Award was presented by the Virginia AP Broadcasters Association at the group’s awards luncheon at The Boar’s Head Inn.
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