To honor the memory and scholarly translation activity of Helen Cynthia Stallman-Pacitti, translator of The Life of Saint Pankratios of Taormina, the Committee of the Conference on Translation & Hymnography will award one (1) prize for a biennial hagiographical translation project that is a translation of a life of a saint or saints with annotations. The prize will range from $250-$500, depending on the substance of the work.

Applicants for the award are invited to submit the following by the Feast of the Protection of the Virgin ‒ October 1/14, 2023 ‒ electronically to Dr. Nadieszda Kizenko at nkizenko@albany.edu and Dr. Xenia Nenchin at jnenchin@molloy.edu.

Stallman-Pacitti Translation Award 2023

To encourage growth in the veneration of Orthodox Christian saints, Orthodox Christians are invited to submit translations into English of a previously untranslated hagiographical text or texts (2,500 words minimum) from Russian. Applications must include:

• Applicant’s curriculum vitae;
• Copy of original text with full reference information;
• Translation in electronic form (.doc or .docx, not .pdf, .jpg, or any other format);
• Fully annotated: Annotations should include historical, scriptural, linguistic, and liturgical references. (For example, the phrase "Kursk Icon" should include a footnote stating: "The reference is to the 13th century wonderworking Kursk Root Icon of the Mother of God, which was found in Kursk and currently resides in the Russian Diaspora in New York…");
• Evidence that this text has not been previously translated;
• Brief argument for the importance of this particular text;
• Parish affiliation; and
• Brief biographical statement about one’s interest in the saint(s) and previous experience with Orthodox translation (such a statement might begin with "I chose to translate the life of this saint because…", "I have previously translated…", "The texts that most interest me are…").

The Stallman-Pacitti Award will be presented late in 2023 and announced on the Lambertsen Foundation and diocesan websites. Award winners will be invited to present their work at the next Conference on Translation & Hymnography in Memory of Fr. Joseph (Isaac) Lambertsen, which will be announced at a later date.

Background

Helen Cynthia Stallman-Pacitti was a graduate of Oxford University, a professor at the University of Melbourne, and the translator of The Life of Saint Pankratios of Taormina from Greek. She was a parishioner of the Protection of the Holy Virgin Church in Collingwood, Melbourne, Australia, at the time of her untimely repose. She was survived by her husband and two infant children. Helen valued scholarship of the highest order and was an ardent supporter of translation work for the Russian Church Abroad.