When Gary Lee Viall of Falls Church was handed a plaque by Ausma Smits on the afternoon of April 25, 2004, the second floor of Peikoff Alumni House at Gallaudet University erupted with the waving hands of 'deaf applause'.

Gary becomes the 23rd Frederick C. Schreiber Leadership Award winner selected by the Metro Washington Deaf Community Center (MWDCC). He is the first recipient who is a resident of Virginia.

The afternoon was a day of reflection and revelation, as Gary's friends, family and colleagues gathered to celebrate his many accomplishments. Tom Dowling served as Master of Ceremonies. Gary Viall was the first Chair of NVRC's Board of Directors.

Sarah Val, the 1993 award recipient, told the audience about Fred Schreiber's personality and habits. She recalled that Fred was a "people person", a man who was always reading, and a man who loved to engage others in debate and discussion.

Willis Mann, who worked at the National Association of the Deaf while Fred was its director, and who has known Gary since his college days, talked about both unique individuals. He recalled Fred's stubbornness when he was certain he was right, yet his willingness to listen to other points of view.

Cheryl Heppner, Executive Director of NVRC, applauded MWDCC for recognizing Gary with this award. Melody Hotek of NVRC's staff and several members of NVRC and its Board of Directors were in attendance for the event. In a presentation, Cheryl praised Gary for keeping alive the dream of Reuben I. Altizer to have a community center and his persistence and hard work in making it a reality. She told the audience about the evening that Gary, as Chair of the Board of Directors, offered her the job as NVRC director over a dinner at Pizza Hut. She also shared that the Board still jokes about having a Gary Viall Day with a dinner to honor him upon his retirement from the Board about 10 years ago. After the event, Gary was convinced to remain on the Board. Cheryl cited Gary's skills in bringing together diverse people to find common ground, and his dedication to developing new leaders, calling him an outstanding ambassador and leader.

Steve Williams, who succeeded Gary as Chair of the NVRC Board of Directors, called Gary "Mr. Virginia" because wherever he goes in Virginia there are deaf people who want to talk to him. On a personal note, Steve shared that as a young man he ran for election as president of the Northern Virginia Association of the Deaf. After Steve lost the election, Gary immediately appeared in the seat next to him, encouraging him to run for another office so people could see Steve's leadership skills. This led to a friendship that continued to this day, and to Steve's holding many other leadership positions. Over many years together, Steve has found Gary to be always calm under pressure and to always fight for what he believes in.

Ron Lanier, the Director of the Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, was unable to be in attendance for the event, but he sent a letter on behalf of the Department.

Steve Brenner spoke about getting to know Gary long ago when Gary was helping to recondition and distribute TTYs to deaf people in Virginia. He found Gary to be quick to learn and said that he believes those heavy TTY machines were the cause of the double hernias that Gary later had to contend with. Steve listed many of the qualities that make Gary special by using the letters of his name, including Intelligence, Advocate, and Love.

Terry Viall, Gary's brother, had flown from Berkeley, California for the occasion. Terry noted how ironic it is that he now teaches at the California School for the Deaf, where Gary was once refused admission because he was too young. As a result of that denial, the Viall family moved from Salinas, CA to Wisconsin for several years so he could attend the school for the deaf there. Terry talked about the experience of being Gary's younger brother of and some of the things he had done, such as spying on Gary's dates. He said that the Viall family is close and that, knowing him as they do, they were not surprised by Gary's accomplishments and awards.

In attendance at this event were Gary's twin sons, Bobby and Craig. Gary also has a daughter, Bambi, and a granddaughter named Kaylynn Sunshine Viall.

After listening to all the presenters, Gary himself was given the opportunity to speak. He said that as a boy he was inspired by the book "Profiles in Courage" by John F. Kennedy. He cited several deaf Virginians who are now deceased for serving as his role models. Gary said that the two things he are most proud of are the establishment of NVRC and his work on the 2000 NAD Conference in Norfolk. Happily for everyone, Gary talked about an important bit of unfinished business: he still wants to see a strong program to develop deaf leaders.

Ausma Smits, who is president of MWDCC, gave the background on the Fred Schreiber Award. This award incorporates the traits that Fred was known for: leadership, ideals, and involvement with an emphasis on volunteerisn.

A program book designed by Thayer Dow with help from Barry White carried some information about Gary:

- Graduated with high honors from Oshkosh High School; has a B.S. in Accounting and MBA in Management from Gallaudet University.

- Has risen through the ranks to be Senior Accountant in the Office of the Chief Financial Officer of the Small Business Administration.

- Served as treasurer or business manager of many organizations at Gallaudet.

- Has served in numerous leadership capacities in NFSD Washington Div. 46, Potomac Silents Club, National Association of the Deaf, Gallaudet Alumni, Virginia Dept. for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Advisory Board, Northern Virginia Association of the Deaf, Virginia Association of the Deaf, Telecommunications Exchange for the Deaf, and other organizations.

- Was recognized with November 7, 1994 as Gary L. Viall Day by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

- Has favorite pastimes of genealogy, reading, traveling, and collecting stamps.