On Saturday at the Nobnocket Inn, Emily Texeira, the Vineyard Haven postmaster, presented Dale Stephanos with a plaque thanking him for his dedication to honoring one of the country’s most cherished icons.
A regular visitor to the Island going back to 1985, Mr. Stephanos created the recent forever postage stamp commemorating actress and comedy icon Betty White, remembered for her roles on The Golden Girls and The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
Mr. Stephanos is an award-winning artist whose work has appeared in several national publications, including the cover of The Atlantic’s upcoming issue.
A small crowd of fans and curious Islanders attended the commemoration, with many bring sheets of the smiling Betty White stamps for him to sign — a cheerful addition to their collections.
“We live in a polarized time, but you could get somebody with a MAGA hat, you could get somebody with a pride flag... and pretty much everybody would say Betty White was pretty cool,” Mr. Stephanos said.
Mr. Stephanos attened the ceremony with his wife Maria Stephanos, a news anchor for an ABC affiliate in Boston.
Ms. Texeira praised the creativity of Mr. Stephanos.
“We all know Betty White was a treasure whose laughter and kindness brought joy to millions,” Ms. Texeira said. “To create a stamp in her honor is no small feat. It requires not just skill, but a deep understanding of her spirit.”
Mr. Stephanos said the initial print run was 35 million individual Betty White stamps, but the U.S. postal service had to initiate an emergency push for more because it was selling out. He said this speaks to how much people cherish Ms. White, and he was honored to bring her image to the top right corner of people’s mail.
“Stamps accompany our messages to each other, whether it’s a birthday card or a love letter, a breakup letter or a sympathy card,” Mr. Stephanos told the Gazette. “We have these meaningful expressions of our humanity that we share and the stamp is the little escort that brings it along the way.”
Mr. Stephanos spent over a year creating the stamp. He has also created a black and white portrait stamp of conservative political commentator William F. Buckley Jr., which will be unveiled in September.
Mr. Stephanos specializes in portraits and said he is often commissioned to illustrate the elderly for his ability to capture their faces with empathy.
“I think it’s because I’m becoming older,” he said with a smile.
To the left of Ms. White’s cheerful smile and peaking out from her swirly blonde hair is a silver earring in the shape of an animal’s paw, which Mr. Stephanos said serves as a nod to her over 70 years as a prominent animal rights activist.
Though Ms. White is closely associated with the color gold due to her time on The Golden Girls, Mr. Stephanos ultimately decided to dress her in a purple blouse and surrounded her portrait in a soft violet haze.
“Purple is associated with protests,” Mr. Stephanos said. “I thought it was a subtle way of including the way she spoke out on behalf of the vulnerable creatures we encounter every day.”
Mr. Stephanos began the process of creating the stamp by illustrating Ms. White with a pencil. Then he scanned the sketch and uploaded it to Photoshop where he could make changes more effectively. He said the editing process was robust and his stamp had to go through several people, including Ms. White’s family, before the final version was accepted.
Of all the illustrations he’s made, Mr. Stephanos said Ms. White’s stamp was the most meaningful.
“It doesn’t go away and into recycling like a magazine does... there are people who collect them,” he said. “You’re a permanent part of the artifacts that describe our culture and to just be able to be a part of that story is really such an honor.”
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