In the late 1990’s, the Fort Collins Symphony Guild sought a way to directly support musicians’ salaries at the Symphony. An Endowment Fund was chosen to meet this need. An endowment fund uses invested capital to generate earnings which are then paid to the Fort Collins Symphony. The invested capital remains intact in perpetuity.
All funds in the Symphony Guild’s Endowment are directed to sustain the salaries of designated Symphony Chairs:
- In 1999, to commemorate the Symphony’s 50th anniversary, the Riedman/Women’s Guild Concertmaster Chair was created. This Chair was funded initially through a donation from the Riedman Insurance Company and was later supplemented by funds raised through private donations and a raffle of gold jewelry by the Symphony Guild.
- In 2007, the Freddy Martin Woodwinds Chair was begun and designated in honor of the late Freddy Martin, an American bandleader and tenor saxophonist whose career spanned the 1920’s to the 1980’s. This Chair was funded through private donations.
- In 2009, the Jeanise Brown Principal Cello Chair was set up to honor the contributions and music of Jeanise Brown, a long-time jazz musician and supporter of the Fort Collins Symphony and Symphony Guild. This Chair was funded through private donations. The Symphony Guild offered donors a gift CD – Jeanise Brown, Jazz Standards, with Mark Sloniker, piano and Gene Libbea, bass.
Since the inception of the Endowment, over $31,000 has been contributed to the Symphony. The current principal, nearly $100,000, generated sufficient income to allow the Guild to contribute approximately $4,400 in 2009 toward salaries of the named chairs.
The Symphony Guild ‘s on-going goal is to continue to grow the capital in the Endowment Fund through corporate contributions, challenge grants like the one received from the Community Foundation of Northern Colorado in 2005, and private donations from friends of the Symphony. For more information about how to donate to the Endowment or to establish another endowed chair, contact Kay Edwards, Guild Endowment Chair, at: kfedwardo@aol.com
Recently-Named Principal Flute Chair
To recognize Dr. Renata Justin’s long support of the Fort Collins Symphony and Symphony Guild, the Symphony Guild is pleased to announce our fourth endowed chair – The Renata Justin, M.D. Principal Flute Chair, in Memory of Johanna Justin-Jinich. Dr. Justin has requested that this chair be named in memory of her granddaughter, Johanna Justin-Jinich, who loved music and who loved to be with her grandmother during her volunteer work with the Symphony Guild.
Donations in any amount are welcome. For more information, contact Kay Edwards at: kfedwardo@aol.com
