Committee meetings can be fun and aren't always formal, or tedious.
Since shortly after moving to Cambridge in the fall of 1979, committee meetings of all varieties have been part of my life.
With a wide range of interest and diverse members, meetings are a regular part of many lives. They may be work related, or volunteer driven. At times they can be boring, too formal, even argumentative, but we feel obliged to continue to attend until we can sort out the differences and come to a consensus.
Sometimes however they can be fun, creative and energizing. How fortunate I was this year to run an ad hoc committee, (an off shoot of the Cambridge Symphony Board of Directors), aptly named the CSO 20 Committee.
After a generous donation was given to the orchestra earlier in the year toward the celebration of their 20th season, other audience members inspired by this gift, quickly added an extra donation. The first three to do so were invited to form the CSO 20 committee.
We met in April and began, with a very limited budget, planning to increase the awareness of the orchestra throughout the community. Brainstorming sessions filled with laughter and creativity energized the four of us who are:
Sara Alvarado
Sara grew up in Nicaragua and came to Canada in 1989 and had a 30-year career in finance and investment, making her a very suitable candidate for the CSO first qualified treasurer. She recently held the position of senior officer at the European Investment bank in Luxembourg. Currently is a member of the United Nations and in the summer invited to speak at the world convention in Istanbul on how Climate change effects world finance. She is a board member at CMH Foundation. Sara never stops working toward her goals, which most recently included a 3-year course to take her Sommelier certification, which she passed with honours. She is fun, very knowledgeable and if ever you are invited to her home, don’t eat first.
Jeff Hunter
A strong supporter and donor of the CSO with ten years in insurance before his 16 years as owner of the Balloon Emporium. He adds a decade of working with non-profits, Lang’s The Food bank, Preston Hespeler Rotary with strong entrepreneurial skills and creative ideas. This year he was elected by the Preston-Hespeler Rotary Club to be the Community Service Chair and was nominated as this years Rotarian of the Year. Recently back from a busy group trip to Italy where he enjoyed his favourite limoncello.
Kyle Priestley
As this year’s winner of the Bernice Adams award “Heart of the Arts”, Kyle has been a passionate community builder dedicated to fostering collaboration and connection, in this community and for the Gaslight District from 2019 to April of this year. He sits on several Arts related committees and is currently exploring new entrepreneurial ideas in the Arts Sector. He is a passionate supporter of the CSO working toward their growth, and a superb and very creative gourmet cook.
And me...
Already familiar to many of you as a long time arts advocate in Cambridge, and a community builder, I have received a variety of accolades over the past 35 years. This year I was honoured and humbled to receive the lifeime achievement award by the YWCA Women of Distinction committee. As a loyal and ardent supporter of the CSO since its inception in 2004. My claim to fame this year is I did not fall in the water when getting out of a kayak (of course I had help).
Jill Lawrie, marketing, Sabatino Vacca, conductor and music director, and concert master Joy Schuster were the directors of the CSO board who liaised and joined us when possible.
What a committee. It was the most fun I have ever had on one.
We brainstormed, dismissed a few crazy ideas due to lack of time, and planned ways to increase awareness of the orchestra.
With posters, postcards and “pop ups” distributed across the community, the musicians generously gave their time to play at Whistle Bear Golf Club, Cambridge Memorial Hospital, in parks in Preston and Hespeler, the Farmers' Market, Main Street, City Hall, the Gaslight District and Porchfest, to name a few.
It was fun, unexpected and brilliantly organized by Joy Schuster. Our theme was “20 reasons for 20 seasons” We had short clips on You-tube, ran digital excerpts and chatted to many new faces.
After each meeting I felt energised and filled with hope and creative thoughts. We all came away looking forward to the next time we met, and now we have reached the first concert of the prestigious 20th season.
We are encouraging attendees to wear formal dress and tuxes, as this is a celebration.
This coming Friday, Sept. 13 at the Hamilton Theatre at 7.30 p.m. The concert is “Beatles Forever” featuring the British Invasion.
We have a few additions to the concert, and after the intermission with Sue Sturdy as our auctioneer, she will introduce our live auction items.
Prizes include:
- Dinner for eight with board chair Dr. Michael Lawrie.
- A wine tasting for four couples in your home by our accomplished sommelier, Sara.
- A pair of seasons tickets to all CSO concerts.
- An original watercolour painting “Whimsies of New York.”
- Beatles memorabilia.
If you want to join us, move fast tickets are close to selling out. Prices are $45 or $35 for balcony and they're available through the Cambridge Symphony Orchestra website.
Come out and share the community fun and support your orchestra.
