Dear Members,

This, the fourth and last letter in this series, completes the introduction of the Philharmonic Foundation of Orange County (Foundation). In earlier letters we announced the creation of the Foundation as an entity that is legally and financially separate from the Philharmonic Society of Orange County (Society), and whose purpose is to raise, hold, preserve and manage an endowment for the benefit of the Society. Soon thereafter we were able to report that we had received our first donations to the endowment. In our last letter we announced that we had made our first donation to the Society and reminded everyone of ways to name the Foundation in their wills, using my and Elaine’s donation process to show how easy it was. Subsequently we received two other notifications of bequests to the Foundation’s endowment.

Today I want to talk about the Foundation and the future of the Society. It is not news that every year the Society is challenged to raise the money that bridges the difference between the cost of presenting the wonderful orchestras and artists of the world, and the revenue from ticket sales. The wild swings in the economy in recent years have added uncertainty to the always precarious financial environment where ticket revenues account for half of presentation costs. So how can we financially secure this wonderful gift of music for ourselves, our community and for those that will follow? The answer is to build a generously funded endowment, which will provide a predictable source of income, large enough to secure the Society’s ability to perform its mission through rough times. Our annual donations to the Society provide for ongoing operations. The Society needs additional donations to the Foundation’s endowment to secure the future.

There are many ways to make these donations.

A couple follow below:

Direct donations to the Foundation made with cash, securities or other assets offer an immediate tax deduction to the donor while simultaneously growing the endowment, and as a result, increases the Foundation’s annual donation to the Society, immediately.

Donations through a charitable remainder trust allow the donor to continue to receive the income from the donation while receiving an immediate tax deduction for the donation. This way the donor is better off making the donation immediately rather than waiting. The increased benefit to the Society comes later.

To make a donation that keeps on giving forever, make a one-time donation to the Foundation of 25 times your annual donation. For example: Assume an annual gift of $1,000. $1,000 x 25 = $25,000. So $25,000 in bequest, invested at 4% will yield $1,000 annually from the Foundation to the Society, forever.

We hope that these letters have been of benefit to you, our members and friends, in helping you to understand the purpose of the Philharmonic Foundation and its role in supporting the Philharmonic Society, and the role that you can play. We welcome your thoughts and support.

Sincerely Yours,

James Alexiou
Chairman

P.S. – Although we use professionals to manage our endowment funds, the administration is managed by unpaid volunteers who cover the low volume of mail and telephone traffic. So for a faster direct response, please call me directly at (949) 854-7036.

Philharmonic Foundation of Orange County
Contact: 949•417•9969