On a beautiful afternoon earlier this month, Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts (PSHA) held their annual Gifts & Grants Awards reception at the 51st Pasadena Showcase House of Design. This year, PSHA awarded 67 gifts and grants totaling $630,000 to non-profit organizations, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, for music education, school music programs, instruments, music therapy, and underwriting of concerts.
“While it is a huge responsibility for the members of PSHA’s Gifts & Grants Committee to decide to which organizations to award funds, it is very rewarding to know that these organizations are doing their part to promote music and the arts, especially with regard to children and young adults, and particularly to those in under-served areas of our local communities,” said Gifts & Grants Chair Eileen Reilly.
About 180 guests were in attendance at this year’s reception. They were treated to classical music performed by an ensemble from USC Thornton School of Music’s Cardinal Winds made up of Catherine Baker (flute); Zach Pulse (oboe); and Alex Garcia (bassoon).
Reilly, with the help of member Mary Ann Clayton, the Benefit Chair for the 2014 Pasadena Showcase House of Design, the proceeds of which funded this year’s Gifts & Grants program, presented each recipient with a certificate and a check for their project. A representative from each organization spoke about how the funds would be used while President Katherine Watkins congratulated the recipients for bringing music directly to the community.
“It is an absolute privilege for us to play a small part in the work that these incredible organizations do in the community. And, it is profoundly motivating,” said Watkins. “Tomorrow, we will go back to work with their stories in mind, more determined than ever to be successful so that we can make even larger contributions in the future.”
An all-volunteer organization, PSHA is a non-profit California Corporation whose members donate their time and talents to produce the annual Pasadena Showcase House of Design. It is one of the oldest, largest and most successful house and garden tours in the nation. PSHA just celebrated the milestone of its fiftieth Showcase House in 2014. Founded in 1948, they have donated over $20 million to provide music programs in the community. Examples include the underwriting of concerts, choral productions, musical theater, opera, jazz quartets, marching bands, and orchestras at local schools, senior centers, and many other non-profit organizations.
Additionally, a staple part of PSHA’s program is music therapy for at-risk children, scholarships for young musicians, and music education at a variety of levels. This is in addition to their longstanding support of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association. They also produce three highly regarded annual music programs: Music Mobile™, Instrumental Competition and Youth Concert. An essential part of PSHA’s mission is to nurture the study and appreciation of music and to ensure that music is available to a broad range of audiences. For over 65 years, PSHA has funded and produced programs that have enriched the lives of countless people and brought a lasting legacy to the community.