Greetings from the F. Melius Christiansen Endowment Fund Committee!
Giving
2015 was another excellent year for ACDA-MN’s endowment fund as $42,491 was donated to support Minnesota choral music. We are most grateful that ACDA-MN (167) members contributed $18,253 to the FMC Endowment Fund this past year, while non-ACDA members (82) donated $11,243 in 2015. In addition, 16 corporations and foundations contributed $12,995 to our endowment fund, including a $10,000 match from The Katherine B. Andersen Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation for new or increased gifts. That is an incredible 265 supporters of choral music this year!
Scholarships
The F. Melius Christiansen (FMC) Endowment Fund awarded 27 scholarships in 2015:
Five (5)—Graduate Study Scholarships
Five (5) —ACDA National Conference Scholarships to Salt Lake City
Seven (7) —Summer Dialogue Scholarships
Ten (10) —Summer Dialogue Student Conductor Workshop Scholarships
Congratulations to our 2015 scholarship recipients! Since 1997, 276 Minnesota choral directors and student ACDA-MN members have been the recipients of $162,000 in scholarship awards. Names of 2015 scholarship recipients can be found at:
www.acda-mn.org/past-scholarship-recipients
Make a Lasting Difference
Please consider a special gift to the F. Melius Christiansen Endowment Fund in order to establish your legacy and ensure the future of Minnesota choral music. Simply designate the F. Melius Christiansen Endowment Fund as a beneficiary in your will or estate plans. The following statement will ensure that your gift is appropriately directed:
I bequeath ___% of my estate (or a specific fund) to the FMC Endowment Fund of the American Choral Directors Association a 501 (c)(3) non-profit corporation located at 12027 Gantry Lane, Apple Valley, MN 55124.
A bequest and estate planning form is available at:
www.fmcendowment.org/sites/default/files/BequestEstatePlanningForm.pdf
Thank you for your extraordinary support of ACDA-MN’s FMC Endowment Fund. It is truly so much more than just an endowment for ACDA-MN: we are a community of people—choral directors, students, parents, grandparents, and donors—who are brought together by a shared love of great choral music and a belief that diverse voices need to be represented in the world of music to ensure its legacy. Your generosity affords many ACDA members professional development opportunities through our annual scholarship awards program. We are most grateful.
May you enjoy health, happiness, and wonderful music throughout 2016!
Dawn Thomsen
Director of Development, FMC Endowment Fund