Hosts Annual Reception to Salute Benefactors
Content Courtesy of Pierson Grant PR
The Broward Performing Arts Foundation recently paid tribute to benefactors and supporters at its Annual Reception, kicking off the 2019-2020 season at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. Highlight of the evening was the announcement of a $5 million gift from the Lillian S. Wells Foundation to complete the Campaign for the Parker. Parker Playhouse, under Broward Center management since 2005, has been in need of major renovations and the successful conclusion of this campaign will allow for the completion of the project.
The $30 million capital campaign to restore and renovate the iconic Parker Playhouse was launched in October 2017 after a major commitment from the City of Fort Lauderdale indicated strong public support for the project. An early lead gift of $2.5 million was received from S. Donald Sussman, and other million-dollar gifts soon followed from JM Family Enterprises, Inc; Linda Haller; the Peck Foundation, Milwaukee; and Broward County.
To open the evening’s program, Foundation board chair Richard Welch took a moment to recognize the importance of the moment and the people who made it happen. “Together we exceeded our goal of $30 million,” Welch said. “That is an incredible accomplishment and one that will result in a lasting legacy.”
Foundation president Lisa Kitei thanked all the campaign supporters. She then presented the benefactors who had donated more than $1 million with commemorative plaques made from the marble taken from the original loggia of the Parker. “It is through the extraordinary generosity of these very special donors that we are here celebrating today,” she said. “Two of the most important gifts to a campaign are the one that opens it and the one that closes it. We were fortunate to have those gifts from Donald Sussman and Barbara Wells, respectively.”
The Annual Reception is also an occasion to hear from Broward Center President and CEO Kelley Shanley who updated guests on a year of activity at the Center. He spoke of the increased attendance at performances; milestones for the Ghost Light Society, now in its 10th year, and the Rose Miniaci Arts Education Center, in its fifth; and some of the new programs and services being introduced at the Center as a result of the successful run of HAMILTON. “The best is yet to come,” he said, citing the partnerships with Slow Burn Theatre Company, Florida Grand Opera, Miami City Ballet and Symphony of the Americas, as well as the presentation of some of the top musical, comedic and entertainment talents scheduled to perform this year on the Broward Center and Parker Playhouse stages.
The evening culminated with a special cameo performance by company members from Broadway Across America’s production of Les Misérables which opened the following night at the Center.
For more than 25 years, the Broward Performing Arts Foundation has been instrumental in providing support for the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. The Foundation was established in 1985 to deliver the required private funding to build the Center and create an endowment to sustain its operations. Over the years, the Foundation has successfully raised funds to support the Broward Center’s innovative and diverse programming, arts-in-education initiatives, community engagement activities and capital projects. Prior to the Parker campaign, the Foundation raised $60 million to complete the Encore! capital campaign to renovate, renew and revitalize the Broward Center.
