From Duane Gordon

Dear Fellow Middletown-Area Folks:

If you have attended one of our fund-raising events or made a contribution to my Flash Gordon Conductor Auction Campaign to support the Middletown Symphony Orchestra, please allow me to thank you for your help!

If you have not supported us (yet!), please take this final opportunity to consider making your tax-deductible contribution to help the campaign as it draws to a close. The “winner” of the contest will be announced at the Symphony’s first concert of the season: 8 p.m. Saturday, November 19 at Towne Boulevard Church of God. Therefore, we have to have all gifts turned in and counted a few days in advance of that event.

As a 501(c)3 charity, all donations to the Symphony are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. For your gift to count toward the “Flash Gordon” Campaign to help me win the Conductor Auction, please make your check payable to the Middletown Symphony Orchestra, but mail it in care of my campaign co-treasurer, Janet Crawford, at 35 Indiana Avenue, Unit A, Monroe, OH 45050-1224.

One of the Symphony’s most beloved traditions is the Annual Conductor Auction Pops, where community leaders are invited to run campaigns to support the coming concerts. This is the Symphony’s largest fund-raising campaign of the season! At the first concert of the season, each candidate conducts a piece of his or her choosing with the Symphony, and then the “winner” who raised the most money is named. I am honored to have been selected as one of this year’s candidates, with my competitor being Monroe Local Schools Superintendent of Education Elizabeth “Libbie” Lolli.

An actor and vocalist myself, I know the personal impact the arts have on individual lives. In my role as executive director of our community’s single largest funder of the arts, the Middletown Community Foundation, I have seen first-hand the tremendous benefits that the arts bring locally, improving our quality of life to make the Mid-Miami Valley a better place to live, work, and play while at the same time serving as an economic driver in our community.

One of our longest-standing and most important local arts institutions is the Middletown Symphony Orchestra, celebrating its 69th season. However, as with all arts organizations, ticket sales cover only a fraction of its expenses. The balance of costs, in the case of MSO about 75 percent, are paid by donations from generous individuals, organizations, and corporations. Without your support, it would not be possible for the Symphony to continue.

Thank you in advance for your consideration of this request. I look forward to receiving your assistance!

Our campaign chairperson is Doug Bean. Co-treasurers are Janet Crawford and Ellen Paxton. Campaign committee members are Mary Ellen Clinard, Roger Conner, Kelly Cowan, Roger and Bonnie Daniel, Matthew T. Dixon, Nita Driscoll, Bob and Sharon Flagel, John and Penny Herr, Joe and Linda Hudec, Jay and Linda Moorman, William “Kip” Moore, Larry and Cathie Mulligan, Mayor Larry and Kristen Mulligan, Jamie Murphy and Phillip Harrison, Barb Orth, Mike Sanders, Adriane Scherrer, Mike Scorti, Charley Shafor, J.C. and Anita Shew, Pam Steiniger, Melissa Taylor, and Mary Deas Wortley. I thank all of them so very much for their help throughout the campaign!

Here’s an article from The Middletown Journal on the two campaigns: http://www.middletownjournal.com/news/middletown-news/guest-conductor-race-enters-home-stretch-1271626.html?cxtype=rss_local-news

And our Facebook page is available at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Flash-Gordon-Symphony-Campaign/230352410331205