Just days after the Park Forest-based Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra formally moved March 7 to embark on its $5.1 million Campaign for the Future, concerts had to be postponed due to the pandemic.
After working to provide orchestra content in new ways while adhering to coronavirus restrictions, the orchestra is again focusing on the capital campaign by launching the public phase, which is aimed at raising the remaining $1 million.
“This is a really monumental next step for the organization to take to embark on something like this,” said Christina Salerno, executive director of Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra.
The campaign will help the orchestra “invest in the organization’s regional impact through expansion and innovation, cement multitiered educational partnerships and become an orchestra of the community by expanding its equity, diversity and inclusion programs and initiatives.,” according to a news release.
The impetus for a campaign came in 2017 from longtime Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra supporter the Davee Foundation, which is based in Oak Brook.
“We were really looking for ways to expand what we’ve already been doing in the south suburbs and become intricately connected into the community and so we just started talking to a lot of donors about the possibility of investing more heavily in the things we were doing,” said Salerno, of Clarendon Hills.
She learned in September 2017 the Davee Foundation was prepared to make a major endowment gift, but at that point the orchestra didn’t have mechanisms in place to accept such a donation.
“We really had to work to make sure that the organization was able to accept the gift,” Salerno said. “We had to form an investment committee and make sure that we had managers for the funds that we had faith and confidence in. We actually received the gift in March of 2018.”
The $3 million donation marked the first-ever endowment for Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, which performs at Trinity Christian College’s Ozinga Chapel in Palos Heights and was named 2020 Professional Orchestra of the Year by Illinois Council of Orchestras.
That led the a silent phase of the campaign after months of reviewing a feasibility study and forming a steering committee.
“We were able to receive a number of pledges toward the campaign,” Salerno said. “We have received a number of gifts as well. We were really on a high.”
Board members decided to widen the campaign to the public this spring, but then on March 12 concerts were shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra presented socially distanced concerts over the summer at Olympia Fields Country Club, an August string trio concert at Park Forest Main Street Market (formerly Park Forest Farmers’ Market) and an October string quartet concert outdoors in Park Forest.
A re-imagined 43rd annual season began with a virtual opening night concert Oct. 24 on the orchestra’s Facebook page and YouTube channel and Palos Heights TV Channel 4, a Comcast community access in Palos Heights, Palos Hills, Worth and Hickory Hills.
“We want to be really conscious that this pandemic has taken a huge toll on a lot of people,” Salerno said.
Since Salerno and music director Stilian Kirov joined Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra in 2017, they have worked on a number of initiatives including hiring a consultant from Orchestrate Inclusion, launching the annual Classical Evolve composition competition and enhancing the orchestra’s music repertoire.
“Even though the pandemic is a reality that we’re living with for the foreseeable future, we also think it’s important for art to live on and to make sure the community knows that we’ll be here when the pandemic is over,” Salerno said. “We’re ready to go public and look for other partners to fulfill this vision for the future.”
For more information on Campaign for the Future, which has already raised $4.15 million in gifts and pledges, go to ipomusic.org/campaign-for-the-future or call 708-481-7774.
Jessi Virtusio is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
