Dear Friend of the Symphony and the Arts,
I am asking you to take action TODAY to preserve arts funding for the Symphony and other arts groups from the State of Arizona. As you may know, tickets sales cover about 50% of the Symphony's operating expenses and, therefore, we rely on annual grants and gifts like the $125,000 funding from the State of Arizona to present our 200 concerts per year and touch the lives of about 75,000 students and young adults.
Arizona's historic budget crisis has put the future of the state's arts community in serious danger. The Arizona House and Senate Leadership budgets:
- Propose cuts to the Arizona Commission on the Arts budget of more than 70 percent!
- Put at risk up to 50,000 private-sector arts industry jobs across Arizona.
- Virtually eliminate Arizona Commission on the Arts-supported education programs in school and communities that touch 1.7 million Arizona youth.
- Sweep the remaining $14.653 million from Arizona ArtShare, the statewide arts endowment fund that as recently as January stood at $20 million before the Legislature made its first sweep of funds.
Many of you are arts advocates, but I am asking you today to be an arts activist by taking the following actions:
Step 1. Locate your Legislator (For district 20, these are Rae Waters, John McComish and John Huppenthal)
Step 2. E-mail, call or write to your Legislator and tell them about specific arts programs in your area, their importance to your community's quality of life and how they have touched you, your family and your neighbors.
Step 3. Forward this e-mail to your friends, family and other arts advocates.
We support and appreciate our Legislative activists in the House and Senate who have defended the Arizona arts community, but they need your help in reaching out to the decision makers. Time is running out. The future of the arts in Arizona depends on you.
Make your voice heard!
Thank you for your support.
Sincerely,
Maryellen H. GleasonPresident & CEO
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