Friends,
The whole point of community is to make things happen that individuals can’t do alone.
And when individuals work together toward a goal, they naturally find themselves committed to the outcome.
That is the thinking behind “The 200 Club,” which The Freeman’s Journal is forming with this edition – see Page 3 – as part of its Bicentennial celebration.
The hope is that the newspaper, as a communication medium, might be able to find 200 people to contribute $200 – neither a little nor a lot – to a worthy cause, a $40,000 total.
If the idea catches on, next year we’ll attempt “The 201 Club” with the goal of encouraging 201 people to contribute $201 each, and so on.
Coincidentally, this year the Cooperstown Chamber Music Festival is celebrating its 10th anniversary, 10 years of bringing some of the top classical music talent in the country to Otsego Lake’s shores – audiences have seen such world-class artists as Midori perform in intimate settings. It’s a rare experience few communities enjoy.
The festival’s founder and artistic directtor, Linda Chesis, is committed to keeping the
concerts affordable as well, and this has required80 percent of the $140,000 annual budget to be
raised above and beyond ticket revenues.
It’s a stunning accomplishment, but so far it’s meant the festival has been living by its wits
– Linda’s wits, if you will – from year to year. But this has not dampened the festival’s ambitions.
Linda, a professor at the Manhattan School of Music, is hoping to develop an ongoing partnership
between that institution’s top-notch music students and aspiring musicians in the school districts
around Otsego Lake.
Further, this summer the festival is undertaking three Pro-Am concerts, where professional musicians play with top-notch non-professionals. The first of the free concerts – noon Tuesday and Wednesday, July 15-16, at The Farmers’ Museum (and 7 p.m. Monday the 14th at Pathfinder Village) – will feature pianist Bruce Harris, the Bassett Healthcare neurosurgeon.
The $40,000 – contributions are tax-deductible and will go into a non-restricted endowment –
will be used to encourage this kind of innovation.
If this works, there are many worthy civic efforts that could use a one-time injection of funds
to move to the next level. The Friends of the Village Library, the Cooperstown Pride Campaign,
you name it.
I hope you will join the Honorable Carol B. Waller, who characteristically led the way by
making the fi rst $200 donation, in making The 200 Club a success.
Jump in, the water’s great.

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