Annual Report 2020 Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture
Dear Friends,
Bonnie Casper President, Board of Directors
Katey Boerner Executive Director
The tremendous challenges of the past year have given us a new perspective on why the Park and the Partnership are so important in our lives and in our community. As we continue to weather the pandemic, we looking forward to reemerging in 2021 Our Board President & Executive Director
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 1 From
As we reflect on 2020, COVID 19 has had a dramatic impact on our lives. With so many cultural programs and events cancelled, it has also shed new light on how important it is for people from all walks of life to participate in visual and performing arts experiences. The arts have been a haven this past year for so many people whose lives have been disrupted. Throughout the pandemic, the Partnership continued to focus on its mission to meet the creative needs of our community “Pivot” to virtual became the rallying cry of the arts world, and we worked hard to develop online offerings that served audiences both near and far, including studio art and music classes, virtual concerts and exhibitions, and art making videos for families with young children. In addition, we helped to stabilize the Park’s resident organizations and artists by providing training on digital platforms, developing opportunities for retail income, and waiving lease payments
We are truly grateful for the many policy makers and donors who provided emergency funding that enabled us to maintain programs and services despite major closures and revenue losses. This essential support also allowed us to build new offerings that can continue into the future even after in person programs have fully resumed ensuring more flexibility and accessibility We extend our greatest appreciation to Montgomery County, the State of Maryland, and the National Park Service for their critical support and leadership, especially as the entire country continues to navigate the path to recovery
Our Vision
About the Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture
The Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture, Inc. manages one of the liveliest visual and performing arts sites in the Washington area. Each year, more than 350,000 people come together at Glen Echo Park to renew their creative spirit through classes, festivals, exhibitions, dances, children’s theater, music performances, nature programs, and more Established by Montgomery County in 2002, the Partnership is a nonprofit organization charged with managing Glen Echo Park’s programs and facilities. In collaboration with Montgomery County and the National Park Service, the Partnership works with resident artists and organizations to develop distinctive arts programming; operates the historic Dentzel carousel; presents an extensive social dance program; produces festivals and special events; conducts fundraising and marketing; and manages and maintains all facilities.
Our Mission
The Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture, Inc. presents vibrant artistic, cultural and educational offerings at Glen Echo Park and promotes the Park as a unique destination for our region’s diverse population. It nurtures a dynamic community of artists and performers while preserving and managing historic facilities within a National Park.
Glen Echo Park inspires creativity and offers shared artistic experiences in a welcoming historic natural setting.
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Live from the Spanish Ballroom
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 3 Highlights
From September 18 through October 23, 2020, the Partnership presented a new concert series: Live from the Spanish Ballroom. This virtual series was streamed through Facebook Live every Friday night at 7:30pm Each week featured a different band from various musical genres. The music was exceptional, and we featured some of our dancers favorite bands from Tango, Swing and Contra; dancers were encouraged to dance along to the music at home! More than 650 people tuned in live during the series and hundreds watched the recorded concerts.
The Partnership launched a new series of Virtual Artists Talks in 2020 featuring exhibiting artists from the region. These online lectures dealt with wide ranging themes and ideas with some intersection of art and current cultural and social issues. Viewers also had a chance to ask the artists questions about their work and the artistic process Talks were free and presented live online and on demand. Featured artists in 2020 Virtual Artists Talks were: Preston Sampson, Ric Garcia, and Fierce Sonia. Virtual Artist Talks
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 4 Highlights
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 5 Highlights Virtual
The Partnership wrapped up its first virtual summer concert series on September 3, 2020. Presented every Thursday at 7:30 on Facebook Live beginning on June 25, the series included bands of many different styles. Performers ranged from Reggae band I & I Riddim to Americana/Country band Ruthie & the Wranglers, and from Latin Fusion group Trio Caliente to Russian, Ukrainian, and Eastern European folk music by the Washington Balalaika Society. This was our first foray into live concerts on Facebook, and it was quite successful. Views for individual concerts on Facebook ranged from 100 500, including live views and individuals watching the recorded concerts later. And with a virtual format, we saw participation in the series from people outside the Washington, DC area, including Philadelphia, Boston, and even Ukraine! Our summer concert audience was grateful to have free live music available during this unprecedented summer, and musicians were equally grateful to have opportunities to perform. Each week we had a virtual tip jar that collected donations to be split between the musicians and the Park. Summer Concerts
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 6 Redesigned Mobile-Responsive Website Highlights
In late 2020, we launched a new mobile responsive website. The project started simply as an upgrade to the latest version of the Partnership’s website content management system, which would result in a mobile responsive site. That was a much needed improvement, but since we were approaching the 10 year mark with our website design, it was also clear that we needed to make upgrades to the look & feel of the site. So the new site, in addition to being mobile responsive, has a more modern look and feel and navigation was improved. The site is more image intensive and calls to action and paths to revenue producing activities were optimized. We also made improvements to accessibility and SEO. Brand colors were transferred to the new site, and with a new font, also used in email and print communications, the Partnership has a more consistent branding across digital platforms as well as print.
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Highlights
In August, the Partnership launched its first full color, hyperlinked digital catalog for Fall classes in order to engage with and meet the needs of the Glen Echo Park community and beyond Distributing a printed catalog during the pandemic was not a safe way to reach our students, so we began to design the catalog as an online magazine. Each season’s catalog is now uploaded to the publishing platform Issuu and then embedded on our website. Links go directly from the catalog to our registration site, so signing up for a class couldn’t be easier! The Fall catalog alone was read more than 6,000 times, with over 1,500 clicks, and an average read time of 5 minutes. Catalog
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 8 Highlights
Online Art Market
Glen Echo Park Partnership Galleries curates and manages three on site galleries, as well as online exhibitions. In 2020, we launched our Online Art Market to showcase the work of established visual artists, including resident artists at Glen Echo Park and artists from the greater Washington, D.C. area. Our online shop serves the artists and the public in connecting patrons to high quality artwork and providing an alternative stream of revenue for both the artists and the Partnership.
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 9 Highlights
In early 2020, the Partnership collaborated with local brewery True Respite to commission a limited run craft beer celebrating Glen Echo Park. Reminiscent of an old fashioned malted vanilla milkshake, the Malted Milkshake Ale with its original deco inspired artwork was a unique way to celebrate the Park’s vibrant arts and cultural programs as well as the Park’s historic amusement park era. While the release party scheduled for March 2020 was canceled due to the pandemic, those who donated $50+ to the Park were still able to receive a 4 pack of the special ale delivered to local addresses during a special fundraiser in mid April Within less than a day of the fundraiser launch, generous supporters had claimed the entire supply! And more than half of these were new donors to the Park.
“My daughter loved the [camp’s] art projects and the beach theme! The teacher was great with the back and forth and engaging the kids The videos were terrific My daughter loved that they were directed at her and all the art it introduced her to I also loved that we could call in at a certain time each day for the Zoom call, but had the flexibility to do the art video when it fit our schedule ” Camp Parent REPORT
~ Sarah, parent of a WCM student
“My cello lesson was the best thing I’ve done since all this social distancing started ” ~Alexander, 12 year old WCM student
~ Liz S, Yellow Barn student
Kim Y, Yellow Barn student
2020 / PAGE 11
"A huge thank you to WCM for providing access to its world class faculty via virtual lessons! . . . Online lessons are providing a bit of structure in our child’s day and something positive to focus on. . . We’re taking advantage of WCM’s flexibility and adding extra lessons at a time when everything else is shut down."
“Thanks again Walt I have to tell you, I was in a deep funk until I [worked on] my last painting. I couldn’t stay focused on anything. Painting again truly did so much for me. Thanks for keeping the class going.”
"I have now had two virtual lessons via FaceTime with my teacher It was just like having her in the room with me! I found the experience very satisfying, and I feel confident that I will be able to continue my violin studies at the highest level." ~ Sandy, WCM student
ANNUAL
Online classes made a difference in our students' lives during this difficult year.
"[We liked the] mix of prerecorded sessions and live interaction, and supply pick up was easy!" ~ Camp Parent
“I just wanted to say that I found this whole experience ... to be extremely uplifting and hopeful. I’m very grateful to have this path and artistic outlet at such a difficult time, when there’s too much doom and gloom about I’m so thankful you are doing this, and I can tell how much effort and thought is put into the process It feels very empowering Thank you”
Carousel Carnival Gala Online Fundraiser
The Partnership had planned for the 2020 Gala to be the launch of a year long celebration of the Dentzel Carousel’s 100th Anniversary, but the start of that campaign was postponed to 2021 when the Carousel officially turned 100 years old
Gala in the Park 2020 In 2020, the Partnership had to cancel the annual Gala in the Park due to the COVID 19 pandemic. In lieu of the in person Gala, we celebrated virtually Since our Gala is the Partnership’s primary annual fundraising event and a key source of funding, we shifted to an online campaign to raise needed support for the Park’s programs We were so grateful to have support from those who had originally planned to be part of a wonderful in person event: Founding Board Member and long time supporter of the Partnership Carol Trawick taped a special message to the community, as did Gala Honoree Leo Daly, Chairman and CEO of Leo A Daly, and Gala Honorary Chair Arvid Enders, Minister of Communications & Culture with the German Embassy These messages spoke to the unprecedented times we were going through with pandemic closures and lock downs throughout the world and the way the arts bring us together.
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Patrons ($2,500 $4,999) Cynthia and Jeff Forster Freddie Mac Pete G Freeman John C Hanson Lois Ireland and Pierre Huggins Carol Hurwitch Jewell Foundation Mara Mayor Karen and Thomas A Natelli Revere Bank Amy Snyder Jim and Carol Trawick Foundation
Sponsors ($1,500 $2,499) Stuart Barkley Cole Birches Foundation Linda Kelly Jan and Charles McNamara Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation Matthew Murray Sanjiv Kumar and Mansoora Rashid Susan Stern Stacey Galik and Steve Strawn The Town of Glen Echo United Bank Sustainers ($10,000 and above) Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County John Britton and Martha Zeiger DECK Foundation Jackpot Janitorial & Commercial Services, LLC* LEO A DALY* John and Barbara Martin Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development Maryland Heritage Areas Authority Maryland State Arts Council Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Montgomery County Government National Endowment for the Arts the Puppet Co.* The Secret Magic Garden Society Shulman Rogers* Small Business Administration State of Maryland Small Business Administration Sullivan Family Charitable Foundation Benefactors ($5,000 $9,999) Bannockburn Civic Association Carol Sue and Chris Fromboluti GEICO Philanthropic Foundation Martha Morris Edward and Susan O'Connell Bill and Donna Roberts Hobart and Rose Mary Swartwood Bradley and Katherine Vogt Karen Wilson Friends ($1,000 $1,499) Marjorie and Harley Balzer Jordan Bruns Bonnie Casper Durward Center* James Cole Barbara D. Davis Jordan Drachman Mike and Adena Friedman Stacie Psaras and David Greenbaum Andrea and Mark Hill The Jaconi Hawe Family Deborah Winn and Allan Jaworski Marlene Kelly Robin Klugman Eunice Koch Nancy Kopp Danielle and Reverend Matthew Kozlowski Marilyn Leung Marilyn Marcosson Lester Mardiks Betsy Paull O'Connell Geza Serenyi Judith Weil Shanks Jeff and Stacy Sklaver Travis Family Memorial Endowment
Adeptus Partners, LLC AMR Commercial, LLC Laetitia Anderson Jacob Melamed and Robert Baker Deb Jung and Ben Bialek Katey Boerner Margie Bryant Michael Burack Amy Campbell Jeaneen Riely and David Cavanaugh Susan Cummins Peter and Charlotte Dean Mihir Desai Jennifer English Harley J Frazis Friday Night Dancers Gay Gellhorn Trish and Tony Glowacki Alyson Goldstein Burr and Fiona Gray Linda and Roy Green Stephen Greenberg Anya Grundmann Eric Hanson Ruth Harris Colin and Fran Helmer Smiley Hsu Jennifer Hussey
The Wain Stable Family Contributors ($500 $999)
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Thank You Donors!
Supporters continued Audrey Kinter Rebecca and Delegate Marc Korman Shyam Krishnan Randall and Pat Lewis Bob and Francine Ludt Jim Manley Michael Mann John Martinez Lisa Hepp and Daniel Martino Cheryl Masri Bruce and Teal McConkey Connie McGuire Meredith and Adrian Morris Ralph Nelson Rachel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell Heidi and Marc Parsont Samir Paul Sara and Arne Paulson Jane Pettit Beatriz Pinto Joanna Pistenmaa Eric and Marcia Polhamus Wendy and Alan Price Andrea Rinaldi Vanessa Rodriguez Patrick and Karen Rogers Heather Ross Monica Rusk Irena Savakova Vanessa Sax Julian Schweitzer Catherine Scott Denice Selvaggi Marc A Shepanek Noelle Sherber Susan and Jeff Shipp Mary Silva Ellen Spiegel Stephanie Smith and William Strang James Turnage Conchita Uyar Tara van Emmerik Hope Walker Sylvia Winik Beth Curren and Dwain Winters Dudley Winthrop Julie Zirlin *In kind sponsors
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 15
Contributors continued Jill Kargman Hon. Isiah Leggett Emi Lotto Brenda Martin Sue Mason Lily and Pat McGovern Willem Polak Rita Przygocki Ana and Jack Rasmussen Rita and Bob Reaves Greg Simon and Margo Reid Liz and Steve Robinson Corey Roush Robin and Sarah Salomon Jayne Sandman Steven Satterfield David M Schwarz Architects Charitable Foundation Roslyn Bacon and Edward F Sharp Shell Oil Sybil and Daniel Silver Scott Smith Lafe Solomon Allan Stevens Carolyn Wilson Beth Rogers and Mike Zangwill Supporters ($250 499) Katherine T Andrle Charles Applegate Katherine Arendt Tiffany Russo Audas Roy Beeler Susan Board Laura Bocalandro Dorothy Boerner Judy Bonderman Peggy Bosch Ginny Callanen Rebecca Chasan Chevy Chase Acura Patricia Choquette Patricia Ciazza Jenni and David Cloud Ann Cohen Brett and Janice Davis John W. Dix James and Cheryl Dodwell Adrienne Dominguez Julia Eager Tina Ejtemai Pete Epanchin and Rebecca Epanchin Niell Joanne Fujii Pirie and Maria Consuelo Gall Susan Gilbert Marilyn and Michael Glosserman Jennifer Golden Gregory Grant Molly Kidwell Grasso Google Heritage Montgomery Hillary Fitilis and Mark Hodor Patty Howie Cathy Furlong and Larry Kahn Constance Karageorgis Peter Merrill and Mariana Kastrinakis Hon Sidney and Sally Katz Miriam Kelty
Program Services 82% Management & General 11% Fundraising 7% Rental Income 26 2% Grants 24.9% Contributions 15.8% Other 15.5% Education Programs 7.2% Dances & Events 6 7% Retail & Carousel 3 5% Utility Reimbursements 0 3% ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 17 Financial Highlights 1,694,757 149,745 219,605 Program Services Management & General Fundraising FY2020 Expenses 623,914 6,556 592,359 377,056 160,779 170,412 83,163 368,517 Rental Income Utility Reimbursements Grants Contributions Dances and Events Education Programs Retail & Carousel Other FY2020 Revenue Our Washington Conservatory of Music (WCM) Irish Whistle/Flute teacher [used a] knowledge and ease with technology to more than successfully enable our online learning experience. Individual attention is not sacrificed and our lessons are still just as content filled and intimate. We can see and hear each other as we continue to enhance and expand our repertoire. Further, it is helping to continue the essential element of traditional Irish music community and fellowship. A true source of healing and joy in this difficult time. ~ Nicki, WCM student 2,064,107 2,382,756 $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
ANNUAL REPORT 2020 / PAGE 19 Board & Staff Board Bonnie Casper, President Martha Morris, Vice President Eric Nelson, Treasurer Susan Stern, Secretary Philip Fabrizio Peter G. Freeman Christopher Fromboluti Roy Green Polly Hahn Dan Hanlon Les Mardiks Mara Mayor Neeraj Mistry Samir Paul Willem Polak Ana M. Rasmussen Irena Savakova Frankie Stankovic Thalia Theodore Washington Mike Zangwill Ex Officio Members Hon. Andrew Friedson Kenneth B
Tomora Wright, Visual Arts Exhibition Manager
Emily Mah Rogers, Site Operations Manager
Janice Fischer, Registrar Kim Cuthbert, Programs & Registration Assistant
William
Becca
Jenni Cloud, Marketing & Communications Director
Debbie Mueller, Director of Development
Allison Garner, Marketing Assistant
Laura
Katey
Cheryl Fuller, Business Manager
Ama Mills Robertson, Director of Visual Arts and Education Programs
Jessica Gordon, PAGE Coordinator Trevor Gordon, Facilities & Maintenance Supervisor Bert Kenyon, Lisa Fahlstrom, Carousel Staff Marlene McConnell, Judie Gray , Sharis Simonian Assistant Registrars Lee, Bert Kenyon, Nicholas Beys , Facilities Staff
Staff Boerner, Executive Director
Susie Leong, Membership Manager Doyle, Events & Venue Manager Sherman, Events & Venue Assistant Manager
Resident Artists & Programs “Denise Dittmar is an amazing teacher and much beloved by both of our children. They have been taking her in person classes at Glen Echo for years, and her recent Zoom camps have been a godsend. She has a real gift for guiding children to understand and express their own individual artistic styles and passions. I hope she offers many more classes and camps in the Fall and in 2021…. Even our daughter, who generally hates Zoom, was happy to participate in Denise Dittmar's camps. Her instructional style is ideal for both in person and virtual teaching … Denise Dittmar is the most gifted art teacher we have had the privilege to know.” ~Camp Parent
Adventure Theatre MTC Art Glass Center at Glen Echo Glen Echo Glassworks Glen Echo Park Aquarium Glen Echo Pottery The PAGE Program Photoworks the Puppet Co. Sculpture Studio SilverWorks Studio & Gallery Stone Tower Studio Washington Conservatory of Music Yellow Barn Studio & Gallery Young Creative Spirit Non-Resident Partners Capital Blues Culkin School of Traditional Irish Dance Flying Feet Enterprises Folklore Society of Greater Washington Forever Dancing Friday Night Dancers Craig Gildner Big Band Metropolitan Ballet Theatre & Academy Tango Brillante DC The Tom Cunningham Orchestra Waltz Time & Other Individual Artists & Arts Partners
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Thank you to our Major Partners National Park Service Montgomery County, Maryland www.glenechopark.org Glen Echo, MD 20812 7300 MacArthur Blvd,
