Sep. 30, 2009

The first Amabile family of choirs began in 1985 with the founding of the Amabile Youth Singers and has since grown to seven choirs under the direction of eight conductors. Over the years, the choirs have entertained audiences in Canada, the United States, Great Britain, Austria, Germany, Hungary, Australia and New Zealand, and won many international competitions. The Amabile Youth Singers, for example, won two gold medals at the 2004 Choral Olympics. “We sometimes say we’re better known around the world than we are in London,” says Lynn Davis-Campbell, past board chair. “That’s because we’ve done incredibly well on the global choral stage.”

Several years ago, the Amabile Board was considering a modest fundraising effort. Founding conductor John Barron urged them to think bigger and offered to match all donations up to $500,000 to create a $1 million endowment. Says Davis Campbell: “It was an amazingly generous gesture on the part of someone who obviously believes in the power of music and the wonderful things that happen when you bring kids and music together.”

The registered charity endowment fund was named John and Lowell Barron Amabile Choirs Fund to honour founding conductor John Barron.

A generous gift from Don Wright – a thank-you for his thank-you concert – has helped the Choirs toward their goal. Already, choristers are benefiting from the fund, which is used to reduce the financial burden on families and offset the cost of international travel.

“From the perspective of a charitable organization looking for an opportunity to do something in perpetuity, London Community Foundation is second to none,” says Davis Campbell. “This is about the long-term picture – 20, 30 or 50 years down the road. There’s a lot of comfort and security in knowing that the fund is well managed and will continue.”