The Boston Symphony Orchestra's Presidents at Pops Concert took place at Symphony Hall on June 8, drawing 1,800 members of the corporate community and raising $1 million—a $100,000 increase over last year's take.
"The event is successful for a number of reasons," said Mary Thomson, the symphony's associate director of corporate giving. "It blends a unique format— cocktails, dinner at café tables, and a Pops concert with celebrity guest artists—with direct and committee fund-raising by some of the most influential C.E.O.s in the greater Boston region."
This year, American Idol season-five finalist Katharine McPhee sang in the concert, and local players from the Celtics and the New England Patriots appeared onstage. Peter Palandjian, chairman and C.E.O. of Intercontinental Real Estate Corporation, was chairman, and committee members represented companies such as Arnold Worldwide and Goldman Sachs.
In honor of the event's 30th anniversary, planners instituted a new honorary committee this year, which consisted of past chairs, several event founders, and committee members "who had served on both the fund-raising and event logistics committees in the 1980s and 1990s," Thomson said.
There was also a new sponsorship level, known as the Presidents Circle. "We had 23 Presidents Circle sponsors, many of whom were represented on the fund-raising committee," said Thomson. These additional sponsors were instrumental in helping us reach the $1 million mark."
