Legacy Society Spotlight: Robin Angly & Miles Smith
The Houston Symphony's Legacy Society honors all donors who remember the Houston Symphony Endowment in their estate plans.
Two music-loving Legacy Society members, Robin Angly and Miles Smith, have been friends of the Houston Symphony since 1995. Robin, owner of Venture Partners, and Miles, an attorney, are true music aficionados and support the full range of Houston's music nonprofits. Miles is a Governing Director on the Houston Symphony Board, and together they chaired the Underwriting Committee for the 2016–17 Opening Night Concert and Gala, which was chaired by their good friend Ralph Burch of ConocoPhillips.
Symphony Notes (SN) spoke with Robin (RA) about her involvement with the Houston Symphony and the Legacy Society.
SN: What draws you to music?
RA: Well, I'm a native Houstonian, but I was very fortunate to grow up in Aspen, Colorado, where they have one of the best classical music festivals in the world. So I was really raised with opera music and symphony music. Music is very important to us. Miles and I are both trained singers. Miles plays the clarinet, and he's also a tenor. And I sang in the Houston Symphony Chorus for a while. Houston has so many great organizations, and we support as many as we can: the Symphony, HGO, Da Camera, Ars Lyrica, and also InPrint—that's not a music organization, but they bring in a lot of great writers.
SN: Those are all great organizations. Why is important for Houston to have such a strong cultural industry?
RA: It's good for business. Quality of life is a big consideration for corporations deciding where to be located, and their employees are drawn to the arts as well. To give a personal example, when I was working for United Airlines, I accepted an assignment to work in Cleveland, specifically because I was drawn to the Cleveland Orchestra. It even helps tourism. You get a lot of visitors coming to Houston for the arts.
SN: What do you think about the Houston Symphony at the moment?
RA: Very exciting things are happening at the Symphony. Although we've enjoyed the Symphony for a long time, Miles and I have increased our involvement with the organization in recent years, especially since our friend David Chambers started working here and since Mark Hanson became Executive Director/CEO and Andrés Orozco-Estrada became Music Director.
The Symphony's just really in good hands right now. But we realize that none of those people will be here forever. We're committed to the Houston Symphony in the long term, and that's why we became members of the Legacy Society.
SN: Who first connected you with the Legacy Society?
RA: Betty Tutor has been a good friend of mine for a long time, and she convinced us to join. She and her husband, Jesse, are great supporters, and we followed their example.
SN: What's the importance of the Houston Symphony Endowment?
RA: For a nonprofit organization, if you don't have an endowment, if you can't balance your budget, you have nowhere to go. It's extremely important. I know of several cases of arts organizations that don't have an endowment at all, and without an endowment, you're not protected. I'm not driven by ego—I want to make sure that we can perpetuate the arts, and the endowment is how you do that.
SN: By strengthening the bottom line, what does the Houston Symphony Endowment make possible?
RA: I think of some of the things the Symphony has been able to do, like the Community-Embedded Musicians, and their work embedded in schools. That's a wonderful new program, and I'm hoping it will continue.
I'd also mention the current Composer-in-Residence, Gabriela Lena Frank. I've gotten to meet her and I'm so inspired by her—she's one important reason why I'm involved with the Symphony. I'm very much looking forward to the world premiere of her Requiem in May 2017. I'll be heavily involved in that. It's a great asset for her to be affiliated with the Symphony, and I hope the Composer-in- Residence program will be continued.
SN: What's it like to be a member of the Legacy Society?
RA: The people involved in the Symphony have played a huge part in helping the organization get to where it is today. The Symphony has such wonderful donors. It's a group of close friends who all love the organization and want to make sure it continues. I think of my 9-year-old granddaughter—I want to instill my values in her, like the importance of giving something back. After all, I want to make sure she can enjoy the Houston Symphony all her life.
For information on the Legacy Society, contact Hadia Mawlawi at 713.337.8532 or Hadia.Mawlawi@HoustonSymphony.org. He'll be happy to answer your questions, and to explore options that best fit your individual needs. You may also learn more at houstonsymphony.planmylegacy.org.