It's Spring!

​It’s time to think about getting the garden readied for planting the lettuce for the bunny rabbits. It’s time to think about where to snag a beach house for a summer vacation. It’s time to think about helping WMPA meet its goal towards the first of our two annual major fundraising drives. 
 
A rite of spring is the Spring 2 ACTion campaign.  WMPA welcomes the opportunity to team up with ACT for Alexandria to launch this year’s spring fundraising effort.  You don’t have to wait!  YOU CAN SEND IN YOUR CHECKS NOW (Payable to “WMPA” P.O. Box 16422, Alex, VA 22302)  We are an Alexandria charity.   Beginning in the very early hours of Wednesday April 8th, the S2A websites will be accepting credit card donations. Look for WMPA – whether it’s the S2A page for the horn players of the WashMetPhil, or a violaist with the WMYO Youth Orchestra, or Anna’s page or another, THE FUNDS ALL COME TO WMPA.  

In the past some of our patrons have asked “I live in D.C.  Why should I donate to a site promoting non-profits in Alexandria?”  The answer is: you are donating to WMPA.  We bring a culturally rich treasure of fine orchestral music to the area.  We need your support.

​S2A indeed is the single largest donation activity for charitable organizations in the city of Alexandria.  Technically, it is a single day of giving; this year is 24 hours of April 22nd.  Early giving begins April 8th. Good for ACT (essentially the United Way) to foster a spirit of giving!  As a longtime Alexandria resident, I know I will keep my credit card information “live” when I go into the various WMPA S2A sites. After “salting” a few of our sites, I will “pepper” several others, like the Animal Welfare League, a food bank, a homeless shelter and after-school education/rec centers.  Please feel free to scroll through the range of other causes and contribute…or not. 
 
As mentioned, you can mail checks to our PO box. For example, I already mailed a Qualified Charitable Distribution check from an IRA account. You can also donate directly on our wmpamusic.org website.  We have a way to communicate these donations to count towards the official S2A totals. (That is, up until they “close off” their tallies; we accept later donations towards our internal count.)  Yes, we can save a little bit on fees that way, but overall it’s SO EASY TO USE THE various WMPA S2A platforms!  Just donate!
 
For the past few years, through your generous support, WMPA has been on the TOP OF THE LEADERBOARDS for the size of our non-profit. This awards us a cash prize from the ACT organizers.
 
SO, LET’S BE ON TOP again!  Can we get the most donors? Can we get the most donations? Can we “win” the most donations on a single day? Please help us!
 
Anna, Megan and I plan to attend the Spring2ACTion kick-off party on April 15th, joining with other non-profits to celebrate this 16th year of fundraising for causes like ours.  

​What else is happening? Join us for the “Dog Walk” in Alexandria on Saturday April 18th, rain or shine. WMPA will host a table. Megan and I plan to hand out WMPA totes, car magnets, and flyers about our spectacular Mother’s Day concert, and our Lyceum summer series. 

I always carry dog treats with me, so I plan to greet all the pooches while Megan can engage the human passers-by.  It’s a fun way to introduce “WMPA” to many Alexandrians. Channel 4 Weatherman Chuck Bell will emcee again, with his two pups.

What else? Got some time to help? Consider joining the Board!  Got a garden club or bookclub? Consider sending a WMPA S2A link to them…maybe they might enjoy helping our worthy cause as we “countdown” to this spring fundraising!