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furloughed government employees
Orchestra News

Union Orchestras Provide Free Tickets and Donate Food for Furloughed Government Employees

furloughed government employees
On January 25, Baltimore Symphony Musicians, Local 40-543 members, delivered 448 pounds of groceries to an emergency food drive at the Manna Food Center in Maryland. The drive was in response to the federal government’s partial shutdown when more than 80,000 Maryland residents went five weeks without a paycheck. The food bank exclusively serves residents of Montgomery County, which is the location of the Strathmore Music Center, the BSO’s second home. Baltimore Symphony Musicians also delivered a cash donation to the Maryland Food Bank. Pictured (L to R) are Baltimore Symphony Musicians Greg Mulligan, Schuyler Jackson, Michael Lisicky, Brian Prechtl, Kevin Smith, and Mary Plaine, secretary-treasurer of Local 40-543.

To help employees facing hardship due to the government shutdown, union orchestras and their members provided free concert tickets to furloughed government employees and their families. Some offered complimentary tickets to various performances at the end of January, while others offered up to five free tickets to employees and their families for late January or February concerts.

Among orchestras that provided such tickets were: Akron Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Erie Philharmonic, The Florida Orchestra, Kansas City Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, Nashville Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Portland Symphony Orchestra, Spokane Symphony, and Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, to name a few.

furloughed government employees
Pittsburgh family support center Providence Connections opened its doors to furloughed federal workers. Musicians of the Pittsburgh Symphony, members of Local 60-471 (Pittsburgh, PA), donated money to the center’s food pantry. Presenting the check to Family Engagement Specialist Justin Brown are (L to R) Lorien Benet Hart and Jennifer Steele.  

Pittsburgh Symphony and Baltimore Symphony musicians  also helped furloughed employees by providing food and money to local food banks. Members of  Local 60-471 (Pittsburgh, PA) gave a check to Providence Connections’ food pantry as well as to Manna Food Center in Maryland in recognition and support of their Baltimore Symphony sisters and brothers. Members of Local 40-543 (Baltimore, MD) delivered 448 pounds of groceries to the Manna Food Center and made a cash donation to the Maryland Food Bank.