By Rebecca Portnoy, Communications Manager, Concordia College

Nov. 6, 2019:  Members of Concordia’s community have come together to demonstrate the value Sommer Center holds to them, donating over $100,000 in the last two weeks for critical improvements to the venue, representing over third of the campaign’s total goal. 

The honorees of this year’s 38th annual Community Dinner, Claudia and Rodolpho Amboss and Simoni and Mauricio Morato, led the way with a gift of $50,000 on the night of the event, where they were presented with the President’s Award for Excellence in Service to the Community.

The giving continued at the first Hoch Chamber Series concert of the season, when the world-renowned Emerson String Quartet brought a sell-out crowd to its feet with an evening of Beethoven, Dvorak and Mendelssohn – Fanny that is, not Felix. Longtime fans of the Hoch Series are particularly attuned to the unique quality that Sommer Center’s soaring acoustics give the intimate space, and Jim Hoch, founding underwriter of the Hoch Series, Concordia College President John A. Nunes and Concordia Conservatory Executive Director Kathleen Suss made direct appeals to these music lovers on the night of the event.   

President Nunes and Jim Hoch

The campaign Sommer Center: A Vision for Our Shared Future has identified key upgrades to ensure that the venue will remain the vital community resource it has been since 1982. Sommer Center for Worship and the Performing Arts has been the site of countless events, from baptisms to weddings, convocations to commencements, student recitals to Hoch Series performances by revered musicians and performers. Sommer is also the site of Concordia College’s popular Books & Coffee events, the Sluberski Film Series, the Jacobson Lecture Series, and the annual Dialogues on the Quad event. 

Emerson String Quartet

The $300,000 campaign’s vision includes upgrades to the lobby, creating a welcoming space reflecting a rich legacy of performance and worship, functional across the spectrum of users and experiences. New lighting will ensure a beautifully illuminated chapel and auditorium equipped with intelligent, adaptive, energy-efficient LED lighting. A modern audiovisual system will enable dynamic, innovative programming with multimedia content. 

To give, text sommer to 41444, or visit Concordia-ny.edu/giving and select Sommer Renovation Fund from the Give Now drop-down menu.

Pictured at top: L to R:  Mauricio Morato, Simoni Morato, Claudia Amboss, President Nunes, Rudolpho Amboss

Photos courtesy Concordia College

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