Lobero Associates
The Lobero Associates keep busy. During the holiday season, they underwrite tickets for local children to attend holiday performances at the Lobero. Long-time Associate Sally St. John donated decorations for the front of the theatre and the Courtyard. Their annual holiday tea in December benefits C.A.L.M., and in the spring is the annual Hat’s Off luncheon, the group’s major fundraising event. Yet these are only a few of the behind-the-scenes charitable works that the Lobero women’s auxiliary has orchestrated throughout the past three and a half decades.
The year was 1972 when six friends decided that they would form a women’s auxiliary to raise funds for the Lobero—and throw some great parties in the process. Marilyn Schuermann, June Buell, Betty Behr, Tamara Usher Kinsell, Mary Jo Miles, and Carmella Pattitucci were all involved with the theatre and other charitable organizations when they decided that the Lobero needed some special attention.
In the beginning it was a homegrown affair, with the women cooking and serving hors d’oeuvres to audience members at intermission. By the second year, membership had grown to 15 and it was time to orchestrate the first of many grand galas for which the group became known-a lavish affair at the Marymount estate, then the home of Carmella Pattitucci.
“We all got together with our sewing machines and just started sewing,” recalls Schuermann fondly about some Morrocan style events later held at the Casablanca estate near Padaro (then the home of Associate Ruth Ann Montgomery). “Everything from the costumes and headdresses for the valets to the tablecloths.”
Over the years, the Associates’ activities have ranged from establishing a performing arts scholarship for local students to sponsoring auctions to benefit the theatre.
Today, as the organization celebrates its 35th anniversary, the Lobero Associates has become one of the most respected women’s organizations in the community, with more than ninety members and “mini-members.” In recent years, the Associates have become known for the Hat’s Off Luncheon, where, coiffed in fabulous hats, the guests enjoy fabulous food and bid on silent auction gift baskets as they gather to honor a female entertainer.
Past honorees have included Fannie Flagg, Debbie Reynolds, and Bea Arthur, to name a few.
Several years ago, in one of its most successful fundraising efforts, the Associates raised more than $230,000 for the renovation of the Lobero Courtyard. Just last year, they raised $35,000 toward the new piano. “This is an exceptional group of women,” says current Associate President Lily Marx. “We are lucky to have them all in one place!”
One of the things that makes the Associates so special is the wide range of experience in the organization, from founding members to newer recruits who are eager to make a difference. “We have a really amazing group of young women coming up,” says Schuermann. “Not all non-profit organizations are so lucky.”
Laurie Haight, a newer member and current Parliamentarian reflects, “For me, the Associates is a community within a community. I love listening to the different ideas of all these women, and having different generations represented.”
As for the Lobero, the staff and board are very grateful to this historic and esteemed group for its years of service and look forward to much success-and some great parties-in the future.
Written by Lisa Aviani