Dear patrons, donors, and friends of Chamber Music on the Fox,

Nine years ago, Mark and I got a few friends together to put on some chamber music concerts in Elgin because it’s what we love. It didn’t take long for the itty bitty audience of three at our first concert to grow into a fully fledged non-profit that has garnished the support and acclaim of the wider Fox Valley community. We are incredibly proud of what we’ve built from scratch: a truly world-class chamber music series that provides immersive, inspiring, engaging performances to our Fox Valley audiences.

Nearly a decade since our founding, Chamber Music on the Fox is growing. We were lucky to have weathered the Covid-19 pandemic in great shape financially and organizationally. Because of our extremely low overhead expenses and the fact that chamber music is small and flexible enough to adapt our concerts into Covid-safe virtual performances, we were one of the few arts organizations that weathered the pandemic with virtually no losses. Thanks to your support, we were even able to fundraise for our CMOTF artists during the initial Covid shutdown, raising over $16,000 to the musicians who had lost their work and their livelihood.

Now that the pandemic is winding down, we are in a prime position for growth, and we are excited to be seeking a new Managing Director who can oversee the organization’s administrative dealings, seek out new funding sources, and help us expand our reach while staying true to our mission. At the same time, I wanted to let you all know that I will be stepping down from my role of Executive Director. You will still be seeing me at concerts, probably even playing at some of them! And I will still be involved on the CMOTF board as well as volunteering for the organization in other ways, but I am stepping away from the day-to-day administrative duties that I have been working on for the last nine years.

Being a Founder of Chamber Music on the Fox is one of the proudest achievements of my career, and I value and treasure my relationships with you, the patrons and supporters who have sustained this series as it has grown and flourished. My role as Founder is permanent, and one I will continue wearing with pride as I continue my work with CMOTF in a new capacity.

Thank you for the faith you have put in me and Chamber Music on the Fox these last nine years, I can’t wait to see what happens next with this wonderful and worthy organization.

Sincerely,

Sara Sitzer