In the musical, White
Christmas, Capt. Bob Wallace, played by Bing Crosby, makes a heart-felt appeal to his fellow soldiers to leave their homes at Christmas and travel to Vermont to support General Waverly. They did so, relating their affection for their general by singing, "We'll follow the old man wherever he wants to go because we love him."
Those words from White Christmas express how many Baldwin High School alumni from 1954 through 1981 feel about Dr. Regis Shalley, the choral director during those years. Who would have thought when we stood on those risers so many years ago that we might seek an opportunity to give something back to the teacher who inspired us with a passion for performing excellent music?
As fate would have it, we have that opportunity.
We, the past members of the Baldwin
High School choral groups (Baldwinaires, Baldwin Highlander Choir, Boys' Glee Club and Girls' Glee Clubs) have the opportunity to name the soon-to-be-renovated Baldwin High School Auditorium, the Regis V. Shalley Performing Arts Center. How? If we raise $175,000 toward the construction of an orchestra pit, the Baldwin-Whitehall School Board has agreed to give us naming rights. Who is more deserving of this honor than Dr. Shalley, and who better to take on this challenge than we, his former students?
The Baldwin-Whitehall Friends of the Theater Arts (BWFTA), a charitable organization created to promote excellence in musical theater at Baldwin High School, is spearheading this effort by committing $22,750 toward the goal. But the vast majority of contributions will need to come from us, the alumni.
Please consider making a pledge to this effort. Every contribution you make is tax-deductible because the BWFTA is a
501(c)(3) organization. For a pledge form, click Pledge Now.
Before you make a pledge, you may want to go back to our days with Dr. Regis Shalley. Click on Dr. Shalley and you can read about him and actually listen to a Christmas and/or a Spring Musical Concert. Later if you want to submit a communication for posting in the section Alumni Notes (such as a class challenge or a special message), you can e-mail us at rallyforshalley@fyi.net.
For more details on the School Boards decision, click on BWFTA Letter and Board Resolution. For the details of the BWFTA's commitment to the campaign, click on BWFTA Resolution.
If you were or are a teacher in the Baldwin Whitehall School District, we have a special message for you, click BWSD Teachers.
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