The Los Angeles branch of the ESU is committed to promoting scholarship and the advancement of knowledge through the effective use of English in an expanding global community.

We provide educational, cultural and social activities throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

President's Message

Dear ESULA Friends,

 I am delighted to report that Pat Schroeder, our national chairman, has accepted an invitation to visit our branch, and we look forward to welcoming her at a luncheon on September 20, time and location to be announced.  With the installation of Pat as our National Chair, ESU has embarked on a review of our mission statement. This is a time of reassessment and planning for the future both nationally and within our branch, and we encourage you to contact Board members and the national office to share your thoughts and ideas.

At the invitation of the Weingart Foundation, which has awarded a grant to the Shakespeare Workshop Series, several Board members recently participated in an online organizational assessment.  Louis Fantasia reviewed the results with the Board at our May meeting. The results held no surprises. What we do, we do well, but the lack of a strategic plan presents a serious challenge.  We are fortunate to have several new Board members with special qualifications to help us make the most of this time of reassessment and planning.  (You will meet them in this issue.)  Don Cook, whom some of you will remember as a former ESU/LA Board member, has agreed to facilitate a Board retreat this summer to develop a strategic plan.

When I took office last fall, we were concerned about funding for the Shakespeare competition this spring.  Enter Barbara Martin, our Development Coordinator, who suggested we invite a small group of special friends to join the Angels with a generous gift in support of the competition.  Our warm thanks to Ethel Farrand, Rosemary Lonergan, Priscilla Moorman, Mary Lois Nevins, and Enid Reeves for their generous support. Together with other patrons who responded to our patron letter, they made the competition a reality this year.  In addition, we received a grant of $10,000 from the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, so we are in a strong position to continue our efforts to bring Shakespeare to life in Southern California. We were honored to have Bob Tuttle, former U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain, as Honorary Chair of the competition, and hope to welcome him to other events in the future.  I’m happy to report that Joe Farragher, the winner of our branch competition, placed as a semi-finalist in New York.

I look forward to seeing you at our fall meeting with Pat Schroeder.  She is an energizing leader, well qualified to help us develop a vision for the 21^st century.

Cordially,

Peggy Spear

President