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Naming the Phoenix Symphony in your estate plans is one of the most impactful ways to make a meaningful and lasting gift to your community. Planned gifts not only strengthen the Symphony’s artistic excellence and allow for growth in our education and outreach programs, they can also provide tangible tax benefits to you and your family or heirs.
We gratefully acknowledge donors who make provisions for the Phoenix Symphony in their wills through membership in the Encore Society. The Symphony accepts a variety of estate gifts as outlined below. If you’d like to explore other planned giving vehicles or to notify the Symphony of your generous intent, please contact our Development Office. You may also complete the Encore Society membership form below and mail to The Phoenix Symphony One North First Street Phoenix, AZ 85004.
Making a bequest to the Phoenix Symphony is an ideal way to make a significant gift, but retain the use of your assets during your lifetime. Through a will, a family can bequeath a specific dollar amount, a percentage of an estate, or a residual value after other gifts have been satisfied. Bequests can be for a designated purpose.
Naming the Phoenix Symphony as beneficiary of a life insurance policy, annuity, or retirement fund [e.g., IRA, 401(k), 403(b)] is a great way to eliminate substantial estate and income tax on these assets at the time of your death.
Legacy gifts of cash, publicly traded securities, or life insurance cash value from a policy that’s no longer needed can be given to the endowment fund at any time, providing tax-saving benefits for you and immediate benefits to the Symphony.
John Radway was an avid patron of The Phoenix Symphony, often travelling from his home in Wickenburg to attend Saturday night concerts at Phoenix Symphony Hall.
John and his wife, Claire, married on Thanksgiving Day in 1961. However, within a year, Claire began to have seizures, so John left his job as a prosecutor to be closer to Claire in case she needed his assistance. They remained extremely close throughout the onset of her dementia in 2003. John cared for Claire as she progressed through nearly a decade of dementia.
“When my wife was at Surprise palliative care unit, she was in a coma, but appeared agitated,” John said. “A nurse asked what kind of music she liked and put on a CD of the Peer Gynt Suite by Edvard Grieg. My wife relaxed with a smile on her face.”
Through his experiences taking care of Claire and volunteering at Hospice of the Valley’s Gardiner House, John realized the power of music in awakening memories for patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia. In 2017, he began supporting The Phoenix Symphony’s Memory Care and Hospice Care Initiatives which use music to improve, for a short term, a patient’s mood and emotional well-being. The uplifting songs and melodies played by The Phoenix Symphony musicians provided brief periods of joy and comfort for patients struggling daily with these debilitating diseases. As part of his volunteer work, John attended these musical events, enthusiastically thanking the musicians with his warm, gentle smile.
He established the Claire and John Radway Foundation, so that programs like The Phoenix Symphony’s Memory Care and Hospice Care Initiatives could continue after him. John passed away peacefully on November 18, 2021 at the age of 85. John was a special person to the Phoenix Symphony, a kind and caring man who is missed dearly.
In addition to the benefits listed below, Encore Society members are listed in all concert Program Books and are invited to an annual event each spring exclusively to celebrate and honor your commitment to leaving a lasting legacy at the Phoenix Symphony.
Once you have decided to include the Phoenix Symphony in your Will, Trust, and/or estate plans, complete and return the Encore Society membership form so we can begin recognizing your generosity and including your gift in our future planning.
To begin, fill out this form and send it to Tammy Rocker, Laura R. Grafman Senior Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer, and contact your attorney to ask for the Phoenix Symphony to be included in your Will or Trust.
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