The Ebell of Los Angeles installed their new board of directors at the women’s non-profit organization’s semi-annual business meeting on Monday.
President Laurie Schechter told members and guests gathered at the meeting the organization has ended a remarkable year of success. (The Ebell operates on a July fiscal year.) She began by saying, the organization now has over 608 members which is a net growth of 12% over last year.
“This is the largest number of members we have had in many years, though we had over 3,000 members when we opened this building in 1927 and it is our goal to get back to that number,” said Schechter.
The year ended with an unprecedented $9,468,554 in annual revenue, approximately 51% above the projected budget and 34% above the previous year. Schechter said a significant growth in contributed income from 202K last year to $2.5M this year accounted for much of the improvement in the organization’s finances.
J. Lee Braly, Finance Director and board member credited Dr. Stacy Brightman and her staff for increasing revenue while holding down expenses.
“Stacy and the management team have done a wonderful job,” said Braly. “They have also diversified our revenue stream with grants and stabilized expenses improving our operating results.”
Braly said the organization now has approximately $10.5 million in assets plus an additional $6 million in their Scholarship and Rest Cottage Association endowments.
Last year, The Ebell/Flint Scholarship program awarded $217,000 in scholarships to 44 college students, reported Anne Lynch, Scholarship Chair. Rest Cottage Association Chair Julie Barkan reported the association provided $157,000 in grant funding to 14 local nonprofit organizations providing compassionate support to women and girls in Los Angeles.
Board Director and Chair of the House Committee Christy McAvoy reported that much has been accomplished over the past year in the master planning process for the organization’s seismic retrofit of the historic campus subject to the City of LA’s mandatory seismic retrofit program.
“As stewards of this building, we need to prepare to keep it up,” said McAvoy. “The building has always been well cared for.” She assured members the building would look almost the same but “just a little bit sharper” though much will be done to solidify the structure, improve the building’s systems, and increase accessibility including the installation of a second elevator.
“That’s why we call it a “master plan,” it’s not just a seismic, it’s all things that we’re going to need to do bring the building into the 21st century,” said McAvoy.
This year McAvoy said they have completed a cultural landscape component and an accessibility assessment as well improved financial tracking and reporting of building maintenance and master plan expenses.
“It has been a joy to work with staff on both major repairs and maintenance,” said McAvoy. “We have one of the best, most caring facilities staff on the planet, they really know this building and point out any issues and our members do the same.”
With much of the master plan in place, McAvoy explained they were able to develop a preliminary estimate of the retrofit project’s cost at approximately $50 million.
“It’s a good number and we’re going to work toward that goal,” said McAvoy. “We are very confident that in our world of master plans and nonprofit fundraising and historic preservation, the master plan we have created will show funders that we’ve done our due diligence.”
To date, the organization has spent approximately $600,000 on the master planning process.
Executive Director Stacy Brightman closed the meeting with her report on the progress of the past year and a look forward with plans for next year.
“I would love to close today with a little bit of a look forward and to share with you some of the initiatives undertaken this year to create greater efficiency, build more capacity so we are more sustainable, and most importantly, leverage our strengths for ever greater impact toward our mission,” said Brightman.
First, she described the Centennial Task Force, a group of members planning for the centennial of the building in 2027. Then Brightman described their newly formed Diversity Equity and Inclusion Task Force exploring how The Ebell can be the most inclusive and welcoming space and community for all. She said the organization was committed to making the effort “more than checking a box.”
“This is really about how we make sure we live our values,” said Brightman. “And, that we as an Ebell community lead with kindness and compassion and inclusivity as we are stewarding our mission and our campus,” said Brightman.
During the last 12 months, The Ebell hosted 243 programs compared to 119 the previous year with 96 percent focused on women. Brightman explained that all programs are evaluated to see if they are “inspiring women, building community, stewarding our beautiful campus and collections. Are we advancing the arts and culture, I keep going back to those original articles of incorporation directing us to advance all lines of culture,” said Brightman.
The programming at The Ebell is resonating with local foundations and donors who have stepped up to support the organization with over $800,000 in grants this year. Funders include the Ahmanson Foundation, Perenchio Foundation, Haynes Foundation, and the NEA. The organization received repeat grants from R.M. Parsons, Artistic Scholarship Fund, and Showcase House.
Ebell members have also stepped up their giving to The Ebell’s annual stewardship campaign with 22% of the membership donating $103,000. Overall individual donations are up 30% from last year, exceeding $200,000.
But by far, the largest donation the organization received came from the new planned giving program. The estate of Fluff and Sandy McClean contributed $1.5 million. Fluff McClean was a longtime member and former President of The Ebell. Another gift is expected from the trust of Margaret Rushfeldt.
“Those funds went directly into what we call our Future Fund,” said Brightman. “This is The Ebell’s first dedicated fund for the organization. It’s a quasi-endowment that will sustain us for the future. We didn’t have those funds three years ago and now that Future Fund is $6.5 million.”
Looking ahead Brightman is activating The Ebell space every day, whether it’s for a rehearsal for the Chorale, which is open to non-members or dance workshop. And there is still capacity to do more, she said.
“It is such an honor to get to do this work and deal with people I so admire,” said Brightman. “I always go back to the crossbeams in the ceiling, which feature the iconography that our foremothers built into our building. If you look up you see there is a globe symbolizing international affairs and a scripture. These images remind us to think big, to think globally bigger than ourselves, and to keep the faith!”
The meeting adjourned for lunch and the formal installation of officers.
2024-2025 Ebell Board of Directors
President Randi Jones
Vice President Catherine Collins
Treasurer Fazie Yakub
At Large Directors:
Rosa Bravo
Beverley Clarkson
Lauralee Gooch
LaToya HearnsÂ
Camille Lombardo
Geraldine Maloof
Nellie Scott
Fran Varga 
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Current Board Members Continuing to Serve:
J. Lee Braly
Denise Parga
Christy McAvoy
Laura Louden
Clare Sebenius
Julie Barkan
Anne Lynch
The following were also elected to the Nominating Committee Members: Jill Bauman, Cheryl Finley, Donna Russell, and Laurie Schechter. They join the following members who will serve another year: Kay Balue, Marnie Bodek, Judith Day,
Madelyn Murray, and Christine Tran.
