An Appalachian Summer Endowments

Major Donors Shape the Future of An Appalachian Summer Festival

Their gifts help build a $5 million endowment to ensure the festival enriches the lives of future generations.

By Linda Coutant the art of giving

For 38 years, An Appalachian Summer Festival has brought world-class arts Nancy and Neil Schaffel The Schaffels’ engagement with the High Country began in 1972 when Nancy’s programming to the High Country—music, parents, Arnold and Muriel Rosen, were among many south Florida residents who theatre, dance, film and the visual arts, all at bought vacation homes in Beech Mountain and other local developments. Long affordable ticket prices. involved with the arts scene in Miami, the Rosens were among the original founders A program of Appalachian State Univer- of the An Appalachian Summer Festival in 1984. Family members spent lots of time sity, the festival and its future received signifi- here over the years. Nancy and Neil later inherited the Rosens’ summer home and cant backing through two recent gifts from in- recently made the High Country their full-time residence after retiring from jobs dividuals who fell in love with the region and in Florida (as bookkeeper and real estate lawyer, respectively) and living for a short its people decades ago: a $1 million matching time in Texas. gift from Neil and Nancy Schaffel in 2019 The Schaffels have continued the family legacy of supporting the arts in the High to encourage others to give and a $500,000 Country—“the place we call home,” they said. As part of An Appalachian Summulti-year pledge from Chris Petti in 2020. mer Festival, they created the Rosen-Schaffel Competition for Young and EmergThe Schaffel and Petti gifts will become ing Artists and the Rosen-Schaffel Endowment for Classical Music. They also have part of a $5 million endowment to keep An funded music scholarships through App State’s Hayes School of Music. Appalachian Summer Festival entertaining “I was raised with the arts, that was the culture of our home. My parents were and educating audiences in perpetuity. The involved in the opera, the ballet and the theatre. They instilled in me the value of the university’s Office of Arts and Cultural Pro- arts, and I have always felt the arts add so much to a person’s well-being and their gramming announced in May the endowment thinking,” Nancy Schaffel said. goal may be reached this summer. “It has felt like a family effort,” Neil Schaffel said of their continued giving. “The “These donors are creating transformation- Rosens made the first endowment commitment in the 1980s and we saw them as al change for the festival,” said Denise Ring- an example.” The idea for a matching gift for an endowment benefitting An Appaler, director of arts engagement and cultural lachian Summer Festival came from the successful matching gift program used by resources at App State. The endowment helps WDAV public radio station in Davidson, he added. “We thought, why not use this ensure “a bright financial future for the festival endowment as a way to get other people involved in the festival, too? for decades to come,” she said. “I think An Appalachian Summer Festival is the best example of a public-private “Endowment funds are game-changers for enterprise that I have ever witnessed,” he said. “My in-laws wanted to bring classical arts programs such as An Appalachian Sum- music to the High Country at a price people could afford… and the university, from mer Festival. Income from ticket sales covers chancellor to chancellor, has stayed true to the festival’s mission” of artistic excellence, only about 43 percent of the festival’s needed innovative programming, the commissioning of new works and support of young revenue each year, and private support must American artists, and educational opportunities. make up the difference. Endowment income Ticket prices are typically 30-40 percent lower than prices in other cities, and the serves as a ‘safety net’ by providing a reliable festival gives school coupons and discounts for children’s tickets. “There are many and predictable source of income to support people who have never seen a live performance before, and the festival gives them an festival operations if a future economic down- opportunity at a price families can afford,” Nancy Schaffel said. turn were to make it difficult for our annual “When you give, you get back so much more,” she continued. “It’s so enjoyable donors to sustain their contributions,” Ringler to see people benefit from what we’re able to do—I see the pleasure people have in said. seeing a performance, I see students benefit through scholarships, and I see people Here’s a look at these benefactors and their go to concerts they otherwise might not get to see.” reasons for giving so generously:

Nancy Schaffel, right, and Neil Schaffel in Rosen Concert Hall on Appalachian State University’s campus. Their recent matching gift supports an endowment for An Appalachian Summer Festival. Photo by Marie Freeman Chris Petti, left, with her husband Dr. Alfonso Petti, who died in 2019. Her recent gift supports an endowment for An Appalachian Summer Festival. File photo

Chris Petti

Chris Petti came to the High Country in the late 1970s with her husband, orthopedic surgeon Alfonso Petti, as a getaway from the Florida heat, first as summer renters and later as homeowners. They enjoyed many active years here together—opening Louisiana Purchase restaurant and an art gallery in Banner Elk—before he passed away in 2019.

They discovered a true and lasting fondness for the area, she said, and when Chris was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1999, she chose to pursue her treatment at Seby B. Jones Regional Cancer Center in Boone. She became a full-time North Carolina resident in 2021.

“This is my home, even though I’ve lived my whole life in Florida,” said Petti, who worked as a nurse and nurse practitioner and later became a watercolor artist. During her cancer treatment, “it was so peaceful and helpful” to be in the mountains, which she describes as magical. “This is the community where I was healed. I’m trying to give back in good ways,” she said.

The arts, Petti said, are the beauty of life. All the years she’s been in the High Country, she has sought out theater, music and other cultural events, so buying season tickets for An Appalachian Summer Festival seemed natural. Over time, she said, she kept increasing her giving, including making contributions in memory of her husband.

After hearing about the Schaffels’ $1 million matching gift, she pledged $500,000 in October 2020, she said, to help keep the quality of An Appalachian Summer Festival programming “at its current level or even higher” in the years to come and to maintain the low-cost ticket prices the festival is known for.

“The arts should be available for everyone,” Petti said. “You need to keep the arts at a decent price point so everyone can afford it, especially the students. I’m thrilled to help [An Appalachian Summer Festival] with what they need.”

Petti recalls having known Nancy Schaffel’s parents, Arnold and Muriel Rosen, who were among An Appalachian Summer Festival’s founders, during her early years in the High Country. “I used to be in a book club with Muriel,” she said.

“The Schaffels are following in the Rosens’ footsteps beautifully,” she continued. “If the Schaffels hadn’t stepped forward with their matching gift, I don’t know that I would have stepped up. I hope others will step up and follow, too, in any amount,” she said.

Petti plans to attend most Appalachian Summer Festival events this season. For those she has to miss, she said she will give away her ticket to someone who can go.

“I want anyone who has the opportunity to go to a performance,” she said. “You don’t know what you’ll like until you go and try it.”

About An Appalachian Summer Festival

Presented by Appalachian State University’s Office of Arts & Cultural Programs, this annual celebration of the performing and visual arts is held every July in venues across the university campus, and features an eclectic, diverse mix of music, dance, theatre, visual arts and film programming. An Appalachian Summer Festival began in 1984 as a chamber music series, and retains strong roots in classical music, combined with a variety of other programming geared to almost every artistic taste and preference. Attracting an audience of 28,000 to the High Country each year, the festival has been named one of the “Top Twenty Events in the Southeast” by the Southeast Tourism Society in recent years. For tickets and festival details, visit www. appsummer.org or call the box office at 828-262-4046.

Looking Back

Flipping through back issues of CML is like time traveling for me. The first printed 48-pager was born over a cup of coffee and a simple idea. The evolution to 148 pages on matte finish and perfect binding feels akin to my own life changes: some gradual, some drastic, yet all leading towards a goal. I hope that CML will continue to be a go-to for folks to learn about this area but also to discover the intricacies of what makes it magical—the people, places, and events.

Through the years, we have showcased some very compelling subjects and interesting folks. In our first edition, we featured Dennis Garman, who was one of the most badly burned Vietnam veterans to have survived, and yet he became a golf pro at Beech Mountain Club for years. We had a small hot air balloon business prior to starting the magazine and flew over Valle Crucis for a story in our first issue. We have gone deep with peoples’ hearts and souls and have flown high above the High Country to capture the tales that are everlasting.

I love when we receive letters and emails from folks telling us that they read us cover to cover and how much they were inspired by certain features, or that they learned something new, or tried out one of our recipes.

Long-standing themes that run in almost every summer edition include fly-fishing, celebrating An Appalachian Summer Festival, health and outdoor adventures, recipes, and profiles on folks and places that have made an impact in this area.

The cover images have changed through the years to reflect not only the season, but the times. Our cover was ready to go to press right after 9/11 and we pulled it and had Matney firefighters pose in front of the flag as a tribute to all first responders for their selfless duty.

We have mixed our covers over the years, from scenic landscapes, local art, to folks posing and illustrating a lifestyle. Many of the models were family members—they didn’t charge a fee!

We hope you get a feel for the bounties of summer with this cover shot. Let us hear from you… and share your copy with a friend or tuck it away for reference—we print plenty!