For Jeff and Gwynn Sharpe, The Laguna Playhouse is a family affair. The Monarch Beach couple loves theatre and despite busy lives, including the time-consuming delights of raising two young daughters, try to attend as many Playhouse performances as possible. Their girls enjoy Youth Theatre productions and eight-year-old Kimmy, the youngest, takes the Playhouse's Creative Drama class. "She's a little ham," says Jeff, with an admiring chuckle.

Board of Trustees member, Jeff Sharpe

Beyond this, explains Jeff (Director of Brokerage Services with international corporate realty firm, Cushman & Wakefield), getting involved more deeply with the Playhouse is like becoming part of a large extended family. "It's a wonderful chance to share a personal passion with like-minded people in the community."

Jeff and Gwynn therefore decided to make a commitment and joined the inner circle of Playhouse donors by becoming Trustees. Jeff was also invited to join the Board of Trustees and now, two years later, he's designated chair of the new Corporate and Foundations Committee. The committee's focus is annual giving, the contributed support that helps underwrite the Playhouse's continuing operations. Current corporate and foundation giving accounts for roughly $400,000 of the Playhouse's almost $6 million annual budget. Jeff believes there's scope for that figure to grow. "The arts tend to come low on the philanthropic totem pole," says Jeff, "but having vibrant arts organizations is as crucial to the overall well-being of a community. The arts feed the imagination and the intellect, establish bonds of social understanding and, from a pragmatic standpoint, they're also economic engines."

Jeff believes that corporations benefit by investing in arts organizations such as the Playhouse. "Becoming a corporate partner offers advantageous marketing opportunities. Equally, as responsible corporate citizens there's a responsibility to give back to the community where you do business. They are also competing nationwide and internationally to attract the best employees to Orange County, the kind of people who want to live in a richly diversified community that embraces arts and culture."

To learn how you can join the Playhouse Trustee program, please call Amy Larson, Director of Individual Giving, at 949-497-2787, ext. 217.