<div>Dear Friends,
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<div>We are asking you to stand with the Greenville Gay Men’s Chorus at a difficult and deeply disappointing moment.
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<div>Earlier this summer, the South Carolina Arts Commission’s grant review committee approved operating support grants for more than 170 arts organizations across the state—including ours.
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<div>Then, at the Commission’s board meeting on August 20, board members stepped in for the first time in SCAC’s history and stopped funding for just two organizations: Greenville Gay Men’s Chorus and Proud Mary Theatre Company, both LGBTQ+ arts organizations. This action was against the recommendations of SCAC’s own grants panel. Our funding decision has now been delayed until October.
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<div>We want to be candid: we are not expecting that funding to be approved in October. For GGMC, that means a $13,000 shortfall for our operating budget each year for the next 3 years, totaling almost $40,000.
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<div>This treatment is not only unfair and discriminatory, it is illegal. Public arts funding should be based on the quality and impact of an organization’s work—not on whether it serves or is created by the LGBTQ+ community. The ACLU of South Carolina has also raised concerns about the Commission’s actions and the new resolution it adopted addressing “ideology” in grant-funded work.
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<div>But while this situation is being challenged, GGMC still has a season to produce and a community to serve. So, we are asking for your help!
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<div>If GGMC matters to you, please consider making a donation today. A gift of $25, $100, $500, or whatever you can give will help us build a stronger financial foundation for the years ahead. If you are able to make a larger gift or know someone who might be willing to help, we would be incredibly grateful.
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<div>We will continue to advocate for LGBTQ+ voices. And we will continue to do what GGMC has always done: create exceptional music, build community, and contribute to the cultural life of Greenville and the state of South Carolina.
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<div>Thank you for standing with GGMC!
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<div>Visit our website to see supporting articles: <a href="https://www.greenvillegaymenschorus.com/news" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Greenville Gay Men's Chorus News</a>
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<div><strong>**GoFundMe updates below**</strong>
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<div><strong>Thank you to those who donated on Zeffy!</strong>
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<div><strong>$500</strong>: Jeff Robinson
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<div><strong>$250</strong>: Sarah Farrar, Edith Hardaway, Lee Lynch, Charles Mullins
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<div><strong>$200</strong>: Robert Gurwin
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<div><strong>$125</strong>: Spencer Carr, Dunn Franco, Emily Gerber, Mickey Howell, Jacob Lindler, Daniel Lynn, Mendi Sandoz, Heather Smith
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<div><strong>$100</strong>: Jennifer Hanna, Will Jones, Katie Moritz
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<div><strong>$75</strong>: Gayla Day, Ben Stoudenmire
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<div><strong>$50</strong>: Philip Brown, Caroline Davis, Marium Faulkner, Ashlee McGandy, Craig Nelson, Jonathan Reid, Steven Smith, Melanie Trimble, Kristin Williamson
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<div><strong>$30</strong>: Patrick French, Keeley Krantz, Taylor Risser, Kenneth Roden, Lynnia Shanley, Bethany Tisdale, Katie Alice Walker, Amanda Walkup, Hannah Weaver, Carol Wheeler
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<div><strong>$25</strong>: Sarah Gray, Jane Herrick, Laura Kelley, Richard Robertson, Sean Murphy, Susan Woodham
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<div><strong>$20</strong>: Briana Schultz
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<div><strong>$15</strong>: Abigail Pabst
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<div><strong>$10</strong>: Reid Vanderburgh
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