One Family, Three Generations of SLSO Support

For Beverly Simowitz and her family, a love for classical music has always filled the home. Beverly and her late husband Fred Simowitz enjoyed playing duets together at home—she on piano and he on flute. That shared love of music was passed on to their daughter, Lynn Phillips, who recalls, as a child, hearing her mother play classics by Chopin, Debussy, and Mozart on the piano. Beverly and Fred took Lynn to SLSO concerts in her youth, nurturing a love and respect for the art form.

“The symphony has been a constant for me through the years,” Lynn said. She traced a lifelong relationship with the SLSO through “losing myself in an afternoon or evening listening to something beautiful” as a young adult to discovering an “awesome date night” with her own husband, David.

Lynn passed on the love of music instilled by her parents on to her daughter, Rachel Phillips, who recalls some of her earliest memories involving music—dancing in the family’s kitchen to all genres and attending SLSO family concerts with grandmother Beverly. As she got older, Rachel sang alongside the orchestra in pieces like Carmina Burana and The Damnation of Faust as a member of the St. Louis Children’s Choirs.

In addition to sharing her love of music with her family, Beverly has been a subscriber for many years, bringing many friends to enjoy acclaimed soloists in box seats, and also served as a docent at education concerts, helping to inspire countless children through music.

Beverly’s generosity toward the SLSO includes her support of the institution’s Annual Fund.

“We support the Annual Fund because we want the quality of music that we heard from the orchestra to continue for our children, grandchildren, and for all future generations of St. Louis families,” she said.

In addition to sharing her love of music, Beverly has also passed on her philosophy of generosity toward the SLSO. Lynn and David also support the Annual Fund.

“The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra has a special and different meaning to each of us across all three generations, but the one common thread is how much it enriches our lives,” Lynn—who serves as the Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications at Reinsurance Group of America (RGA), a corporate sponsor of the SLSO—said, “I think it’s our responsibility to make sure that the symphony we love so much is here for generations to come.”

Rachel, who now attends college in Washington D.C. agrees.

“There’s a peace and catharsis that you can only get through experiencing art,” she said. “And support of artistic outlets and organizations is more important than ever.”