02/24/2023
A NEW ERA: WE ARE GROWING, AND CHANGING!!!
As the foundation begins its 34th year supporting the musical talent of our scholars, there have been a few changes, including new board members, a new website, and not least of all, a new name!
THE BOARD APPROVES A NAME CHANGE
The board unanimously elected to amend the name of the Bruce R. Foote Memorial Scholarship Foundation to reflect the growing profile of the foundation’s founder, Barbara Hill Moore, and by extension, the foundation itself, through its increased visibility and recognition. The renamed organization, the Barbara Hill Moore and Bruce R. Foote Memorial Scholarship Foundation, is a way of honoring the past while capturing the spirit of the future.
CATCHING UP WITH THE FOUNDER
And with that in mind, it has been a busy and productive year for the foundation president, Hill Moore. In May of last year, Professor Hill Moore was awarded the Faculty Career Achievement Award for her contributions to the teaching, scholarship, and service missions of Southern Methodist University.
“SMU offered me the opportunity to teach, mentor, and advise many of the university’s biggest and brightest singing talents during my nearly 50 years here at the Hilltop and I’ll be forever grateful for that,” Hill Moore said on accepting the award.
In January of 2022, Professor Hill Moore was honored with the “Lift Every Voice” award of the 67th annual conference of the National Opera association, held in St. Augustine, Florida.
And in addition, Professor Hill Moore is establishing the Barbara Hill Moore Award for Emerging Teaching Artists. Through a generous challenge grant, Professor Moore seeks to establish an endowment to support a biennial award to facilitate professional development of a National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) vocal pedagogue who is also pursuing an active performance career.
The award will be given to a NATS Artist Awards finalist with a minimum of five years of teaching experience.
For information on how to donate, contact the NATS Executive Office at (904) 992-9101.
(The NATS Artist Awards is a competition for singers who have exhibited preparation for a professional singing career.)
”I am so blessed to be engaged in a profession I LOVE, vocal music — singing and teaching singing,” said Professor Hill Moore. “I hope that others will join me and that together we can continue to be the best example of our love for singers and for singing, by providing opportunities for our beloved students.”
When Professor Hill Moore established the Bruce R. Foote Memorial Scholarship Foundation, it was a way of honoring her teacher, a man whose principals of encouraging students and providing the best possible model for musical excellence inspired her to seek out young and gifted students wherever they are, with little regard to their limited means.
Over the years, Professor Moore’s achievements, whether in the United States, Europe, or South Africa (where her SMU in South Africa program is still thriving) have made her more than worthy of the torch passed down from a beloved teacher, and more than worthy to share the foundation’s name.
Join us for our 34th Benefit Concert on 2/26 at 6pm CT at Christ the King Catholic Church on Preston!
