From the President

Greetings colleagues, from your new Local 655 President, Kendra Hawley! I have played oboe and English horn in several organizations around our Local 655 jurisdiction over the past 9 years, plus two years as a student/freelancer in 2008-10.

kendra hawley I have served as a member and Chairperson of the Palm Beach Opera Orchestra Committee and Negotiations Committee, as the delegate for the Palm Beach Opera Orchestra to the Regional Orchestra Players' Association (ROPA), and as a Member at Large on the executive board of ROPA.

Through these organizations, I have had the great fortune to learn from the best organizers and activists in the American Federation of Musicians, and I look forward to building on that education, and sharing the skills I've learned with you. I have been greatly inspired by all of the recent successes of our comrades in other unions, and I'm eager to help our South Florida Musicians Association to ride that wave of solidarity for the betterment of the working conditions in our industry.

Some of you may already know me, and others may not. Either way, I want to welcome you all to reach out to me directly, or speak to me in person when you see me around town. I'd like to hear from our members, as well as non-members, about how we can collaborate to build strength and solidarity in our Union. To that end, we have recently designed a survey to gather information from musicians in our area`, which will launch soon. Please take a moment to answer the short eight-question survey with your honest opinions.

I look forward to hearing from you and to building relationships with colleagues across all the different sectors of our industry. I encourage you to do the same. We are stronger together!

Fraternally,
Kendra Hawley