Hope springs: 5th annual end of annual meeting season celebration

Anyone who has ever been caught in the middle of a contested proxy fight knows just how stressful an event it is. It is very easy to believe that it is the most important thing in the world, especially if you are on the listed company side and possibly at risk of losing your job. All the moving parts in the annual meeting and voting process – proxy solicitors, lawyers, printers, transfer agents – can present a daunting and intimidating front. But none of this is as intimidating or stressful as the life of Bradford Stringfield.

Stringfield, a gifted and successful artist from Chicago, was the featured speaker at the fifth annual End of Annual Meeting Season celebration, hosted by Carl T Hagberg & Associates and Ellen Philip Associates. The event, which brings together more than 200 people from across the corporate, legal, proxy solicitation and financial printing sectors, serves not only as a great opportunity to come together and unwind after a long and highly competitive proxy season, but also as a benefit for Fountain House and Fountain Gallery. These institutions support and rehabilitate hundreds of men and women dealing with mental illness.

Despite the economic crisis and the high levels of competition attendees have in their working lives, everyone showed up in a charitable mood. ‘This was our best year ever in terms of money raised for Fountain House,’ says Ellen Philip, founder and president of Ellen Philip Associates. Between ticket sales and corporate sponsorship, the event raised almost $100,000.

‘It just gets better every year,’ says Carl Hagberg, chairman of Carl T Hagberg & Associates. ‘It is a very friendly affair and each year we raise more money. In 2004 it started at around $40,000, and it just keeps growing.’

Good causes
This cause is particularly close to Hagberg’s heart, as well as to Philip’s and Cal Donly’s, principal of Ellen Philip Associates. ‘I think one of the reasons this event strikes such a chord with people is that we all know someone who has been affected by mental illness and many of us realize it could very easily happen to us,’ explains Donly.

Springfield gave an all-too-real example of this during his speech. Talking of his move from Chicago to New York as an aspiring photography and theatre graduate, he said he soon found himself living on the streets, addicted to drugs and ‘struggling just to stay alive.’

Through a chance encounter he found his way to Fountain House where he received treatment and became not just a functioning member of society but also a successful artist whose work is displayed and sold in several galleries.

The key to the success of Fountain House and Fountain Gallery is not complicated, says Jeff Aron, director of Fountain Gallery. ‘It is really quite simple,’ he explains. ‘If you treat a person with respect and as though he or she can be a functioning, successful person, very often that is exactly what he or she becomes. Marginalize and ridicule that person, and the chances for growth are minimal.’

‘Fountain House gives people the tools and the belief to achieve their goals – in this case, to be professional artists,’ adds Hagberg.

Having attended this event, I can attest to the nervousness and excitement the artists feel when they sell a painting, sometimes for the first time in years. ‘Some of the regular guests get to know the artists and form a strong connection with them,’ explains Donly. ‘Many have been buying pieces from the same artist for several years.’ Nor is this just charity: some of these pieces may well be excellent investments as the artists continue to develop and their popularity grows.

Grassroots support
As successful as this event is, it is not the foundation for true development: real growth comes on a day-to-day basis. This is one area where Broadridge, a long-time supporter and platinum sponsor of the organization, deserves recognition. Broadridge employs Fountain House residents on a daily basis, bringing 15 to 20 of them to its offices and finding regular and satisfying work for them. This may be as simple as opening and sorting mail but during the height of proxy season there is a whole range of tasks requiring attention.

The event has struck quite a chord with the proxy community and the list of financial supporters is a veritable Who’s Who of the industry. Sponsors this year included BNY Mellon, Computershare, Continental Stock Transfer, DG3, Georgeson, Innisfree, Laurel Hill, UPRR and Wells Fargo. Corporate Secretary and sister publication IR magazine are also extremely proud to have been partners this year.

‘I thoroughly enjoy helping the artists sell their work – in fact, it is my main priority at the event,’ enthuses Donly. ‘It really makes them believe and provides proof they can do it for themselves.’