 Children's Fine Arts
Series and Children's
Chorus of San
Antonio Celebrate
25th Anniversaries
By Taylor Templeton and Merideth Canales
Photography Janet Rogers
Two outstanding women,the driving
forces behind two highly successful
performing arts organizations for children,
are celebrating their respective 25th
anniversaries in 2007.
In reaching this milestone, Marguerite
McCormick of Children’s Chorus of San
Antonio and Kathy Miller of Children’s
Fine Arts Series deserve standing ovations
for their ongoing efforts to enhance the
cultural lives of young people. Brief
accounts of their stories follow.
 KATHLEEN CUNY MILLER
Children’s Fine Arts Series
Little did Kathy Miller know that a volunteer
position at her two sons’ school in
the early 1980s would turn into a fulltime
vocation. In 1982, Miller was recruited
to start the Children's Fine Arts Series
(CFAS) as the volunteer chairman for
the community project and fund-raiser
at the Judson Montessori School.
Under her direction, the series
became an independent 501c3 nonprofit
organization in 1988 as the only presenter
of performing arts exclusively for
young children in San Antonio. The series
has grown from three shows in 1982 to a
highly respected organization, now celebrating
its 25th anniversary, that brings an
average of 15 internationally and nationally
acclaimed performing art troupes to
the young children of San Antonio and
South Texas each year.
Through the years, Miller has been successful
in choosing programs that delight
the senses of young audiences. She has
depended on extensive research to
choose experiences that give children a
sense of wonder and an eagerness for
more. “While the productions often deal
with issues relevant to children in today's
society, the most important ingredient I
look for is fun. What I enjoy the most
about the series is finding and bringing
unusual shows to San Antonio for my
audiences. I also take pleasure in introducing
children to genres like opera and
classical music,” she says,
An important part of the Children’s Fine
Arts Series mission has always been inviting
children from inner-city schools, Title I
schools and organizations involved with
children and families to attend performances
free of charge. In the early years
CFAS hosted about 2,500 children annually
at no cost. Since then, the total has doubled.
Currently up to 5,000 students attend
CFAS events on a complimentary basis
each season, thanks to generous contributions
of corporations, foundations, individuals
and volunteers.
“Seeing the smiling faces of hundreds of
thousands of children in the past 25 years as
they watched CFAS shows has been an
incredible privilege for me. Needless to say, I anticipate a bright future for the series, a
future destined to touch the lives of countless
youths in and around our city in a very
positive way,” says Miller, adding, “I look forward
to introducing so much to so many.”
 MARGUERITE MCCORMICK
Children’s Chorus of San Antonio
Marguerite McCormick’s love for
music began with piano lessons. At the
age of 8, she fell in love with the art form
that would drive her life’s work.
“I love children and I love music,” she
says. “Combining those two passions
was the real reason I decided to found a
children’s chorus in San Antonio, which is
my hometown. Children are capable of
incredible artistry and creativity, and I
never cease to be thrilled every time our
singers are recognized for that.”
Celebrating its 25th anniversary in the
coming season, the Children’s Chorus of
San Antonio has become an established
name in the national choral community.
McCormick says she is awed every time
she thinks of the passage of time and all
that has been accomplished. “It’s exhilarating,
and also I have a little bit of wonder
at how the time went so fast,” she
says, describing the evolution of the
organization over the years. “There’s still
so much growth potential, musically and
artistically, yet to be achieved. I also feel
incredibly blessed to have a dream
become a reality. How amazing is that?”
Though the viewpoint of CCSA has
remained constant over the past 25 years,
McCormick says, many other things have
changed significantly. “The basic philosophy,
a tradition of musical excellence, has
not changed,” she explains.“However, the
artistic staff has grown from two to seven
and the administrative staff from one parttime
employee to two full-time employees
and a part-time employee.”
One of the biggest changes, though,
has been the number of singers participating
in CCSA’s programs. “In 1983 we
had 33 singers and one choir,” says
McCormick, thinking back to the early
days.“Whereas now we have more than
200 singers, five choirs and outreach and
early childhood music programs.”
While McCormick says all of these
changes have led to several accomplishments,
she attributes another factor to the
overall success of the organization.“We’ve
had many artistic successes over the
years,” she says. “Carnegie Hall, tours
abroad, the Dido and Aeneas production,
collaborations with the San Antonio
Symphony and Mastersingers, premieres of
commissioned works, but none of these
would be possible without our singers.”
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