The Myrna & Arnold Baskin Fund

Myrna Baskin lived by a motto: Appreciate your blessings and make every effort to help others.

The New Haven native and Smith College alumna died in October of this year leaving a charitable legacy benefiting Greater New Haven's residents far into the future.

She was part of a group of special people who helped found the Community Fund for Women & Girls, and would later join another special group of people who created individually named funds designated to support the Women & Girls' Fund.

Her fund - the Myrna and Arnold Baskin Fund - was created to ensure that more funding would be available for local programs for women and girls, especially programs that promote social and economic advancement for women. Perhaps for programs that teach job skills and break the cycle of violence and poverty in women's lives, or programs that provide health services and screenings and improve literacy, and most appealing to Myrna, programs that enrich lives through the performing arts, poetry and musical instruction.

By her own admission, Myrna had a "lifelong passion of the arts." At Smith her major was Music, and she served on the Board of Directors of New Haven Symphony Orchestra, once as its President.

"There's so much talent and ability in New Haven, yet so many things about the arts that young women and girls don't have an opportunity to take advantage of," she once said. "I think it is a privilege to enable young women to develop skills and interests in the arts. To build on those things is not only good for their futures but for everyone's future."

Gifts to the Myrna and Arnold Baskin Fund in Myrna's memory are welcomed using the form below. If you would like to establish your own charitable fund at The Community Foundation, learn more here or contact Sharon.