HONORING JIM MCKEEVER
Jim McKeever served as Chairman of the Fairfax Symphony Board of Directors from 2016 until his passing in October 2021.
”We are forever grateful for Jim’s leadership and support of the FSO,” said Jonathan Kerr, FSO Executive Director. “His unwavering commitment and dedication helped the FSO expand its programs to better serve our community. His love of the FSO was resounding, and his legacy lives on through the music and service of the Fairfax Symphony Orchestra to our region.”
The McKeever Legacy Fund
Honoring Decades of Inspired Leadership
The FSO honors Jim McKeever’s service and dedication with the creation of the McKeever Legacy Fund. The Fund will support Jim’s vision to further the FSO’s high-level artistry and expand its innovative education programs, while strengthening the FSO’s role as an invaluable cultural resource and artistic ambassador for our region.
“We are proud to serve as an example of the region’s cultural leadership due only to Maestro Zimmerman’s fresh, creative approach, the immense talent and dedication of our extraordinary orchestra musicians, the loyal support of our partners and audiences, combined with an unwavering commitment to quality and financial accountability. The arts have long played a vital role in both driving economic growth and in meeting the artistic and educational needs this growth demands. After more than six decades, the FSO continues to reflect Fairfax County’s and the broader region’s vibrant future as one of the best places in the world to live, work, and play”
A Lifetime of Service and Accomplishment
Mr. McKeever was president and CEO of McKeever Services Corporation (MSC), a consulting firm he founded in 1974, which specializes in construction planning and jurisdictional management. A U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam conflict, Mr. McKeever was a lifelong student of the construction industry. Through his work in the construction industry, Jim was instrumental in the development of our region, while serving as a visionary leader of the arts in our community.
“The Fairfax Symphony family lost a great leader with the passing of Jim McKeever,” said FSO Board Vice-Chairman Pepe Figueroa. “He will be greatly missed. Jim’s legacy however will be with us forever and within that legacy is a clear roadmap for the Symphony to follow. We will continue to strive for excellence, creativity, and energy in our future performances. Jim set a high bar for the Board of Directors and it will be our goal to meet those standards that he strove for all the time. Jim left us the tools with which to continue our mission to support this great orchestra. I invite everyone to help celebrate Jim McKeever’s life.”
Under Mr. McKeever’s leadership as Chairman, the FSO has strengthened its commitment to artistic excellence, emerging artists, music education, diversity, and financial accountability. Select FSO achievements during his tenure include: the expansion of the 2020 Dominion ArtStars Award-winning FSO Link Up education program, which served more than 10,000 students in Title 1 schools across our region during the pandemic by going virtual; the 2017 commission and premiere of a new work titled, Resolutions by Virginia composer Mark Camphouse in honor of Fairfax County’s 275th Anniversary and the orchestra’s 60th Anniversary; the creation and naming of the Sharon Bulova Fairfax County All-Stars Young Artists’ mentorship program for talented high school musicians—Fairfax County’s dynamic ambassadors; the growth of the special collaboration between two Fairfax County institutions, the FSO and The Fairfax Ballet, which now combine their artistic strengths to spotlight talented local artists, musicians, and dancers with their annual performance of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker at George Mason University Center for the Arts; and the launch of the FSO’s Diversity Fellowship Program designed to support university-level student musicians currently under-represented in orchestras today.
“Jim McKeever was an inspired leader and Board Chairman of the FSO,” said Christopher Zimmerman, FSO Music Director & Conductor. “He was always clear and consistent in his philosophy of, and belief in, what the orchestra should aspire to, and what it can and should do for its audiences and the community at large. He was a passionate advocate for every aspect of the orchestra’s activities and tireless in his efforts to get his manifold ideas translated into concrete action and meaningful results. On top of all this, he was a uniquely generous man and an unfailing gentleman. Jim was one of a kind and will be hugely missed by those who knew him.”
Mr. McKeever, together with his wife Lesley, shared an immense passion for classical music…never missing an FSO concert. Lesley continues to share their family love of the arts with their three daughters and two grandchildren. We are immensely grateful to the McKeever’s for all they have done and continue to do to help further our mission to share our music and education programs with our community.
Jim McKeever’s legacy lives on through the music & education programs of the FSO.
For questions, please contact us at info@fairfaxsymphony.org