By Janell Turner
Jessye Norman. Photo by Sergei Chirikov
The oversized basement doors of 1020 John Street, a creaky old mid-century building in South Lake Union just east of downtown Seattle, slowly swung open to reveal a small conspicuous stage in the middle of the room. In the center of the stage was a priest wearing a mid-century, floor-length robe; his head hung low. The basement felt like a dungeon and guests weren’t typically permitted in the area, but this was a special evening.
Upon entering the space, we were directed to move quickly and quietly in filling out the corners of the room surrounding the stage for a standing-only performance. Unexpectedly, the priest slowly lifted his head and examined the crowd as if looking for a parishioner guilty of some wrong. He found a victim—an unassuming man standing among us in the crowd. Suddenly, the priest grabbed the man by the shoulder and forced him on stage. He resisted the tug while the audience gasped in horror….until we realized it was all a part of the show. This is when I fell in love with opera.
Art serves as a bridge in putting our own lives into perspective. It brings clarity, purpose, and connection as we see the stories of our lives play out on stage. Seattle Opera’s production of The Combat: A Muslim Christian Love Story in a Time of War, is one of my most memorable artistic experiences. My memory holds onto some of the elements that have played out in my own life as a philanthropic advisor. Venturing into the unknown with excitement and anticipation, curating spaces that inspire and enchant, and entering the stage to perform at a moment's notice are all analogous to the rarified work of being a trusted advisor to generous families. Advising is indeed an art form in itself and the advisor is the director, producer and actor. Every client engagement is like a mini artistic production tailored for a specific audience.
Ultra-high-net-wealth advising involves the culmination of thousands of hours of preparation, work, successes, and failures, overlapping a variety of industries that touch philanthropy—fundraising, planned giving, financial advising, estate planning, nonprofit and board leadership, and beyond. While the tools, techniques, titles, and certifications are foundational, how advisors nurture trust and build community with our clients is the real test. It requires us to be flexible, vulnerable, intentional, and most of all creative. In practice, this may look like inviting authentic dialogue that meets them where they are and is void of technical jargon, honoring their values at all levels within the engagement, and taking great care to curate environments where every member of the family can feel seen and heard. It’s not just what we say but how we say it that makes room for trust and transformation to occur. This is what we strive for at Phīla.
But even moreso, engaging in this work at a Black-owned firm has special meaning as we approach Black History Month. It serves as a reminder of how far we’ve come, yet how much further we have to go. My very presence in these rarified spaces–opera boards, family office environments, private family retreats– signals a shift in the industry and in the hearts and minds of our clients. Entering these rooms that were inaccessible not long ago (and some still today) serves as a reminder of the shoulders I’m standing on. As the granddaughter of sharecroppers who worked the tobacco fields of Powhatan, Louisiana alongside their nine children—my father being the youngest and the first to go to college—it’s impossible to do this work without an intention to form connections that transcend differences, build bridges, and unite through a shared mission of service and compassion for the world.
This Black History Month, I challenge you to join me in channeling your passions, purpose, and resources through a charitable cause that centers on Black art. For a list of nonprofits in your area, check out Giving Gap, a donor platform that allows you to search for vetted Black-founded nonprofits by city. You may also reach out to me directly for a list of some of my favorite organizations.