Senator Boxer will attend performing arts building dedication ceremony in Rancho Mirage
Senator Barbara Boxer will speak at the dedication of Rancho Mirage High School’s performing arts complex on Friday afternoon, a school district spokeswoman said.
Boxer, who has a home in Rancho Mirage, will be joined at the 2 p.m. ceremony by Assemblyman V. Manuel Perez, D-Coachella, Riverside County Supervisor John Benoit and Rancho Mirage Mayor Richard Kite, according to Palm Springs Unified School District spokeswoman Joan Boiko.
In May, Helene Galen, a philanthropist and longtime Rancho Mirage resident, announced a $1.5 million donation from the Galen Family Foundation to start a performing arts endowment fund at the school.
In recognition of the gift, the first that she has made to a public school district, the complex will be christened as the Helene Galen Performing Arts Center and the Helene Galen Theatre, said PSUSD spokeswoman Joan Boiko.
“This high school, in my home city of 35 years, is providing students with an amazing opportunity to learn about culinary and performing arts and a first-class theater where students can either become stars in the entertainment world to add flair to their lives or to succeed in business or even law,” Galen said.
Galen has donated millions of dollars over the years to local nonprofits, including the Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center at Eisenhower Medical Center, the McCallum Theatre, the Palm Springs Art Museum and the newly established Palm Springs Art Museum in Palm Desert, dubbed The Galen.
She also donated money to bring the “Forever Marilyn” sculpture to downtown Palm Springs.
Galen’s late husband, Lou, was the former chief executive of Golden West Financial Corp, the parent corporation of World Savings Bank, which was acquired by Wachovia in 2006.
