It started with
Carmen at the Met
Growing up in St. Louis, my father worked at Classic 99 — our beloved classical music radio station. That connection opened a door that changed my life: my first big trip was to New York City, traveling with a group of Classical music lovers to see two operas at the Metropolitan Opera House.
On that stage, I watched St. Louisan Grace Bumbry perform Carmen. It was a seminal moment — the kind that quietly rearranges everything. I understood then that experiencing art and culture in the places where it lives and breathes is something altogether different from reading about it or listening from afar.
"Experiencing art and culture in the places where it lives and breathes is something altogether different from seeing it on a screen or listening to a recording."
That trip planted a seed that has grown into a lifetime of cultural travel — and eventually, into a calling to help others experience the same sense of wonder I felt in that opera house.
