Music Students To Benefit From Retail Alliance Gift

by Michelle M. Falck

Old Dominion University undergraduate music majors with a concentration in piano will soon benefit from a generous gift from Retail Alliance of Greater Hampton Roads. Susan Milhoan, president and CEO of Retail Alliance, recently pledged an additional $100,000 toward a $25,000 music scholarship established last May. The C. Donald Porter Endowed Scholarship in Music was created to honor the former Retail Alliance president and CEO.

Porter served as the fifth president and CEO of Retail Alliance from 1992 until his retirement last year. Before joining Retail Alliance, he operated the Center of Music stores throughout the region.

“In discussing the many ways in which we might honor Donald’s contributions to Retail Alliance, we came up with the usual list of options and found all of them nice, but lacking in substance, sincerity and staying power,” Milhoan explained.

Retail Alliance of Greater Hampton Roads, a trade association representing the retail industry, was founded in 1903. Committed to promoting the healthy growth of businesses and trade, and promoting the interest of its members in Greater Hampton Roads, the association invests in programs and engages in other charitable activities likely to benefit its retail members and the region as a whole.

Knowing that music was a critical component in Porter’s life and that he was extremely proud of the time he spent as a student at Old Dominion, creating an endowed scholarship seemed the best and most lasting gift, Milhoan said.