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Kim Ashby has been involved with

the performing arts since she was a young child. Now, as a top attorney, she can truly show her ap-preciation for her first love.

Ashby, an attorney with Akerman Senterfitt in

Orlando said that over the years, the performing arts helped her grow on many levels, and now it’s time for her to give back.

“I think many law firms and attorneys support the arts be-cause it comes down to recognition of your civic rent,” Ashby said. “You can live rent-free, but you get what you pay for.”

Orlando and artistic ven-

ues in Orange County have strong supporters, but tough times have fallen upon the arts com-munity and with budget cuts and an unstable economy, more backers are always in demand.

“It’s the kind of thing where if it comes to get-ting more people in-

No ‘Still Life’ for Attorneys of the Arts

Above, left to right: John Reed, wife Lou Reed, Rita Lowndes and Founding Partner John Lowndes at the Rita & John Lowndes Shakespeare Center.

KIM ASHBYMORE>>>

volved who are willing to roll up their sleeves, then that’s what it has to be,” she said. “If we have to have a bake sale, we will do it to support the arts.”

Most of the top law firms in the state sup-port at least one form of the cultural arts. Lowndes Drosdick Doster Kantor & Reed, Carlton Fields, Holland & Knight and Gray-Robinson are examples of firms that have been heavily in-volved in the arts.

“We incentiv-ize our at-torneys to get involved and one area is the arts,” said Philip Nohrr. “The law firm helps subsidize the individual attorney’s participation.”

Nohrr said enabling the arts to grow helps the community to grow and any community that wants to attract business should considering bol-stering their art offerings, subsidizing artists and contributing to artistic

endeavors.

William Dymond, president and manag-ing partner of Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster Kantor & Reed, said his firm’s support of the arts is ingrained in his firm’s culture.

“We believe investing in the community is para-mount,” Dymond said. “ We feel both a respon-sibility and an obliga-

tion to help advance our community and its quality of life. We do this through financial support and contributions and through the countless

hours of volunteer work given by our attorneys and staff.”

“Our commitment to the community certainly includes the commu-nity’s cultural well be-ing,” Dymond said. “ The Rita & John Lowndes Shakespeare Center is one among many cultural institutions that we are proud to support and that

we believe enrich our lives.”

Daniel McIntosh, a part-ner at Lowndes Drosdick Doster Kantor & Reed is president of the Shake-speare Theatre.

“Our firm has done well because of Central Flor-ida’s growth,” McIntosh said. “We believe in giv-ing back and that’s why we contribute to the arts. It’s also a way to estab-lish great relationships.”

In addition to good will for the community, in-vestment in the arts is an important part of market-ing a law firm.

“Our philosophy is the investment in the com-munity is a fundamental element of business,” said Susanne Mandel, chief marketing and business development officer with Lowndes Drosdick Doster Kantor & Reed. “And it’s part of our cul-ture.”

Jeffrey Feulner, founder of Men’s Divorce Law Firm agrees that sup-port of the arts is a strong marketing tool.

But also, since his firm’s focus is on the rights of fathers in divorce and family matters, he wants his mostly male clientele to set a good example.

“I think I’ve had the example of other law firms that have been good stewards,” Feulner said. “Our firm is focused on representing husbands and fathers and when we are involved in the arts we are doing something productive. We’re an ex-ample to men who come through our office who may not have the exposure to the arts.”

“We actu-ally spon-sored a table at an event which was called the Princess Ball and that was an event where fathers brought their

WILLIAM DYMOND

Jeffrey Feulner

daughters to what was created as a Cinderella Ball,” Feulner said. “We invited a number of our former clients and they actually had a performance by the Russian ballet. It was an opportunity for fa-thers to be role models to their children and en-courage an appreciation of the arts as well.”

Ashby said building and maintaining a strong cultural arts community core is particularly impor-tant now that Central Florida is trying to

attract more science-related business to the area. The building up of the Lake Nona Medical City, which will include Nemours Childrens Hospital, the UCF College of Medicine, and San-ford-Burnham Medi-cal Research Institute, will require a strong arts community.

Ashby said. “And in Central Florida, we recognize the arts are part of the fabric of our community. If you want to establish a biomedical facility, you

can’t court people with advanced degrees and bring them to a com-munity with no arts.”

She said attorneys get involved in the arts for even more basic rea-sons than previously mentioned.“The study of law is more of an art than

a science and people appreciate the arts,” Ashby said. “And many folks who went to law school have had some exposure to the arts. But there are a lot of reasons attorneys sup-port the arts. We are problem-solvers and we want to help out.” n

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UCF’S COLLEGE OF MEDICINE (above) encompasses both the medical school and the

Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences.

AT RIGHT: Adriana Ruiz, Jennifer Bunting and Natalie Ramirez support the Arts in Orlando.

Jeffrey Feulner