The CAMA Women’s Board, which has supported Community Arts Music Association of Santa Barbara, Inc. (CAMA) as an auxiliary board since 1951, has elected Musette Profant as President, effective June 1, 2023. Profant succeeds Deborah Bertling as Women’s Board President, who served in that capacity from 2019–2023; Bertling has been recently elected the Chair of CAMA’s Board of Directors.
Musette Profant continues a proud family tradition as her grandmother, Mabel Profant, was a founding member of the CAMA Women’s Board and served on CAMA’s Board of Directors for more than 50 years, an unbroken record to this day. For a century the Profant family has supported the Santa Barbara cultural community, in particular CAMA, Old Spanish Days, and the Music Academy of the West, and were members of the SB Woman’s Club and the University Club, among other organizations central to the community. The family home in Mission Canyon has been the site of numerous music and dance soirées since 1924.
Musette Profant’s home design and construction company is currently remodeling houses in four locations. Her background in hotel and restaurant management helps her create unique events in support of Santa Barbara artists. She is also a professional editor and taught ballet before attending the USC School of Architecture.
The CAMA Women’s Board has a rich history dating back to the late 1940s, becoming a formally organized auxiliary board of CAMA in 1951. The mission of the CAMA Women’s Board is to provide support to CAMA concerts, as well as to raise public awareness of classical music and of CAMA’s concerts through offerings such as pre-concert lectures. Additionally, the Women’s Board is committed to supporting education through CAMA’s Music Matters program. As a dedicated group of volunteers, Women’s Board members meet monthly.
Officers of the 2023/2024 CAMA Women’s Board include: Musette Profant, President; Joan Crossland, 1st Vice President; Patti Ottoboni, 2nd Vice President; Sue Adams, Treasurer; and Lois Kroc, Secretary.
CAMA, Santa Barbara’s oldest arts organization, has roots in the community dating to 1919 and brings the finest classical musicians from around the globe to Santa Barbara’s Granada Theatre and Lobero Theatre.