Charlie Yates: Achieving Rheingold Dreams
Charlie Yates
Lifelong Atlantan Charlie Yates has nurtured a love for opera since childhood when he joined his family for The Metropolitan Opera’s touring performances at The Fox Theater. These early experiences of splendor and excitement planted the seed of a decades-long devotion to opera.
Charlie’s parents were deeply involved with The Atlanta Opera, and he eventually followed in their footsteps. He made his career in real estate and financial services, served tirelessly at organizations, including The Metro Atlanta YMCA and The Rotary Club, and still found time to pursue his passion for golf. Charlie’s most important passion and priority have always been his wife, Mary, their two children, and three grandchildren.
He wasn’t seeking additional opportunities, but he was interested when his business friend Greg Johnson invited him to join The Atlanta Opera’s board of directors in 2005. Charlie jokingly recalls Greg’s promise: “You’ll have much fun, and it won’t cost you much money. He was half right!”
Yates has been fully committed to the Opera’s board for twenty years, filling numerous positions, including president, treasurer, and development committee chair. He continues to contribute his time, energy, and financial resources, including a planned gift.
Yates explains, “Mary and I are so inspired by the amazing story of The Atlanta Opera and want to be part of its long-term success that in addition to our annual and special gifts, we designated part of our charitable remainder trust to the Opera to ensure that legacy.”
Richard Wagner’s music is meaningful to Charlie, who said he was “staggered” from the first time he heard The Ring Cycle. His German professor at Washington & Lee University was a devoted Wagnerite, and so were his parents, who attended performances at The Bayreuth Festival. After experiencing The Ring in Seattle, Charlie dreamed of mounting it in Atlanta.
“I wanted to grow this company so we could produce The Ring, and I wanted to sit there with my arm around my mom during Götterdämmerung.” Charlie’s dedication has helped The Atlanta Opera move closer to fulfilling that dream with brand new productions of Das Rheingold this season and Die Walküre next year.
To learn how to support The Atlanta Opera through planned gifts, including a bequest or a charitable remainder trust, contact Jonathan Blalock at 336-512-6832 or jblalock@atlantaopera.org.
Information contained herein was accurate at the time of posting. The information on this website is not intended as legal or tax advice. For such advice, please consult an attorney or tax advisor. Figures cited in any examples are for illustrative purposes only. References to tax rates include federal taxes only and are subject to change. State law may further impact your individual results. California residents: Annuities are subject to regulation by the State of California. Payments under such agreements, however, are not protected or otherwise guaranteed by any government agency or the California Life and Health Insurance Guarantee Association. Oklahoma residents: A charitable gift annuity is not regulated by the Oklahoma Insurance Department and is not protected by a guaranty association affiliated with the Oklahoma Insurance Department. South Dakota residents: Charitable gift annuities are not regulated by and are not under the jurisdiction of the South Dakota Division of Insurance.