Helen McKeown

Development Manager

As Development Manager Helen oversees Aurora’s fundraising activity, working with individual and organisational funders to make Aurora’s artistic and creative learning programmes possible. Helen started her career in production-based arts roles before joining Aurora in her first fundraising role in 2019. She has since developed a keen interest in fundraising theory and strategy, and completed a Certificate qualification from the Chartered Institute of Fundraising in 2021. Helen has a degree in Music and is an enthusiastic orchestral musician, playing clarinet with Orchestra of the City.

Aurora Memory

My favourite Aurora memory so far is the Beethoven 7 outdoor concert under the West Handyside Canopy in September 2020 – Aurora’s first live performance of a symphony since the March 2020 lockdown. Welcoming audiences back to hear live orchestral music after such a difficult year was a complete joy, and right from the very first chord of the symphony we all felt a bit emotional! The standing ovation at the end was overwhelming, but my favourite part of the evening was watching members of the public walk or cycle past during the concert, and seeing their faces light up in wonder.