A longtime member of the Women’s Board of the Ravinia Festival Association is suing the nonprofit music organization and its leadership for “wrongful” and “defamatory conduct” after the Board of Trustees expunged her from the working board for an alleged conduct violation.
Karen Ettelson, a Glencoe attorney who volunteered for the nonprofit since 1993, filed a suit last month in Cook County Circuit Court, alleging she did not commit any conduct violation and that the organization’s bylaws did not authorize the Board of Trustees, its chairman or executive committee to remove any member of the Women’s Board.
“For 30 years I’ve volunteered with this organization, and it was gone in a matter of days,” Ettelson said. “For the first time in 60 years, (they) removed a member of the Women’s Board.”
Established in 1962, the Ravinia Women’s Board is a cohort of volunteers who participate in, promote and fundraise for the Ravinia Festival, whose rolling hills come alive each summer for musical acts.
Originally established by the nonprofit’s executive committee, the women’s board was granted independence in 1972, allowing the board to have its own governance, bylaws and treasurer, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit is filed against the Ravinia Festival, the executive committee of the Ravinia Board of Trustees, Board of Trustees Chairman Christopher Klein and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Haydon, and lists eight complaints against the defendants, including defamation, interference with a contract, false light invasion of privacy, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress.
“This lawsuit is about more than just me,” Ettelson said. “My case is about fair, ethical and transparent conduct investigations. It’s about the rights of volunteers everywhere, especially when there’s a membership involved, because this can happen to any volunteer at Ravinia.”
The attorneys representing Ettelson said they first tried to solve the issue with the festival without litigation. During that time, Herschman said they could never get a “meaningful answer” from the nonprofit as to what started the investigation.
“At this point, in order to protect her reputation, we really had to sue,” said Carrie Herschman, an attorney at Herschman Levison Hobfoll. “What Karen has been put through is absolutely disgusting. She was on the board for 30-plus years. She did all of these incredible things, and to be pushed off, thrown away for no reason whatsoever. It makes no sense to me.”
In a statement from the Ravinia Festival, the organization said the lawsuit claims are “meritless.”
“We conducted a thorough and fair investigation and took action accordingly,” the statement said. “We are committed to fostering an organizational culture – inclusive of staff, volunteers, and board members – that takes pride in upholding our mission, values and standards of common decency and mutual respect.”
Last week, a former employee of Ravinia pleaded guilty and was sentenced for stealing $230,000 from the organization while she was an employee. The festival organization said the two legal cases are “completely separate and unrelated.”
Thousands of dollars raised
During her time as a volunteer, Ettelson, 68, said she served as treasurer of the festival shop and co-chair of the annual gala. She said she’s helped raise thousands of dollars over decades for the organization, among other contributions.
Being a volunteer helped her balance the stress of her career as a litigator, she said.
A history lover, Ettelson researched, authored and designed a photo anthology to document the then-50-year legacy of the Ravinia Women’s Board. When “Leading Ladies” was published in 2013, Ettelson said she became the de facto historian of the Women’s Board for staff and volunteers.
On July 26, 2023, Ettelson received an email from Klein requesting her participation in an investigation into “some members of the Board of Trustees and the Women’s Board and their interactions with the Ravinia Festival Shop and its employees,” the email stated.
The email said there were alleged behaviors that may have violated the organization’s code of ethics and outside counsel would investigate the conduct.
Ettelson said she willingly participated in the interview and investigation, which she said felt “aggressive” and like she was being “bullied.” She said she was never informed the investigation was into a complaint made about her conduct, until Ettelson received a letter from Klein on Sept. 18 removing her from the Women’s Board.
In the removal letter, Ettelson was offered a “peaceful resolution” for her departure from the board if she transferred all her digital materials and rights to the Ravinia Festival Association. Ettelson said she understood this as the opportunity to resign if she forfeited her book rights and its supporting material.
“I was stunned and devastated, and just heartbroken,” Ettelson said she felt after receiving the letter. “I don’t believe the trustees have the authority to do this.”
The lawsuit asserts the Ravinia Festival Association bylaws do not authorize the chairman of the Board of Trustees, the executive committee or the Board of Trustees to appoint or remove any member of the Women’s Board.
In an interview with the News-Sun, Ettelson said the investigators asked her about two conversations. The first was a conversation during a festival shop meeting in December 2022, in which Ettelson disagreed with the idea of a staff buying trip to Paris for the festival’s gift shop.
Historically, Ettelson said, buying trips for the shop never involved a foreign destination and were usually accomplished with a member of the Women’s Board.
The second conversation Ettelson was asked about was with a part-time festival shop employee at a Counting Crows concert in June 2023. Ettelson said the conversation with the employee was brief and one of them mentioned it was disheartening the Women’s Board didn’t volunteer at the shop anymore; she said the other agreed.
“During that entire (interview) they never told me why they wanted to speak to me; they never said anything about misconduct on my part,” Ettelson said. “I was never given an opportunity to defend myself.”
The lawsuit further alleges the defendants’ investigation into Ettelson was “pretextual,” “grossly inadequate” and “not independent.”
While Klein, Haydon and the Executive Committee authorized and oversaw the investigation, according to the lawsuit, they retained Perkins Coie to lead the investigation.
During that time and currently, the managing partner of the Chicago office for Perkins Coie, Richard Sevcik, is also a member of the Ravinia Board of Trustees.
The firm also received recognition, discounts and other benefits for several years as a Ravinia Program sponsor, according to the complaint.
In hiring Perkins Coie, the lawsuit alleges the defendants violated the Ravinia Code of Ethics, which states: to maintain independence of judgment, the organization, “endeavor(s) to avoid conflicts of interest or appearances of conflicts of interest that might arise because of economic or personal self-interest.”
‘She was targeted directly’
A member of the Women’s Board, who has requested to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, said it was “shocking” to witness the removal of a “dedicated volunteer of 30 years.”
Ettelson’s removal, along with the removal of Women’s Board members from their festival shop roles, has led the woman to wonder if Ravinia’s new leadership wants to eliminate the Women’s Board.
“I’m just shocked and disheartened by (Ravinia leaders) decisions lately from going after the Ravinia Brewery to now going after a 30-year, dedicated volunteer,” said the woman, who has volunteered on the Women’s Board for well over a decade. “I feel like Ravinia is losing much of the goodwill that’s been built up with the community.”
The woman worked frequently with Ettelson on various board projects, adding that she couldn’t think of anyone who had done more for the Women’s Board than Ettelson. The volunteer wishes to see Ettelson restored to the Women’s Board and accountability taken by the organization’s leadership.
“I’ve never seen (Karen) act aggressive with anyone, and if there were ever any misunderstandings she was quick to clear things up,” the woman said. “I feel like she was targeted directly, and I have no idea why.”
Along with her Women’s Board membership reinstated, Ettelson wants for a public apology from Klein, Haydon and the Board of Trustees for the “false and defamatory allegations of wrongful misconduct.”
Since the removal and allegations, Ettelson said she has suffered from severe emotional distress.
“The way they did this makes it appear as though I did something horrific. I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said. “To be honest with you, it’s offensive. Why would anybody want to volunteer for Ravinia if this could happen to them?”