The Astoria Music Festival has announced the establishment of the Michael Foster Memorial Fund to honor the memory of the Astoria resident, founding board member and longtime arts advocate who died in December.

Foster’s family has made a $20,000 leadership gift, which has already been matched by pledges.

“The importance of Michael’s lifelong commitment to arts and education in Astoria cannot be overstated,” Deac Guidi, the music festival’s new board president, said. “From the Liberty Theater restoration and establishment of art galleries, to teaching generations of Astoria High School students and raising millions of dollars for scholarships, to helping found the Astoria Music Festival and serving on its board for nearly 15 years, Michael Foster left a lasting legacy to his hometown and the entire state.”

The fund, he said, will provide continued support for the Astoria Music Festival as a memorial to Foster’s commitment to art and music.

The Astoria Music Festival will commemorate its 15th season with the Michael Foster Memorial Concert on June 17 in the Liberty Theater.

The concert will feature a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, one of Foster’s favorite pieces of music. Festival Artistic Director Keith Clark will lead the orchestra and chorus and a quartet of Metropolitan Opera soloists.