Six years ago my children and I walked through the doors of the Savannah Children’s Theatre to audition for the 2007 production of Charlotte’s Web. I knew we had walked into something special, something vibrant, and something so alive. What I heard was that this was a community theatre, a place where the community was encouraged to be involved. There were numerous volunteer opportunities given to me; they all sounded so interesting I didn’t know which one to pick first!
Turns out I didn’t have to pick an activity, it picked me. One day, a fabulously creative volunteer mom who was glittering letters for a window display asked for my help. I dove right in; I loved working with purple glitter. Who knew there were so many colors of glitter?! When I saw the finished product hanging in one of the SCT windows I was blown away by how creative people can be. I knew I was involved in something big. I also knew that my pitifully glittered letters meant that I should try to find another area to apply my volunteer expertise. Leaving the windows in the hands of Heather Kingery, Suzanne Findley, Renee McMahon, Lisa James and Rhonda Davis was definitely the way to go. In the meantime I swept the theatre, cleaned the bathrooms, and vacuumed.
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A few beautiful window displays, designed and crafted by volunteers!
I didn’t have to wait too long before another volunteer parent quickly had me hanging up costumes. I hung up costumes for weeks. I then started gathering and asking for hanger donations. Acquiring a costume rack was like discovering gold! A parent dropping off a bag of hangers made us do a happy dance! As more parents jumped into their passion with the costumes I watched piles of costumes on the floor turn into a full-fledged costume shop upstairs, complete with a sewing area, rental department and thousands of costumes. Volunteers like Celeste Cobb, Terri Sparks, Becky Keith, Patty Paul, Beth Ballance, Janet Wagner, Chann Givens, Renee McMahon, Bonnie Juengert, David Poole, Pam Edenfield, Michelle McRorie and countless others, worked at making SCT’s costume department one of the most amazing volunteer community projects I have ever seen.
Can you believe that each and every one of these costumes was designed, sewn and fitted by volunteers?!
I decided after burning myself on a hot glue gun and never really achieving sewing on a button correctly, that my passion for SCT could be found somewhere else. There was always sweeping, cleaning bathrooms and vacuuming. If only one of the donated vacuums would last longer than a month!
So I decided to help with concessions. It seemed to me that the concessions area was run by top CEO’s. There was cleaning, ordering and inventory of popcorn, meeting delivery trucks coming from Jacksonville that sometimes couldn’t make it all the way to SCT, fundraising for the purchase of a second popcorn machine, wishing for a donation of cash registers, finding materials and building a new concession area. The work load was so great, I was positive these people got paid to do what they did. Turns out they just had a passion for SCT. They knew they were in a place that was larger than themselves, a place that had a huge heart, and a place that did wonderful things for families. I left the executives with the big hearts; Vivian Willis, Marty and Caroline Scott, Ruth Sales, Christina and Terry Edwards, Bettie and Cary Negley, Allison Cole, and kept cleaning the theatre and organizing costumes.
My family, in front of one of SCT’s two concession stands, built and managed by…volunteers!
My next adventure was volunteering on the tech crew. I was able to be part of the magic of the show along with my children and I loved it. Dressed all in black, I was able to run on stage between scenes in a black out and change the sets. This was thrilling and exhilarating being so connected to the show! Backstage I was involved with the children, kissing boo-boos, getting band-aids, getting water for sweaty, thirsty dancers, hugging excited performers who feel they nailed their scenes, and wiping away tears of young actors who felt they messed up their lines or didn’t go on when they were supposed to. As time went on, my volunteer exploits grew from working tech, to painting sets, gathering props, even running the spot light and the light board.
You can’t see me, but I was behind that dog house, pushing the actors back on course when their toy cars went astray!
I can’t count the amount of times I was overcome with emotions while watching the amazing things that happen on stage. I may have been giving volunteer hours, but I was getting so much more in return. I learned so much working tech with Mike & April Prow, Vann Doubleday, Carrie Negley, Stewart and Danielle Pinkerton, Al & Cindy Williams, Mark Padgett, Cynthia Holmen, Eric Mitchell, Troy and Lee Brantley. SCT’s heart could be found in all of these people and it was an honor to volunteer with them. I was still sweeping, cleaning bathrooms, and YES, it was a glorious day when Fred Miley donated a Dyson vacuum! Then a lovely parent volunteered to pay for a part time cleaning person to help clean the theatre! The building is in top shape now, thanks to Josh Riggs. (I wish I had some pictures to post of these amazing people hard at work behind the scenes, but that’s the tricky thing about techies. They’re behind the scenes because they don’t like being in the spotlight.)
After my experience on the tech crew, there was nothing stopping my volunteer passion. There were fundraising meetings, phone calls, letter writing, sponsor searches, and annual Gala meetings to attend. I made SCT brochures, and flyers, and with the help of Cheryl Lauer, took them all over town selling ads to businesses. We gathered families and participated in the downtown Christmas parade, and the annual Children’s Book Festival. We had to spread the word about this amazing little gem in the community! I wanted people to know about the heart and soul of SCT, how I have watched it shape children and change my family’s lives for the better. Savannah needs to know what a treasure they have in SCT. Savannah also needs to know that SCT will only survive through community support, donations and volunteerism.
The annual Christmas Parade on River Street, with a trolley full of SCT volunteers spreading their joy!
I now have the most amazing job as the Office Manager of SCT. I am surrounded by some of the most creative people in the world. I have learned so much from Kelie Miley, Jenn Doubleday, Cynthia Holmen, Keena Charbonneau, and the rest of the amazing staff that have touched the lives of this community. I get to watch children blossom and grow into amazing, confident young adults, all because of the dedication to joy and character building that exists within these walls. I would like to encourage you to come find a place to share your creative side, your technical side, your administrative side here at SCT. Come and show us your favorite color glitter…
There is no one more fitting to launch this series than the amazing Stanley Simons. Stanley first came to us under the impression that he was auditioning for a Shakespearian tragedy, only to find out that he had the wrong date and tried out for another show instead. Too polite to leave in the middle of something, Stanley stayed, and found himself fitted for a bright pink pig-suit, complete with curly tail. (We’ve scoured the world for pictures, but he seems to have done a great job of destroying all evidence of this first amazing costume.) Over the years, Stanley became an invaluable member of SCT, performing on stage countless times, and working constantly behind the scenes. Now a small business owner, Stanley agreed to share a bit of his story, in hopes that it will encourage others to make bold choices!
Savannah Children's Theatre Blog 