Silver Scene Players presented the United Way of Union County with a check for $5,355.26 on Sunday, April 22. The money will directly benefit The Dolly Parton Imagination Library and the Youth Education, Arts and Recreation (YEAR) Grant, both programs managed by The United Way of Union County.
The local theater group’s mission statement “Bringing the joy of theatre to the community in order to “give back” by supporting local non-profit organizations” has been evidenced in their gifts of over $20,000 to various non-profits over the last five years.
Their most recent production “Once Upon a Mattress” generated the group’s largest donation to date.
“To put into words how thankful we are is difficult,” Bethany McAdow, YEAR Chair explained, “The partnership with Silver Scene Players is one that will be in our hearts forever. The talent, love, and time that went into the musical was truly a gift. Thank you to all who were involved in making this so successful!”
Over 65 people donated their time and gifts to the production including actors, stage crew, musicians and other volunteers.
“As is always tradition with Silver Scene Players, we give down to the last penny,” Pete Edwards, Director, said, “This is the exact amount we could give so this is what we are giving.”
“It brings such a joy to my heart, knowing how many kiddos we will be able to help with this funding,” McAdow said, “whether it is from providing books to those who are enrolled in the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, helping send the Robotics and FCCLA teams to competitions, to local rec baseball and softball programs.”
She said the United Way of Union County wants to make sure a child doesn’t miss out on an extracurricular opportunity because of cost.
“It is programs, like ours that keep kids out of trouble, keep their bodies’ active, and their minds fueled,” McAdow said.
David Dodds of Silver Scene Players said the desire for the group to give away all of the proceeds is the very heart of what theatre should be, to be the community.
“With theatre you are forced to look outside of yourself to understand the character you’re playing, to support your cast mates on stage and to work on a vision larger than ourselves,” Dodds said, “Theater is community and this a theatre group that loves our community!”
The theatre group is currently planning for their fall production by local playwright Amanda Rockhold, “Dancing in Riddles,” which will stage October 26-28, 2018 at Veterans Memorial Auditorium. Auditions will be held on July 26 and 30. For more information, visit www.silversceneplayers.com. You can also call the SSP box office line at 937-553-3SSP (377) or email auditions@silversceneplayers.com.
Proceeds from the fall production will benefit Neighbor to Neighbor, a non-profit, volunteer driven organization. Members join for a small monthly fee and are matched with volunteers to help with household tasks and transportation. The Neighbor to Neighbor non-profit grew out of The United Way of Union County’s Annual Community Care Day. For more information about Neighbor to Neighbor visit ucn2n.org.
