By 1808Delaware
More than 2,400 patrons enjoyed free daytime entertainment at the Strand Theatre this summer while helping Delaware County nonprofit organizations meet needs throughout the community. The Sandy Hardymon Free Summer Kids Series ran each Tuesday from June 2 through July 28. Admission was supported by donations benefiting a different local cause, continuing the program’s dual mission of entertaining children and introducing them to the importance of helping others.
By the end of the nine-week series, families had contributed food, baby supplies, toiletries, school supplies and hundreds of other needed items.
“It is so fulfilling to see children excited to give to our nonprofit recipients,” said Tracey Peyton, the Strand’s managing director. “When we can instill this spirit of generosity at such an early age, this is only a glimpse of what is to come, a future of charitable adults. It makes my heart melt to see our patrons answer this call to action, and they have been doing so for decades.”
Donations Reach Across Delaware County
Contributions collected during the series included:
- More than 400 baby-care items for the Delaware Public Health District
- More than 600 paper products for the Unity Community Center
- 504 pounds of nonperishable food for People in Need
- More than 300 toiletry items for the Common Ground Free Store
- 250 camp-related items and $65 in gift cards for Stratford Ecological Center
- 110 items valued at nearly $500 for Turning Point
- 82 pounds of wrapped snacks and personal-care products, along with more than 150 rolls of toilet paper, for Andrews House
- More than 400 school supplies for Delaware Noon Kiwanis
Patrons also contributed $385 in monetary donations.
The results reflect the donation-driven foundation of the Strand Theatre and Cultural Arts Association’s programming. The summer series is designed not only to make daytime entertainment accessible to Delaware children, but also to give young patrons a direct role in supporting organizations that serve their neighbors.
More Than a Century on Winter Street
Established in 1916, the Strand Theatre at 28 E. Winter St. is one of the country’s 10 oldest continuously operating movie theaters showing first-run films.
The nonprofit theater has received national recognition for its sensory initiative and was recently presented with the Delaware Chamber of Commerce’s Quality of Life Award, which honors a nonprofit organization making a significant contribution to the community. In 2021, the Strand also received Main Street Delaware’s Business Innovation Award and Heritage Ohio’s Ohio Historical Theatre of the Year Award for its work during the pandemic.
The theater’s summer series adds another chapter to that history, showing that a trip to the movies can provide children with more than entertainment. It can also teach them how a simple act of giving becomes part of something much larger.
Source: Strand Theatre
