We at the Vashon Theatre have spent the better part of a decade getting to know this place and getting to know so many of you. Things are really different here. Adults step outside the box. So many of you are lifelong learners, travelers, ageless athletes, artists and community-minded individuals. You play and participate in adult versions of spelling bees, pinewood derbies and trick-or-treating.
On Vashon there is always the offer of inclusion. Residents make new friends, wave at passing cars, chat in grocery store aisles, play cards on the boat and invite lone moviegoers to sit with their group. You bring fresh eggs, homemade jam and flowers to us at the box office. All of these are qualities we lovingly refer to as “Vashonistic” when we talk about this utopian place called Vashon Island.
So many businesses have closed in recent years. Technology has removed whole industries. Movie theaters across the country are shutting their doors. We’ve tried to stay positive, because not getting the equipment before the end of film was unimaginable. Eventually, stress and fear were setting in.
A big theater owner told friends that “Vashon will go down by the end of the year.” Like a dagger to the heart, people started asking, “When is your theatre going to close?”
But hope was on the way. No group could be more “Vashonistic” than Tag Gornall and the members of Island GreenTech. They truly make Island citizenship their profession. When they offered to head fundraising efforts, we were working without real results. Islander Todd Pearson also jumped in and helped. He and I share a vision of a local state-of-the-art theater. Thankful for whatever help would come, we continued shopping for loans, while really feeling the changed financial climate. This group of volunteers took this on like a full-time job, and The Beachcomber kept everyone informed on their progress. They all deserve our thanks.
Even now, after all of the wonderful “Vashonistic” things we have seen, we could never have imagined what would happen next. We couldn’t have known how many of you would donate so much to help the theater survive. You all made the impossible possible. Yes, sure, a little more money is needed for changes to the building. But let’s not talk of that today. The equipment is on its way! Vashon, you did it! Thank you!
Vashon, this theater will always survive because of your ownership. We will work hard to live up to this honor of stewarding your theater. Much work remains in the next few months, but it will be fun and exciting. We look forward to this new era and beyond. We will see you at the movies and soon, so much more!
Eileen Wolcott, Raechel Ehlers and all of us at the Vashon Theatre
Island GreenTech has officially announced that it is no longer accepting money for the theater conversion project. It has raised $85,458, exceeding its goal of $80,000.
