Appreciation Day at Flood-Recovered Theater
"The water kept coming. It came in through the back door and everybody was asking for sandbags," Dietrich Theater volunteer supervisor projectionist Bob Boyce was among those who tried to save the the theater from the flood's onslaught. He was also among those who showed up after floodwaters receded. "All of the people that are here came in through the mud and the rain and they helped us clean," said Dietrich Theater Executive Director Jennifer Jenkins.
The Dietrich Theater held the appreciation day for dozens of volunteers who weren't shy about getting their hands dirty a year ago. "We had to replace all the carpets. We had to have the walls ripped out and re-drywalled and painted," said Ms. Jenkins.
The job was no easy task. Volunteers young and old pitched in -- including twin brothers Bailey and Brendan Huff. "We either cleaned out the basement or we went up and we started pulling out carpet," said Bailey Huff. His brother, Brendan, added "The garbage truck was out front. Everyone was trying to throw the garbage in. It was a mess."
Reminders of the theater flood remain with a watermark on a door here or a wall there. Volunteers wrote about what they remembered most about the flood damage at the Dietrich in a memory book. Theater staff members say what they'll never forget is how the community responded. "They helped us put the theater back together and now we are better than ever," said Ms. Jenkins.
The Dietrich Theater is gearing up for its tenth annual Fall Film Festival from September 21st through October 4th.
