Local theater partners with elementary schools

A local theater is working with elementary schools to raise funds for their new equipment, but what makes this fundraiser different is 50 fundraiser of the proceeds will go back to the schools.

Brandon Lott, manager at the Paramount Theatre, said, “Our worry is that if we are on a 20-year payment with this equipment and in 10 years we have to upgrade it again, then we won’t be able to do this for very much longer.”

In the past few years the Paramount Theatre has made many improvements for audiences, but with the high cost of digital equipment, changes had to be made.

“So we came to the realization that we either have to do one of two things,” Lott said. “We either have to raise our prices and stop donating or we have to get creative and come up with something that gets the community involved.”

The solution was a discount card; 78 businesses are involved and 50 percent of the proceeds are going back to local elementary schools.

“It helps the community, helps the schools and helps all the businesses on the card,” Lott said.

“That was one of our big concerns when we decided that we would need to stop donating,” he said. “We would need to stop donating as much as we do to the elementary schools. So we really tried to rotate the thought process instead of stopping. How can we help them more in turn with helping us.”

Students at all elementary schools in District 91 have been invited to sell the discount card for $20.

“We really value the education program,” Lott said. “We really value the teachers and what they do. We really try to keep them in mind with everything that we do.”

The paramount said they care about the student’s safety and would encourage them not to sell door to door. They invite students to sell at the theater.

“There’s over $75 worth of savings from the theaters alone,” he said. “So why not sell them to our customers that are coming in anyways.”

Those discount cards are already being sold by elementary students around Idaho Falls.