HOOPESTON – First run movies are returning to Hoopeston’s Lorraine Theatre, maybe as early as the first of the year.
The Save the Lorraine Theatre restoration project received one of T-Mobile’s latest Hometown Grants. The $40,667 grant will go toward purchasing the last of equipment needed to bring back first run movie screenings, providing a variety of affordable entertainment to a community that couldn’t experience otherwise. A first run movie is a film that has just been released and is available for public viewing for the first time.
The Save the Lorainne Foundation is an organization aimed to preserve and renovate the more than 100-year-old historic theatre.
“The Lorraine Foundation was formed by a group of citizens simply wanting to preserve our local landmark, the Lorraine Theatre,” said Alex Houmes, President of the Lorraine Foundation. “After 12-plus years of fundraising and renovations, this gift from T-Mobile’s Hometown Grant allows us to cross the finished line. The much anticipated return of first run movie screenings will be an experience worthy of the Lorraine’s reputation for sound and picture quality. Mixing its historic atmosphere and today’s latest technology, the Lorraine Theatre will once again be the best place for movies.”
Through Hometown Grants, people in communities nationwide are kickstarting projects that make a real difference and help their towns thrive, a news release states.
Since launching its five-year commitment to small towns in April 2021, T-Mobile has awarded a whopping 325 communities across 47 states and over $14 million in funding.
The impact doesn’t stop there. To date, Hometown Grants has created more than 86,000 volunteer hours and provided more than $3 million in funding toward small business projects like revitalizing farmers markets, launching business incubators and improving main streets. To date, Hometown Grants has provided over $500,000 in funding to 13 towns across Illinois.
Each quarter, T-Mobile awards 25 Hometown Grants to small towns with populations of 50,000 or less.