Sean C. Morgan
The Sweet Home Elks will host a community meeting this month to plan a fund-raising effort to repair the stage in the Sweet Home High School auditorium.
The meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11, at the Elks Lodge. The Elks will be joined by representatives from the Chamber of Commerce and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. They invite other organizations and members of the community to join them.
“The school was looking for ways to get it fixed,” said Ron Sharrah, loyal knight and past exalted ruler. Shirley Austin, a member of the Elks, suggested that the organization get involved.
Sharrah said the Elks are planning to work on the stage and the back curtain, possibly fabricating a new one. He is planning to meet with school officials to learn more about what work is necessary and estimate the cost for repairs.
The school’s music teachers, who held their winter concerts on the stage Jan. 22 and 23, were unaware of the effort until Friday when The New Era inquired about the condition of the stage. During the concerts, as students and directors walked on the stage, creaking boards were audible in the audience.
“The floor needs to be finished and painted,” said choir teacher Matthew Clark. “The lighting in there needs to be redone, and there’s no sound system. The rear curtains all could be redone.”
The main curtain is in good shape, but it could use cleaning, Clark said.
The stage is obviously in need of resurfacing, said band teacher Pat Johnson, and there are issues with how the back curtains and the baffling function.
Johnson said he wasn’t aware of the Elks’ plans, and he didn’t want to sound greedy discussing the stage, but he offered a list of issues with the stage and auditorium.
“We’re thankful to have the space,” Clark said.
Some schools don’t have an auditorium at all, Johnson said.
Light bays in the floor are not functional, he said. “They used to fold out, and lights would shine up, which is great for at least some thespian activities.”
The stage also suffers from inconsistent lighting, with weak light bars in the back, he said. The stage right lights are brighter than stage left.
“If we want to remain competitive with other schools in our area, there are upgrades that are necessary,” Johnson said. Lebanon, for example, has a sound booth and is “light years” ahead of Sweet Home, technologically. Lebanon has recording capabilities, with computer analysis of music available, and the school even features a stage crew class.
The auditorium hasn’t been painted as long as Johnson and Clark have been in Sweet Home. Johnson has been here for nine years, and Clark has been here for seven.
“We’d like to see the auditorium modernized on par with the new gym,” Clark said. It’s used all year long, with concerts drawing more than 400. It’s been used for in-service, and community organizations like the Singing Christmas Tree hold their events there.
With visitors and members of the public using it, Johnson said, “it’s just not our best foot forward.”
Student performers need a place to be, lights to be seen and sound to be heard, Johnson said.
Call the Elks Lodge at (541) 367-3559 for more information.