Theater Marquee Campaign meets Challenge Grant Goal
The Holland Theatre is thrilled to announce that the Light Up the Holland Marquee Campaign is fully funded. Thanks to strong community support, the Holland has raised $440,000 in donations and pledges that will be matched by a $220,000 grant from the Jeffris Family Foundation.
Launched in November 2022 and expected to last three years, the capital campaign was completed in less than a year.
“We are honored and humbled by the incredible community support we received that will once again light up the Holland, the gem of downtown,” said Greg Titus, executive director of the Holland Theatre.
The original marquee was a striking feature of the theater when it opened in 1931 and the decades that followed. The blade was removed in the 1950s due to city code changes, and the rest of the marquee was removed in the 1960s due to street expansion and traffic. The new marquee, to be built by Wagner Electric Sign Co. of Elyria will combine the grandeur of the past with the latest in LED technology.
Construction is expected to take 10 to 12 months. A gala event will be planned to celebrate the lighting of the new marquee.
“This is one of the best projects in the history of the foundation,” said Thomas Jeffris, the foundation’s president. “Special thanks to [Holland board chair] Kris Swisher who did a great job.”
This is the second time the Holland has worked with the Jeffris Family Foundation, based in Janesville, Wis., which also played a major role in the theater’s interior restoration completed in 2019.
Founded in 1979, the foundation is dedicated to preserving regionally and nationally important historic buildings and decorative arts projects for future generations. The
Jeffris Capital Campaign Challenge Grant supports historic preservation projects throughout the Midwest.
Major contributors to the Light Up the Holland campaign included Tonia Terebuh and the Lile Family Charitable Foundation in Honor of Levi W. and Nancy Nicholl Lile, who each gave $100,000. Pledging $20,000 each were Citizens Federal, Logan County Commissioners, Mary Rutan Health, Harold and Barbara Marker Charitable Trust, Jason and Ann Vogel, Randy and Teresa Marker, and the Regan, Riley, Jamie and Chad Ross Family.
Dozens of additional businesses and individuals also gave generously to make the project possible. Many community members gave in honor or memory of relatives or friends by donating $100 for a lightbulb. A comedy show featuring an appearance from Dave Chappelle, who donated his time, also brought in funds.
The Holland is the nation’s only atmospheric Dutch theater. The structure had fallen into disrepair in the 1990s after being converted into a cineplex but was saved from demolition when Swisher, then a teacher, and her students took an interest in the structure.
Swisher noted the “amazing community care, local business support and a steady crew of volunteers” who contributed to the restoration that began in 2000. Local contributions and government and private grants – including support from the Jeffris
Family Foundation, which made possible the auditorium’s restoration and a new greenroom – helped transform the space into a vibrant performing arts theater.
“Now this pièce de résistance – a replica of the original marquee – will light up the face of our historic theater, once again supported by funding from the Jeffris Foundation,” Swisher said. “We couldn’t be more enthusiastic and grateful to welcome this great addition to our theater.”
