Loving History: Egyptian Theatre preservation group celebrates 30 years

Emily Jordan, 28, of Sycamore is a recovering heroin addict who has participated in drug court, a DeKalb County program created in August 2006 that seeks alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent drug offenders. “I came into this program kicking and screaming,” Jordan said. “It has allowed me to make a lot of positive changes in my life.” ERIC SUMBERG | esumberg@daily-chronicle.com

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It's love for the historic Egyptian Theatre and pride in the DeKalb landmark that motivate Rochelle resident Mary Brown to volunteer there 20 hours each week. “It makes me feel good when people come in and say, ‘This place is nicely kept,' or ‘It's beautiful,'” she said. “I do it for other people.” Brown is vice president of the theater's board of directors and volunteer coordinator for the 100-member group Preservation of the Egyptian Theatre. The volunteer group, which maintains the historic building, celebrated its 30th anniversary Saturday, commemorated by Mayor Frank Van Buer as Preservation of the Egyptian Theatre Day. PET members maintain the 79-year-old structure, which hosts 75-100 events each year. Volunteers can be found doing everything from making popcorn for the concession stand to cleaning light fixtures and shoveling snow. “We actually need a janitor, but with our budget, volunteers have to do all of those routine things,” Brown said. Alice Freier was one of the volunteers who stayed after movie showings Saturday to vacuum stray popcorn in the theater's aisles and tidy up bathrooms. “The Egyptian needs to be preserved in every way possible,” Freier said. “It's a beautiful building with a lot to offer to the community. It's an important part of history.” But there is only so much cleaning, dusting and painting that volunteers can do before renovations become necessary, operations manager Alex Nerad said. The theater last underwent major repairs in 1982, and it's about time to restore it for another 25 years of service, he said. “We don't have the money right now (to begin renovations),” Nerad said. “But we're hoping that with the continued support of the community, we will be able to raise funds through grants, fundraising events and private donations.” Fundraising efforts will be headed by PET, which has helped to finance projects worth a total of about $250,000 over the past two years. If the group reaches its $2 million goal, the theater's 1,430 seats will be replaced, and both the concession area and restrooms will be expanded, Nerad said. About 50,000 people pass through the doors of the theater during its 42 weeks of operation each year, Nerad said. “That's a lot of wear and tear on this building,” he added. “There are always things breaking that have to be fixed.” There are no plans to shut down the theater for future renovations, Nerad said. The theater last closed for major repairs in 1977, and the threat that it might not reopen sparked the creation of PET. The theater does close for 10 weeks during the summer because it lacks air conditioning. Though an air conditioning unit is on the list of needed amenities, it's not a priority at this time, Nerad said. Not only would the unit be costly to install, but the electricity to operate it would be a drain on the theater's finances. “The theater has not had air conditioning since it opened in 1928,” he said. “It has survived since then without it, so we hope it will be fine for a few more years.”