“Great Oaks from Little Acorns grow”
In June 2011, Alana Bird our Chief Usherette had the idea to incorporate something she had seen elsewhere.
To ‘Shake a bucket for the Restoration fund’ as the Theatre goers leave Shanklin Theatre. So on June 28th 2011, Alana and her enthusiastic band of volunteers shook their buckets and made the handsome collection of £76.90.
Alana entered this in a little book and did the same at the next show, again entered the figure, this time even better at £99.45 in her little book and so on until something had to come to an end. And it was on June 28 this year that something did come to an end. Her little book.
She had reached the last page. Four years to the day of ‘shaking the bucket for the Restoration Fund’. So she shut her little book. And what had that first collection of £76.90 and all of the subsequent collections grown to? A fantastic £71,936.52.
No, that’s not a misprint, it’s Seventy One Thousand, Nine Hundred and Thirty Six Pounds and Fifty Two Pence!!! Nearly £72,000 pounds all gone into the restoration of our wonderful theatre.
So what has Alana done about the book being full? She has got another one with more pages so it will last longer and it’s already in use!!
Thank you Alana for hitting on the idea. Thank you all of the ‘bucket shakers’ and thank you to all of those wonderful people who have responded to the rattling bucket.
Alana Bird
