ABOVE: The current projector and server set-up at the Sherburn Theater. Unable to show movies since March, the Sherburn Theater Reboot group has secured enough funding to purchase a new server to replace the old one and get movies going again in the near future. They are also looking to raise more funds to replace the projector, which Sherburn Theater Reboot Coordinator Becky Tish said will not be fixable if it breaks due to lack of availability for spare parts.

SHERBURN – With the Sherburn Theater closed since March because its cinema server stopped working, Sherburn citizens have come together to raise funds to bring movies back to their.

The theater opened in 1940 with assistance from the Works Progress Administration as both a theater and community hall, according to City Clerk and Economic Development Authority (EDA) Director Andrea Ballard. She said Sherburn Movie Theater Manager Mike Schwartz, who co-manages it with his wife Nikki Schwartz, came to the city council in March to let them know about the server failing.

“No additional funds were budgeted or available to put towards the full replacement cost of this,” Ballard said. “Annually, the community hall and theater, as it is one building, basic expenditures to keep the building maintained and heated and cool costs approximately $25,000.”

As that was all they had budgeted for the year, Ballard said they had no money they could spare to purchase a $10,340 server.

Sherburn Theater Reboot Coordinator Becky Tish said small towns are dying so fast, they can’t afford to lose anything, especially things that bring people to town.

“Main Street Sherburn is losing businesses,” she said. “It’s got a lot of empty buildings, and to lose the theater too. It’s something that brings people to town. People come from Fairmont, Jackson, Estherville, St. James, so it’s bringing people into town to do something, and giving us something to do in town. We lost the pool, businesses are just dropping like flies on Main Street, so we really just need to keep the theater viable and giving people something to do.”

This isn’t just about bringing people in from outside Sherburn either. Tish said there have also been concerns expressed about continuing to attract people to live in Sherburn.

“Mark Gaalswyk, who’s with Easy Automation, came to our meeting because he knows it’s important for him, as an employer, to have things for their employees to get to use and resources for them,” she said. “He’s got some great ideas, and Ean Sinn too has some great ideas. We’ve had community members very eager to get involved, and if nothing else, talk about it. The bigger picture is if employers know that communities have resources for their employees, it makes it more attractive for them to live here and work here.”

With that in mind, she said she started a conversation to gauge interest.

“I just put it out on Facebook,” Tish said. “I said, ‘Here’s what’s going on.’ People started talking about it, and someone said, ‘What are we going to do about it?’ We scheduled a meeting and had eight people show up at it, and we just started brainstorming.'”

In just a week since this group first met, Tish said the full $10,340 has been committed to funding the server, including a $5,000 donation from the Sherburn Lions Club and $3,000 from Fox Lake Conservation League.

To have met this goal so quickly, Tish said it’s amazing what can happen when you start a conversation.

“If you have an issue you want to work on, or you’re aware of a community need, start a conversation,” she said. “People care, and they want to get involved. They’re willing to support things to keep the town alive. It’s gratifying to know that people care, because small towns die, they’re fading away, and we don’t want that to happen here, because we’ve got so much.”

They are not finished, however. Tish said she recently found out from Mike and Nikki Schwartz that the current projector, while operational, has no spare parts available. This means when it fails, it will not be fixable. Not wanting to see another movie blackout for Sherburn, Tish said they want to raise the required money for a new projector.

“The price we have currently has like $45,000 to replace it for the 2k [resolution] and then a 4k [resolution], which is a higher quality, is $77,000,” she said. “We’re not setting a limit. If we got $77,000, we would encourage the city to do that, and that’s totally up to the city; they’re the decision-makers, we’re just the fundraising arm.”

While they had been hoping for a July 4th opening, Tish said unfortunately that is no longer feasible. However, since the funds are committed to purchasing the server and the current projector still works, Tish said they want to see the theater opened again sometime this summer.

The next meeting of the Sherburn Theater Reboot group will be at 6 p.m. on Thursday, June 25 at the Sinn Family Celebration of Life Center in Sherburn. Tish said the group is not limited to Sherburn residents, and anyone can attend.