Liberty Theatre Receives Ford Grant, Sept. 20

The Liberty Theatre receives $175,000 grant from the Ford Family Foundation Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation to help finance historic theatre accessibility upgrades. The Liberty Theatre, home of Little Theatre on the Bay, is pleased to announce it has received a $175,000 grant from the Ford Family Foundation Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation. These funds will support Phase II historic theatre accessibility upgrades, including construction of the 1364-square foot south end of the first floor expansion, which includes ADA restrooms, a family room with baby nursing area. This project also addresses the purchase and installation of new seats, including ADA supportive seating in the auditorium. “This generous grants brings us to within less than $50,000 of our goal to complete Phase 2 of our historic remodel,” said Jeanne Woods, Liberty Theatre Restoration Chairperson. “The Ford Family Foundation Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation believes that community theatre is vitally important to the Oregon Coast. The Liberty Theatre offers creative expression for the many talented people in our community, opportunities for our local youth, and is a home to many artists, actors, and technicians.” The Ford Family Foundation is a private, non-profit foundation located in Roseburg, Oregon. Roseburg lies in southern Oregon where the North Umpqua and the South Umpqua rivers join timber country. A scholarship office in Eugene, Oregon, supports Foundation scholarship recipients attending college or university. Started in 1957, the Foundation now manages large, internal programs and offers scholarships. In addition, the Foundation makes grants to public charities predominantly benefiting communities in rural Oregon and Siskiyou County, Calif. Our heritage comes from such communities and the men and women who created them. Since 1959, the LTOB has operated and managed North Bend’s historic Liberty Theatre as a performing arts venue serving residents and visitors to Coos County. The restoration project is designed to ensure North Bend’s 92 year-old Liberty Theatre’s role as the architectural and cultural hub of the community is preserved and protected in time for the centennial celebration of the building’s opening scheduled for spring 2024. The Little Theatre on the Bay (LTOB) is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization whose mission is “to cultivate the arts in Coos County.”