Hopkins puts Queen’s Grant track on map
Junior D.R.E.A.M Team strengthens Crestdale community page 12
page xx Volume 8, Number 22 • May 28 to June 3, 2015
When a dream comes true
Locally Owned & Operated www.matthewsminthillweekly.com
Matthews Playhouse celebrates 20th anniversary
The Bergins take on ‘The Briefcase’ by Crystal O’Gorman crystal@matthewsminthillweekly.com
Matthews Playhouse has produced 135 shows – including “Seussical the Musical” (pictured) – since 1995. Photo courtesy of Matthews Playhouse by Josh Whitener editor@matthewsminthillweekly.com
MATTHEWS – Twenty years ago, June Bayless had a vision to launch a small community theater in the Matthews area. Fast-forward two decades, and Bayless’s vision has materialized into one of the premier community theaters in the Charlotte region – Matthews Playhouse of
the Performing Arts. The organization has produced 135 shows, hosted hundreds of camps and trained thousands of actors of all ages since its inception. “I never, ever meant for it to be this big,” Bayless said. “I thought it would be a small thing where we could do a couple of plays a year, teach a couple of classes and have a couple of camps in the summer. But the
community has grown so much, and things just happened.” Bayless was working as the education director of Children’s Theatre of Charlotte 20 years ago when she recognized a need for a community theater in Matthews to better serve families who were having to make a lengthy drive to uptown Charlotte (see Playhouse on page 4)
Budget hearing generates little discussion Proposed 2.5-cent tax increase to help meet deficits, pay for South Trade Street by Josh Whitener editor@matthewsminthillweekly.com
MATTHEWS – A budget proposal calling for a 2.5-cent tax increase for Matthews residents was met with limited discussion during a public hearing
on Tuesday, May 26, with no residents speaking for or against the proposal. Matthews town manager Hazen Blodgett presented his fiscal year 2015-16 budget proposal to the Matthews Board of Commissioners during
Tuesday’s public hearing. The town’s entire budget for 2015-16, per Blodgett’s proposal, would be $20,730,866 – up more than $1.03 million from last year’s budget of $19,698,369. The 2.5-cent increase would raise taxes in Matthews from 31.75 cents to 34.25 cents per $100 of taxable
MATTHEWS – Kim and Joe Bergin, of Matthews Estates, didn’t know what they signed up for when Kim Bergin applied to be on a reality TV show about their family’s financial burden. The Bergin family took part in the new CBS reality TV show, “The Briefcase,” which aired Wednesday, May 27, at 8 p.m. “I found out about it on www.real itywanted.com; all the listing said was, ‘Could having more money ease your financial burden?’” she said. Kim applied in early February, and CBS reached out to her family two days later. They were filming by March 7. “Everything happened in less than 30 days – it was a whirlwind,” she said. The show presents two families who have financial need and surprises them with a briefcase filled with $101,000 in cash. They get to keep $1,000; but as for the rest of the money, they have three options to choose from and 72 hours to do it: keep it all, give some of it away or give all of it away to another family in financial distress.
(see Matthews budget on page 10)
(see Briefcase on page 11)
INDEX: News Briefs, 6; Crime Blotter, 7; Education, 12; Arts, 17; Calendar, 18; Sports, 20; Classifieds, 23
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