Drive-in for Family Fun

from Eye On Magazine July 2020

Community. It’s more than a word to us, it’s a feeling. It’s action. As a community college, we take pride in the word community and work to give back whenever we can.

Over two years ago, ASU-Newport committed to bringing family fun to the community of Newport. With the help of DRIVE and the Newport Area Chamber of Commerce, Movies in the Park was born. It wasn’t always the easiest venture when facing rain and mosquitoes, but it became an event we cherished. From Toy Story to Hocus Pocus, many of our community supporters joined us as we enjoyed a movie under the stars.

Gearing up for the 2020 Movies in the Park season brought new challenges beyond just rain or shine. With a worldwide pandemic, many events were postponed or moved to virtual platforms. Our team knew we weren’t just going to throw in the towel and cancel Movies in the Park. It was time to get innovative. How could we offer a free movie to our community while remaining safe and following proper health directives?

**A big THANKS to the ASUN Commercial Driver Training Program.**

With a little modern-day invention, our team created Drive-In Movies in the Park. Drive-in movie theaters are reopening across the country to offer families a safe way to get out of the house. Why not in Newport? While there isn’t an original theater to work with, we are nothing but resourceful.

It’s amazing to see what can happen in a small community with individuals who care. After some brainstorming, we realized the Newport Economic Development building parking lot offered a great location for a drive-in movie experience. As you can see from the photos, it’s not as simple as pulling into a parking lot and turning on the big screen. We have many to thank starting with the faculty of our Commercial Driver Training program. They assisted in getting our truck to Downtown Newport to ensure everyone could see the big screen from where they parked. Dr. Ashley Buchman and her team were instrumental in pivoting and cultivating this new format. Anthony May continues to oversee the technical setup for the event and made sure everything could be hooked up outside and at a different location. The chamber supplied volunteers to direct traffic and chalked the parking lot to ensure social distancing even when inside the car. Jon Chadwell and his team worked to get a radio transmitter so the movie’s sound could be heard from inside everyone’s vehicle.

It took a village of dedicated people to make it happen, and we are so proud of the outcome.

Dolittle was the first movie in May, and Jumanji: The Next Level followed up in June. We were thrilled to see so many cars parked in the parking lot. What we used to see on the lawn in Front Street Park was now taking place on the tailgate of a pickup truck and atop a sunroof. With snacks from home, you could tell this was something these families and friends would never forget.

We always knew the community of Newport and Jackson County was special, but during these unprecedented times our community has shown how strong it truly is. While we could sit back and think of all the things we couldn’t do over the last several months, I’m choosing to see what we could do. Like spend extra time with our families and find delight in enjoying an old movie tradition in a new way.

ASU-Newport’s Drive-In Movies in the Park continues September 12 with the live-action version of Mulan. On October 3, the 2019 animated The Addams Family Halloween will air. Please follow our social media pages for updates on locations and times for the fall showings. We hope you will join us as we continue to showcase strength and community in the place we call home.

Dr. Sandra Massey has been Chancellor of Arkansas State University-Newport since September, 2013. Previously serving in student affairs and academic leadership posts in Arkansas and Oklahoma, she and her husband Ward make Newport, Arkansas home. They have two children, Brittany and granddaughters Maggie and Ava of Jonesboro, Arkansas and Reese and granddaughter Maybelle Scout of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Dr. Massey enjoys running, lake activities and spending time with her granddaughters.

This article is from:

Eye On Magazine July 2020