I have been following this theater since it’s infancy…when it was just in Valerie Jensen’s head. She had a vision and look what happened, she is now being spotlighted for what she and others have built! The White House wants to know all about what could and should be a model for the rest of the country.
In the past year, The Prospector Theater in Ridgefield, CT has made some waves. We opened our doors, we hired over 103 Prospects (employees), and we created over 175,000 hours of meaningful work for our Prospects. 70% of our workforce is adults with disabilities.
NBC Nightly News visited us in February when we only three months old, which gave us national exposure. Other news outlets covered the model we developed; a premium, non-profit movie theater, with a restaurant and cafe, that provides job training and employment to adults with disabilities. The New York Yankees noticed us and honored us with one of their HOPE Week awards this August. To say it has been an adventure is an understatement! It has been spark-o-licious! Most recently, the White House invited us to a panel on employment in the arts.
What is most extraordinary about all of the wonder that has been the coverage, our model, and our success, is this has all happened in less than 365 days since we officially opened.