Tryon, NC 28782
p. 434-221-5113
thehumanitarianplayers@gmail.com

Executive Summary

The Humanitarian Players (“THP”) is a startup, 501(c)3 non-profit, theatrical troupe dedicated to serving local charities as their fundraiser event.  Its founder PJ Thiessen invented The Humanitarian Players with the intent to assist grass root charities focused on helping its own community, whom also share the goal of self-sustainability, while also serving to educate participants in the craft of theatre arts.

 THP intends to begin operations in Polk County. After it succeeds here, it will then look for groups in other communities interested in creating a new THP troupe to serve their community in the hope of creating a connected web of like-minded humanitarians. While keeping with THP’s basic design, each troupe must conduct their own separate budget and staff, and build their own stagecraft (costumes, sets, etc.).  Of course, the separate projects will share with one another any creative ideas and personnel as needed.

Thiessen has taken several workshops on starting and operating non-profit organizations with the intent of starting up THP. She learned that a challenge in raising funds rests in helping potential donors emotionally connect to their community’s needs, to recognize how contributions provide a direct and lasting value for the growth and health of the entire community, which indirectly and reciprocally benefits the donor. Connecting to the community’s needs requires generating an atmosphere of communication. THP’s theatre event provides such an atmosphere.

With years of theatrical education and experience, Thiessen wrote a simple, musical, western melodrama series called Good Measures for THP to use as its fundraiser events. Good Measures is the name of an imaginary little town hidden somewhere in the Old West where people still live in the 19th century (somewhat like The Beverly Hillbillies). The series reuses the same loveable, easily recognizable, melodramatic, stock characters—hero, villain, heroine, femme fatale—with each episode designed to give any local charity the opportunity to promote its causes. The characters act as both emotional supporters of each charity’s good works, while privately harboring fear of change. THP will inspire its actors, while in character, to engage and challenge community audiences in discussions of needed changes.

In small communities where resources are spread thin, THP will have to share its area artists with other local performing arts groups. By having multiple actors and musicians performing the same roles, it allows performers to continue to participate with these other groups.

Objectives for 2024-25

• To obtain seed money or materials from individuals and grants
• To obtain a home-base to conduct meetings, auditions, workshops and rehearsals,
• To develop a dedicated, creative administrative staff.
• To obtain skilled piano or keyboard accompanists, and possibly a few added musicians like drummers and fiddlers,
• To develop a group of dedicated volunteers to both perform in and staff fundraiser productions, as well as to administrate the organization.
• To contract with local charitable groups in creating entertaining, fun-filled fundraising venues, and
• To use continuing beloved characters that our community grows to recognize and welcome in fundraising venues.

Ideally, the seed money will pay for stagecraft and administrative supplies such as:

• initial year’s rent for its home-base;
• initial year’s (no more than two) part-time, salaried workers;
• service fees for musicians, designers, or other outside contractors;
• permanent, one-size-fits-many costumes;
• permanent, portable, lightweight sets;
• permanent, portable lighting equipment;
• permanent, portable furniture and hand props; and
• programs, brochures, business cards, tickets, stationery.

Ideally, future ticket sales will continue to pay rent, salaries, musician fees, administrative costs, and occasional added stagecraft.

Once a THP branch acquires its initial materials for its Good Measures series, the cost of maintaining its operation shall remain minimal, using ticket money.  Charities who use THP as a fundraiser event will solicit funds separately during the course of the performance with the help of THP’s characters. They may also raise funds through any gaming they are legally eligible to conduct, and through any sales of items or food.

Why specifically assist local charities rather than national charities?

Because what we do for individuals in our community affects its future. Local charities understand what’s needed in the area specific to them, and that when we do improve the quality of life for any group or individuals in need, it uplifts the overall quality of life for the community at large, affecting its future health and prosperity.

Because profit by some at the expense of others who lack is not sustainable. Some national charities make more money for themselves than for those they serve. By focusing on local communities we can better ensure that those whom we serve actually receive the help they need, such as community gardens, programs of physical, mental, and environmental health, safety and recreation, and the special needs of our children and elderly. Together we can achieve sustainability and improved living, and as we strengthen peaceful co-existence, the need for outside aide diminishes; striving becomes thriving.

Because we are all interconnected. By serving as a model of such healthy, thriving, self-sustaining communities, we encourage surrounding communities to do likewise. By sharing and connecting with one another we forge a chain of healthy communities one link at a time. We thus create a web of healthy interdependence, an interconnectedness, a oneness from which our society derives its strength, prosperity, and life with purpose.

No man is an island. It’s all for one and one for all—together we pursue our happiness.

Mission Statement

To help local charities improve quality of life for the whole community by improving quality of life for the few in need.

Keys to Success

Commitment, dedication, perseverance, plenty of humor, and joy.

 

Description of Business

Using a vehicle of theatrical entertainment, The Humanitarian Players will provide fundraising venues for local community charities who work to assist local peoples, especially the vulnerable and disadvantaged.

The charitable group on whose behalf the troupe will perform will supply their own event workers to work the “house”–the box office and area where the audience sits. THP handles everything related to the play and performance area. THP will provide extra helpers to the house as needed.

The THP troupe will learn to work in multiple spaces and to interact with potential donor audiences, while supporting the goals of the charity it serves to raise funds. It will create easily portable stagecraft, such as costumes, props, sets, lighting, sound and musical instruments. THP gains its income through ticket sales. Charities participating in an event will gain its funds through direct solicitations, sales, and perhaps gaming.

How An Event Works

Audience entering the theatre space will encounter the charity workers acting as station employees of a 19th century stage coach line who will sell them “stagecoach tickets” (performance tickets) to “travel to” (imagine) the town of Good Measures. “The Station Keeper” (box-office manager) greets the customers and manages “Stagers” (box-office staff). THP actors playing “Coach Drivers” going by the names of “Whip, Charley, or Jehu,” (Old West slang for coach drivers) assist with ushering “travelers” (audience) to their “stagecoaches” (assigned table or other seating in the performance space). The “Station Superintendent” (house manager) whose job is to purchase “station equipment” (box-office equipment, refreshments, etc.) and hire the above workers, maintains “the station” (the house).

If the charity so chooses, travelers may purchase refreshments of sarsaparilla, ginger or root beer, fruit juice, or milk, and other snacks, or in licensed venues, more mature audiences may purchase something stronger. Historically, audiences often ate food during 19th century melodrama performances, which sometimes ended up being thrown at actors they didn’t like. At our events audiences may purchase small bags of marshmallows to pelt their favorite characters as this is a cleaner and more fun substitute of this melodrama tradition. If the charity usually sells specific items for their cause, such as t-shirts, audiences may purchase them at a sales table.

One of our actors playing “MC” the Stage Coach Conductor acts as the host, the MC. In the Old West a Conductor would sit on the “box” beside the driver, take care of passengers, collect fares, and be responsible for the mail. Our Conductor leads our event, explaining she/he will lead the train of stagecoaches and gives a short description of melodrama and the charity hosting the event. The Conductor also engages the audience in putting on their imaginations, inviting them to “travel” down the “Imagination Trail” to the town of Good Measures in Eutopia County where many of the characters have musical names (see “Characters”), and “change” is a forbidden word. As the magic begins, the Conductor leads the audience into learning the town anthem of “Good Measures” (the theme song) so they may sing along with the actors when the opportunity arises.

The Conductor will announce the 15 colorful 19th century characters (plus extras) at the beginning of the performance, as was done in old time melodrama theatres. The characters will form a tableau, which will be a time the audience will be allowed to take pictures. Among the characters are Sam the Piano Player on a piano or keyboard who interacts with the characters and audience musically.

At a specified time, the showgirls and boys will perform one entr’act can-can entertainment, at which a few audience members may be invited to participate. Showgirls and boys handle any scene changes and audience prompt cards such as “boo” or “cheer.” Audiences receive programs and invitations to games, such as guessing certain things that take place during the performance, with winners taking home small, nice prizes.  THP will collect western posters, accessories, and other fun western items to help fill-in as prizes.

As the story begins, in the middle of the first scene, the audience will learn that the characters now see the audience as visitors “riding into town on a stagecoach train.” Characters will now interact, a little bit, with a few of the “visitors.” Later in the story, the tables at which the audience sit become tables in the town’s saloon, The Sonata Saloon, where the audience now engage their imaginations as saloon customers. Here, showgirls and boys may also serve more drinks.

In between certain scenes, a short intermissions allows your charity speaker to promote your goals. Certain favorite characters will move around the audience engaging in playful banter and discussions about your charities. They also may help collect more donations. Characters will encourage “customers” to enter guessing games, all in the fun of raising donations. Upon the end of the story, the visitors will be thanked for visiting their little town as they “leave town in their stage coaches” and guessing game winners will be announced.

As THP develops, and this Good Measures episode saturates the area, new episodes involving the same characters will be presented so that local donors can enjoy seeing their favorites again for yet another hometown charity. In fact, another game that is FREE invites audiences to suggest future plot lines for Good Measures, or subplots that happen to specific characters. Those who get their chosen ideas written by THP will receive a pair of free tickets to the next time it’s performed.

Location

THP looks for a place in Tryon willing to volunteer use of a “home base” for THP to conduct meetings, to hold auditions and rehearsals, and to build simple stagecraft as needed, that will service Polk County and possibly Landrum. (Startup in Norfolk, VA will commence after THP in Polk County is well under way.)

Initially THP may need a low rent, but that will increase as it grows. Although THP will encourage contracting charities to supply their own performance space, if the rental space is large enough, it would be ideal to have it also serve as a venue for a fundraiser performance.

As THP expands to other communities beyond Polk County, NC, new troupes will have to develop their own spaces and separate budgets to prevent violations of any grant or donation money that come with location or other restrictions.

Management

PJ Thiessen serves as THP’s Executive Director and President of the Board of Directors. She has experience with other community theatres as a board member, trained director, playwright, stage manager, actor, singer, and crew. She has run summer theatre workshops for children in Washington D.C., and has been active in community service much of her life. She has early experience in private school administration and teaching, and roughly 14 later years of experience in substitute teaching in Lynchburg, Bedford County, and Virginia Beach, Virginia. She received training in Theatre Arts from S.U.N.Y. at Plattsburg, and then Southern Connecticut State University (New Haven) where she received her B.A. degree, and also from The Theatre School (Washington, DC) where she received a two-year acting certification for the stage.

THP looks to fill its staff with local volunteers bringing talents in theatre production, writing, artistry, marketing, music, technology, and administration. THP will initially hold informational meetings to attract staff members and performers.

THP will select actors based on talent and skill regardless of age, sex, or race. If a nine-year-old girl can convincingly portray an older, male, evil villain, she will win the role. If an 80-year-old man can convincingly portray a young, pure-as-the-driven-snow heroine, he will win the role. (Think about John Travolta in the role of an ordinary housewife in Hairspray.) Good Measures is a comedy, after all.

Financial Management

THP received its 501(c)3 in June 2024 and has opened a bank account with Home Trust Bank. THP will have to begin with seed money the first year, but intends to develop future income through ticket sales.

Roughly 80% of startup costs will be a one-time need only.  Although THP will be made up of mostly volunteers, it will need to hire two part-time salaried workers and outside contractors such as musicians and designers.  Future ticket sales will eventually take care of these workers and other administrative costs.

Start-Up/Acquisition Summary

Seed money will be needed to pay for location rent, stagecraft, and administration materials.

If restrictions come with any grants or other money donations, such as use in restricted locations, THP will carefully adhere to them.

Materials Needed

Unlike most theatres who acquire new stagecraft (sets, costumes, etc.) for each play production, since THP will use the same characters and settings, only the initial cost of stagecraft (sets, lights, props) will be the most expensive. After that, the costs will only include maintenance of stagecraft as well as the occasional added stagecraft for new episodes. Ideally, THP would like to start with everything already in place as described below.

Costumes

Each character will have a specific color assigned to it so that the character will be recognized by its color, no matter who plays it or in which episode of the story. Vintage clothing and costuming has become a quite popular, both online and in thrift stores, and can be obtained already made and inexpensively. In keeping with one-size-fits many costumes, THP will “upcycle” clothing found in thrift stores to construct its own costumes to be shared by two or more actors. This may mean construction of two costumes per character, one for larger actors and one for smaller actors.

Women: Actors will supply their own stockings with assistance as needed. Women will also supply their own black stage shoes or their own vintage shoes if a pair can be found. THP will supply one-size-fits-many dresses or skirts, puff-sleeved blouses, and vests, boleros or capelets, and boot spats.

Men: Actors will supply their own black, gray, or brown pants or jeans and shirts (color will be discussed with each), and THP will supply one-size-fits-many, vests or jackets. Actors will supply their own black stage shoes or their own vintage shoes, and THP will supply black, gray, or brown boot spats.

Show Girls and Boys: Dancers will supply their own black leotards and tights or dance pants, and their own stage shoes. THP will supply one-size-fits-many skirts and vests. THP will also supply colored feathers for girls/women to wear in their hair.

Sam and The Conductor: Both will supply their own black pants (or skirts). THP will supply Sam with a (possibly red and white) striped shirt or vest and armbands for sleeve holders. THP will supply The Conductor with a satiny vest or jacket. THP will supply hats for both.

THP also will supply vintage accessories such as men’s and ladies’ hats/bonnets, gloves, and handkerchiefs, a sheriff and deputy badge, appropriate jewelry, small matching drawstring purses for some women, a white apron for the store keeper, a black cape for the villain, big light blue bow for the heroine to wear around her waist, etc. These can be discussed with the costume designer(s).

Makeup

For sanitary reasons actors will supply their own makeup. THP may invest in hairpieces like mustaches and add-ons.

Sets

In order to travel to varieties of venues, THP will need to acquire lightweight, easy to store, portable sets. By having sets made lightweight and standalone, they can be transported and placed anywhere in a given acting space, including in a room where the sets surround three-quarters of the audience. Performance spaces could include school cafeterias, church halls, and other spaces fit for crowds.

THP is considering using 4-inch thick 8′ x 4′ stand-alone” foam boards, made by Universal Foam Products of Hunt Valley, MD, mounted on wooden feet at its base for portable set pieces. For the first episode of Good Measures (The Lost Gold Mine of Avery Flatminor), THP would hire an artist to paint them to look like cartoon buildings of a saloon, a jailhouse, and a general store to represent the “Main Street.” In future episodes we may create a bank or a town hall. Each foam board will have exterior views painted on one side, and interior views painted on the other side that merely need be swiveled around to show the opposite view.  Sets may also serve as “offstage” areas where actors may quietly wait before their next appearance on stage.

Hand Props

THP will need to purchase or acquire four (4) toy western pistols (perhaps cap guns), a black cane, a parasol, a boa, a broom, a fan, a pickax and pan, a decorative hanky, a pocket watch (preferably golden), a monocle eyeglass, a sarsaparilla bottle, a woven basket with handle, a wanted poster of a villain, handcuffs, a cartoonish drawing of a land deed, drinking glasses, bottles, pitchers, serving trays, a miner’s bag of gold, a piece of gold rock, and a piece of a moonshine still.

Furniture Props

Not much will be needed and should fold or pack easily and be lightweight.  THP now has a small, sturdy, all wooden “saloon bar” (strong enough to support the weight of an actor) but it needs longer wooden feet to keep it from wobbling.  We also have 2 straight-back chairs. We will need a portable cot to serve as a jail cell bed,  a card table (or small round dining table), and, for Amaryllis O’Shea, a “victrola” on a side table and small loveseat.

Lighting and Sound

THP can borrow equipment, but ideally it should have its own keyboard and speakers. Fiddlers, drummers, and guitarists, of course, bring in their own instruments. Ideally, actors should be miked for large acting spaces. Sound effects can be created using slap boards, slide whistles, and other easily made or inexpensively purchased. Today, portable, lighting equipment is much less expensive than traditional theatre lighting. THP is currently in discussion with Sweetwater.com for two portable stands that support 4-6 color-changing LED lighting mounts.

Office Equipment and Supplies

THP will acquire basic office equipment (computer, printer, etc), desk supplies (pens, rulars, etc.) and paper supplies (print paper, stationery, brochures, business cards, etc.). THP’s website, humanitarianplayers.org, is hosted by a donor with extensive website development and protection experience; the site will require maintenance. THP will also need a digital camera/video camera for taping auditions and website and media marketing.

Marketing

THP intends to locate charitable groups in Polk County and possibly Landrum interested in using its fundraising services. Besides the humanitarianplayers.org website, THP will develop an Instagram page and other social media outlets.

Market Analysis [under construction]

LIST OF SOURCES FOR SEED MONEY OR MATERIAL DONATIONS (still developing this list)

Polk County Community Foundation, 255 South Trade Street, Tryon, NC

LIST OF CHARITIES IN POLK COUNTY (still developing this list)

Aspire Polk County, 76 North Peak Street, Columbus, NC 28722
Polk County 4H and Youth Foundation, Mills Street, PO Box 187, Columbus, NC 28722
Partnership for Children of the Foothills, 338 Withrow Road, Forest City, NC 28043
Polk County Partnership of Children, Inc., 107 Ward Street, Columbus, NC 28722
Pop Up Food Pantry, 54 Carolina Street, Saluda, NC
Blue Ridge Community Health Center, 161 Walker St, Columbus, NC
Steps to Hope
Thermal Belt Outreach, 134 White Dr., Columbus
Energy Assistance, DSS, 231 Wolverine Trail, Mill Spring NC
Polk County Transportation, Gibson & Ward St, Columbus, NC
Polk Sunnyview Children’s Center, 86 Sunnyview School Road, Mill Spring, NC
Polk County Schools, 125 East Mills Street, Columbus, NC
AA @ Columbus United Methodist Church, 76 N. Peak Street, Columbus, NC
Women’s Support Group, Steps to Hope, Columbus, NC

Cooperation vs. Competition

THP believes in cooperation. In competition someone wins, while the other loses. But in cooperation we celebrate our own successes as well as the successes of others. For a community to thrive it needs to embrace a win-win philosophy.

While any charity competes for local donations, we can also serve to support one another. For example, THP intends to offer actor training to adults as well as the youth in our local schools. Not only does actor training help develop confidence, public speaking skills, and leadership qualities for individuals, but it also adds to the next generation of actors for other local theatre companies.

THP recognizes that every community has its share of local nonprofit performance groups. THP’s main purpose, while theatrical in nature, is for fundraising purposes. The goals of other theatres in our community contribute art, culture, history, music, entertainment, community adhesion, skill development,  and develop personal creativity and self-expression. THP hopes to add to and support this rich culture.

Many theatres also use profits to support local charities, and other fundraiser events that happen on a regular basis. This is wonderful as the whole community needs to keep improving the quality of life for its people. THP believes were are all needed to supply these community needs.

THP has plans to create develop new stories with our static characters, creating many episodes much like favorite TV or film series. While we are currently creating new stories for our “Good Measures” series, in years to come we hope to develop new series. We expect people will enjoy being entertained by their favorite characters, facing more obstacles and creative situations, while knowing that their donations at our theatrical events are continuing to improve our community.

Pricing

THP intends to follow current ticket pricing, somewhere between current cinema and theatre ticket costs. Collaborating charities will handle their own fundraising needs at our events.

Advertising and Promotion

To acquire volunteers and promote its fundraising services, THP will initially use social media, local community boards and websites, letters to local churches and schools, local newspapers, community press releases on local TV, and word of mouth.

Strategy and Implementation

Since THP plans to use the same characters and story location for each event, it will not have as many costume and set needs as other theatre groups. THP will require more money initially to acquire all the materials and equipment it needs to run its operations, but after startup it will only need enough money to maintain two small salaries, outside contractor needs, and office costs.

So as not to overwhelm the community with donation requests, it might be useful to encourage charitable groups to join up together for a week or weekend of performances from which to share the draw. Depending on the need and desires of the charities it serves, THP could spread out individual fundraisers throughout the year, or collective charity fundraisers on a regular basis (e.g., monthly or quarterly) where the charities split the donations.

Expenses (Ideally)

Business Licenses	$400
Incorporation Expenses	n/a
Cash on Hand	$0.00
Bank Account	$0.00
Director Costs	(10% received by THP capping annually at:)      $40,000
Rent	TBD
Royalties	($150/event) $6000
Equipment/Machinery Required:
Computer (laptop)	$3000
Printer/fax/copier/scanner	$1500
Keyboard and Speaker	$3000
Keyboard Stand, Bench, pedal, music stand	$350
Digital Camera with Video	$500
Portable Lighting Equipment	TBD
Total Equipment/Machinery	TBD
Insurance	n/a
Website maintenance	$400
Stationery/Business Cards	$400
Brochures	$600
Paper & Office Supplies	$500
Total Administrative Costs	$10,850
Costumes	TBD
Sets	TBD
Furniture Props	TBD
Hand Props	TBD
Prizes and Thank You Gifts	TBD
Total Startup Expenses (Ideal)	TBD

Appendix

History of the Play and a Dedication

by PJ Thiessen, the Playwright and THP Founder

James Evers, the first Avery Flatminor, provided me the reason for the writing of this musical. Although it has developed into a fundraiser today, it actually started as a skit for a choir retreat’s Saturday night entertainment one September weekend in 1981.

Fresh out of college, I obtained a job in Washington D.C., where I soon joined the 80-member New York Avenue Presbyterian Church Choir. Our choir director, Steve, always had the choir prepare for the Thanksgiving-Christmas holiday music season in late September at a “Shrine Mont” weekend retreat near Mt. Jackson, Virginia. Upon learning I had graduated with a degree in Theatre Arts, the choir asked me to come up with its Saturday night entertainment. Steve told the choir the theme for Shrine Mont that year would be “Good Measures.” I thought about how I could incorporate the theme into my entertainment.

A talkative tenor, Jim Evers, who appeared to be developmentally disabled, approached me asking if he could be in the entertainment. Of course, I said “Sure.” He walked away jubilant and light as air. When he was beyond earshot a few of the choir members whispered to me, “Do NOT let Jim Evers be in your skit.” They proceeded to tell me horror stories of past choir retreats when Jim’s miserable failure during the entertainment made the whole affair embarrassing for himself and for everyone who had to watch. Too late! The promise was already made. And the idea of pushing away any volunteer ruffled my feathers.

Jim didn’t read well (always in a monotone), couldn’t remember lines, and didn’t know how to improvise. I needed something fun but simple, that would not require any memorization, and would make Jim look good without his having to spend much time at it. So, I decided to write a simple western melodrama, with simple words he could read in monotone, and then kill off his character at the beginning. The entire cast would read from the script as we performed it, and I would name many of the characters after musical terms, in keeping with the “Good Measures” theme.

I made Jim’s character a gold prospector named Avery—“Avery Flatminor” (“A-very flat-minor”) who walks in a dogged-straight line, thinks slowly, and speaks in a monotone. I gave Jim all very short sentences to read. Avery’s final words to the villain, whom he mistakenly thought was a preacher, and whom had just successfully conned Avery out of his gold mine, were, “Thankee reverend, you’ve truly relieved my mind.”

That night Jim entered the stage (the retreat had a small, but real stage in one of the cottages) and began to read his lines under very colorful stage lights with our tenor soloist, Judge Ronnie Yoder, who played the villain. Everyone loved the performance, laughing appropriately at every joke. Jim only made a few mistakes, but they all fit the character of Avery Flatminor. Finally, Jim read his last and most difficult line. However, instead, he accidentally said, “Thankee reverend, you truly relieved me…of my mind.”

Surprised by the laughter and applause, Jim bowed, grinning ear to ear, before making his exit. Needless to say, I rewrote that line just the way Jim said it.

Next came the death scene. Earlier that day, after I had Jim practice his lines with Ronnie, I asked him to practice a cartoonish death. He didn’t know how to do that. So, I told him to clutch his chest when the gunshot sounded (a plastic toy gun with a slap-board sound effect), spin around two times, sit on the floor, lay back on the floor throwing his feet up in the air, and then drop his feet pretending to be dead. Well, Jim complained that the floor was too hard for his nearly bald head. So, I promised to toss him a pillow.

When it came time during the performance, Jim executed the cartoonish death beautifully. I flung the pillow out in perfect timing, it slid across the polished stage floor and landed smack underneath Jim’s head at the exact moment of impact. Explosive laughter erupted, as the entire choir stood for a thunderous ovation at Jim’s success. Jim was so very happy that even though he was supposed to play dead, he jumped to his feet and bowed—several times. After the show, everyone congratulated him over and over, and again the next day at breakfast. In fact, everyone wanted him to sit at their table. Jim was popular for, probably, the only time in his life.

Sadly—two years later, Jim had a heart attack and died at the age of 40-something. The church held a memorial service, and we had the opportunity to meet Jim’s very loving and supportive family. They specifically asked to see me. I was surprised they were smiling. They told me that when Jim came home for Christmas every year, they usually had to console him for his latest choir retreat mishap. But that year, the year of his “big performance,” and every Christmas that followed, he couldn’t stop re-telling the story of his success. They were so pleased Jim had finally succeeded in a grand way. They shook my hand and thanked me several times saying, “Jim went out of this life feeling like a star!” Of course, I choked up.

Therefore, this play is forevermore dedicated to James Evers.