Friends of the Coleman announce new book and Oct. 21 soft opening for theater gift shop

Carol White, president of the Friends of the Coleman, and Sharon Graham, the group's treasurer, told the City Council on Oct. 7 that the nonprofit has published a history of the Coleman Theatre and will open a small shop adjacent to the theater.

"Come Oct. 21, we are going to have a soft opening that coincides with Miami Main Street's Sip and Shop," Carol White said. The shop is at 103½ North Main Street, immediately north of the Coleman Theatre, and volunteers are preparing displays and lighting for the space.

Sharon Graham said the book grew from earlier histories and five years of work by volunteers; the group worked with a Missouri-based publisher and used archival material and interviews with original renovation volunteers. The presenters highlighted artifacts and restoration stories included in the volume, saying the theater's Wurlitzer still resides in its original venue and that the grand chandelier was recovered and restored after being found in a horse barn.

White and Graham told council members every dollar from shop sales and book sales will be returned to the Coleman Theatre, which the Friends of the Coleman operate as a nonprofit stewardship group.

Council members thanked the volunteers and encouraged attendance at the Oct. 21 soft opening and future theater events.