Summer kickoff movie night downtown

Mya enjoys a pony ride at the movie night in downtown Wayne.

Welcome back to another Spotlight Series with Sarah!
The series where the writer gets to know the city more personally, while the readers get to know the writer better in the process.
As a writer, most of the time I’m writing about events before they happen, so I hardly ever get to review them for my column. When given the opportunity, I jump at the chance so I can spice up my reviews for y’all.
And the opportunity presented itself to me, so rather last minute I asked my neighbor, Autumn, if she and her kids wanted to attend Wayne’s annual Kick-Off to Summer Movie Night with me so I could review it. She was down for the idea and thought it sounded like fun.
So on Friday, June 5th, after I got off work, Autumn, me, and her two kids, Theron II and Mya, loaded into Autumn’s car and headed for downtown Wayne.
Road closures for the event began at 4 p.m., but public parking was available at the Metro Plaza Mall and surrounding businesses. We parked in the lot across the street from the PNC bank on Newberry St.
Walking up to the event, the first thing we noticed was a petting farm set up next to Hill Crest Bible Church. There were bunnies, chickens, ducks, goats, sheep, and even a Beagle puppy that we got to hold. Theron II and Mya both got to do a pony ride and then they both got a balloon animal made for them. Theron II got a sword and Mya got a bunny.
We walked across the street and played cornhole for a while outside the Wayne Historical Museum.
There were some food trucks parked in the First Congregational Church parking lot, so we all walked over to check them out.
The food trucks were: El Jefe Taco, I Told You! Food Truck, and Kona Ice. Autumn ordered some loaded fries with chicken and Theron II ordered a steak taco from El Jefe Taco.
I really wanted the chicken alfredo from I Told You! Food Truck but I was planning on going to the gym after the event and knew I wouldn’t be able to work out with a full belly. So instead, I got a shaved ice from Kona Ice with Theron II and Mya. Theron II and I both got pina coladas, while Mya got ninja cherry.
We all enjoyed our shaved ice while we listened to music and watched a hula hoop competition hosted by a live DJ.
Right after that, we stood in line for Theron II and Mya to get their faces painted. There were two signs with lots of different design options to choose from. Theron II got a skull and Mya got a ladybug.
At this point, the street began to get set up for the movie part of the event. Rows of lawn chairs were set up on the concrete street facing a giant screen that would soon be playing GOAT.
Since I had asked Autumn about this so last minute, we didn’t plan on staying for the movie part and since it was supposed to start raining soon, we made our way over to the petting farm to look at the animals one last time before we headed back to the car.
Even though we didn’t stay for the movie, we all had such a fun time.
Theron II said his favorite part of the event was his sword balloon, Mya’s favorite part was her ladybug face paint, and Autumn’s was the petting farm and getting to see all the animals.
“Because rain was in the forecast, we decided to start the movie a little early. Unfortunately, we were only able to enjoy about 30 minutes of GOAT before the rain rolled in. Since we use a digital screen, we had to call the movie for the night,” said Lisa Kubany, Wayne Downtown Development Authority Marketing and Events Director.
Kubany gave a shout out to Hill Crest Bible Church for providing free popcorn and candy, to the Museum for creating a fun game area, to Chamberlin Pony Rides for providing the animals, and to The Dance Academy for bringing the energy.
“I also want to recognize the incredible Wayne DPW crew. They work tirelessly behind the scenes to help make every event a success, and we are all so grateful for everything they do,” said Kubany.
Kubany started working for the DDA in March 2021, and that was the first year the DDA brought Summer Movie Nights to downtown Wayne.
“It’s been amazing to watch this tradition grow over the years into something so many families look forward to each summer,” said Kubany.
The DDA hosts two movie nights each year: Summer Movie Night to celebrate the end of another school year and the start of summer fun, and Back-to-School Movie Night to celebrate a new school year while helping local families by giving away backpacks filled with school supplies.
“No matter the season or the reason, my favorite part is always the same: seeing kids dancing, families spending quality time together, and our downtown filled with laughter and smiles,” said Kubany.
Save the date for Back-to-School Movie Night (backpack giveaway) on Friday, August 21st.
Details on the location and movie theme are still being finalized, but backpacks will be provided beginning at 5 p.m. (while supplies last), and families can look forward to a dance party and plenty of fun activities from 5 – 7 p.m. before the movie at 7:15 p.m.
More details will be announced soon.
Be sure to attend the next movie night and be on the lookout for the next Spotlight Series with Sarah!