350 Springfield kids get to see ‘A Wrinkle in Time’ for free

Hundreds of Springfield children will have the opportunity to see a blockbuster film for free after a local professor asked for help from the community.

Dr. Julius Bailey, an associate professor of philosophy at Wittenberg University, was watching an interview with Oprah Winfrey about the new movie she stars in, “A Wrinkle in Time,” and said he became inspired. The actress gave $50,000 to a 13-year-old to take neighborhood kids to see the movie and Bailey believe he had should do something similar. He said he also was inspired by the international success of “Black Panther.”

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“We all need to do a little bit of something to help our young people to dream and I think a movie like this assists, not only in the imagination, but also in how young girls specifically and just young people can win over tragedy,” Bailey said.

“A Winkle in Time” is about “the discovery of a new form of space travel as well as Meg’s father’s disappearance. She, her brother and her friend must join three magical beings — Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which — to travel across the universe to rescue him from a terrible evil,” according to IMDb.

Bailey contacted Chakeres Theater, a locally owned movie theater that he has worked with before, and presented the idea to them. The theater agreed to help, Bailey said.

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“We worked out a deal that wasn’t too overwhelming,” he said.

The original idea was to buy 200 tickets for Springfield children to attend the movie. He went on Facebook and asked friends, family and other people he knew to help buy the tickets. In less than 48 hours, he had received $1,500. That was more than enough money so he increased the ticket number to 350.

In addition to his friends and family, his colleagues at Wittenberg University, Alpha and Omega Building Services, a local nonprofit BECOMEONE and others donated to the event.

The screening of “A Wrinkle in Time” for the children was held on Saturday at Chakeres Theater located on 3115 E. National Road in Springfield.

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