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WILKES-BARRE — Hundreds of kids piled into the F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts Saturday and you could tell a lot of fun was about to happen.
Judging by the line extending down South Main Street, it appeared there wouldn’t be an empty seat in the 1,800-seat facility on Public Square.
Ashley Drake, 26, of Kingston, and her children were at the Kirby Center for a free showing of “Minions” — the movie starring those adorable little, yellow creatures billed as having been around since the beginning of time, evolving from single-celled organisms into adorable little beings who exist only to serve history’s most villainous masters.
“I love it,” Drake said, as she and her children prepared to eat popcorn and wash it down with a drink. “This promotes family bonding time.”
For the seventh year in a row, the law firm of Hourigan, Kluger & Quinn sponsored the free holiday showing of a popular children’s movie. This year, the animated children’s movie brought out a capacity crowd. Moms and dads, aunts and uncles and friends brought hundreds of children to enjoy the day.
“It gives us so much joy to be able to bring smiles to the faces of children from our community during the holidays,” said attorney Joe Quinn, a senior principal at the law firm. “It’s an annual tradition that everyone at our law firm truly enjoys.”
About 40 HKQ employees and family members were on hand to distribute tickets, popcorn, candy, juice and water to the children. Sue Greenfield, HKQ business manager, said each child also received a Crayola color-and-paint kit as they left the Kirby Center.
“It’s all about giving back to the community,” Greenfield said. “We want families to come out and enjoy a special day with their children. We try to pick a popular movie for the kids. It’s all about fun.”
Quinn was at the end of a long line, opening candy boxes and putting bags out for kids to choose.
“It’s great to see so many smiling faces,” he said. “You can tell how much this means to these children and their families.”
Nadiyak Lowe, 23, of Wilkes-Barre, and her two children, Skye, 4, and Jaamir, 2, were seated and ready for the movie to start.
“This is so nice,” Lowe said. “This is what kids need — more events like this to be introduced to the arts.”
Micaela Lowe, 27, of Wilkes-Barre, said it’s difficult for a family to take their children to a movie because of the cost of tickets, food and refreshments.
“We can’t afford to all go to a movie these days,” she said.
Cassandra Blaker, 30, of Edwardsville, and Tiffany Powell, 27, of Plymouth, brought six kids to the show.
“This is nice for the kids,” Powell said. “This kind of event brings families and the community together.”
Doors opened at 12:30 p.m., but the line formed long before. The movie was scheduled to start at 2 p.m.
As people filed into the Kirby Center, the Jeanne Zano Band played holiday music in the lobby. Pre-movie entertainment got underway at 1:30 p.m. with a children’s sing-along and a magician doing tricks for the kids.
