The northeastern Missouri town of Kirksville, has a population of just over 17,000 people. It’s also home to Truman State University, a liberal arts school with about 6,000 students – a few of whom have worked hard to create their own sense of adventure in a town where there isn’t much to do.
“It’s a town where you have to roll up the sidewalks at night, you know? It’s that small,” says Jacob Hurst, a grad student at Truman State. “All we have is, like, a Wal-Mart. That’s what some kids do for a good time on a Saturday night: Just go walk around Wal-Mart.”
But not Hurst. He’s president of a local performing-arts enterprise called The Aquadome.
Students started the venue 15 years ago, and new generations of students have run it on an all-volunteer basis. The small, nondescript, brick and wood-paneled storefront in Kirksville’s downtown area doesn’t have any heat, but what it lacks in physical characteristics it makes up for in its culture, says Rachel Hain, the organization’s treasurer.
“(We’d like to be able) to do everything we’ve been doing but on a much larger, wider scale,” he says. “We have events about twice a month. What if we have those every single week? If we always have incoming bands? And we’d always have steady income from donations because they’re tax deductible. This is the great dream.”
Meanwhile, Hurst says, some of the lessons he has learned from running The Aquadome surpass those he learned in the classroom.
“It’s almost like The Aquadome comes first and it always has for me,” Hurst says. “Even when I have homework. There was the issue with the old pipes in the building that collapsed – it was absolutely horrible. But we still loved that building. We gave it everything. It’s a learning experience.”
About 50 people showed up for the January fundraiser. Support came from people of all backgrounds.
The night’s performances started with a local student musician, who was followed by a few student poets. Two local high school bands, American Brasswood and Two-Headed Cow, headlined the event.
And by the end of the night, Hurst had news to share.
“We made the $400 dollars!” he announced, to cheers and applause.
For the foreseeable future, it looks as if the community of Kirksville will have entertainment options other than the aisles of Wal-Mart.
Ross Terrell is a student anchor and producer with KBIA in Columbia, Missouri. Follow him on Twitter, @RossTerrell7.
This story is part of Artland, a regional public radio collaboration reporting on stories of creativity building community in unexpected places.
