By Keith Kankovsky, Apollo Senior Executive
Fort Wayne’s City Light and Power Plant provided electricity to the bustling city from August 1908 until March 1975 when the four coal-powered steam generators fell silent. The building stood vacant for 16 years until Indiana and Michigan, and many other donors began a $9.2 million renovation project. The goal was to transform the dated structure into an engaging science museum for the general public, especially children.
Since opening late 1995, over 2.7 million people have enjoyed Science Central, Indiana’s first hands-on science center. Each year over 140,000 visitors experience science by investigating over 200 interactive learning areas.
To properly maintain the premises and support the nearly two dozen employees who care for Science Central, several fundraising events take place annually, involving many individual and corporate sponsorships.
Since 2016 Apollo Design Technology and Blue Pony Digital have offered personal support through entertainment lighting equipment and design assistance.
The 2019 theme for Mixology was “A Night with the Stars,” so naturally, we installed several mirror ball and many Stars ME-1090 gobos, in addition to a snazzy full-color Apollo “Science Central Mixology 2019” gobo.
Science Central’s fundraising events generate about $80,000 each year, providing necessary revenue to provide national touring attractions including RiverWorks Discovery, Spiders!, Our Weakening Web, as well as One Small Step, the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11’s Lunar Mission.
The lighting fixtures used during Mixology 2019 include:
- 3-Apollo GoboPro+ fixtures
- 2-ETC Source Four Jr’s
- 9-AVERE ® 3S PAR Can LED fixture
- 1-ADJ Water FX
- 3-SpotLight 50W LED Zoom gobo projectors
- 2-Martin Thrill Mini Profile moving head fixtures
- Apollo gel sheets placed in the fluorescent light fixtures in the dining area
For assistance with your upcoming event, contact your Apollo Dealer or sales@apollodesign.net.
Special thanks to…
- Jim Hodgin, Science Central Registrations Manager, for technical support.
- Justin McAfee, Science Central Communication and Media Synergist, for photographs.
Leave a Reply