At ‘The Tilly,’ everyone has a place

It’s a brisk midmorning in December, and the Tillotson Center is abustle as students from elementary, middle, and high school move purposefully throughout the building. At the heart of the action is Melissa Shaw, director of the Colebrook Recreation Department and executive director of the Tillotson Center.

Affectionately referred to as “Mooch” by students and parents alike, Melissa calmly supervises the group. Today is the final rehearsal of “The Lion King” performed before an audience of kindergarten through second-grade students. Over the weekend, families will gather from across the North Country to see the show.

The performance is more than a rehearsal. Members of the third- through eighth-grade drama club perform “The Lion King,” as younger students who will one day take the stage practice proper theater decorum. High school students (former drama club members themselves) direct the production, operate the lighting, the sound booth and act as backstage managers.  Melissa observes from the rear of the auditorium, giving the cast gentle cues while remaining vigilant to the production crew’s needs and keeping a watchful eye on the well-behaved audience.

This scene is typical at the Tillotson Center in Colebrook. The children’s theater’s five annual productions feature prominently, but the center offers much more. The calendar is full of events appealing to a broad audience. The most recent addition is an adult yoga class, and the longest-running program (22 years) is a book club. From piano concerts to choral performances, from summer camp headquarters to knitting groups, “The Tilly” is a community hub in this North Country town.

Tucked away near the center of town is a charming red building. The spacious, welcoming interior is home to both the Colebrook Recreation Department and the Tillotson Center. Once housed and run separately, the two organizations began sharing a space in 2010 sharing a director since 2020 – and evolved to serve the community in new and exciting ways.  While maintaining separate governing boards, funding streams, and missions, the two organizations collaborate to offer residents new opportunities and fellowship.  The Neil and Louise Tillotson Fund has been a longtime supporter of both.

The building that houses the center was purchased with a contribution from Louise Tillotson of Dixville Notch and named to honor her and her love of the arts. Louise Tillotson also founded the Neil and Louise Tillotson Fund at the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation. While the center began by focusing on adult programming, the draw for those programs decreased over time. Rather than competing for audiences with other venues, Melissa decided to focus on offering things other venues couldn’t – joining forces with the local recreation department and building a hub of community where young people are a primary focus.

The Tillotson Center continues to create meaningful arts experiences, including through a partnership with The Connecticut River Artisan Group. This group of local artists supplies a steady rotation of temporary exhibits in the gallery on the building’s main floor.

A partnership with the local historical society brought the museum’s annex and a series of historical talks to the building.

‘We’ve had a tea talks once a month, where we’ve asked people that were interested to come in and bring in whatever they had that was a historical item in their home, or maybe something to do with their family that they’d like to show everyone and talk about,” said Colebrook Historical Society member and longtime book club member Sheila Beauchemin.

Melissa led the Colebrook Recreation Department for more than two decades, assuming leadership of the Tillotson Center in 2020. She has been instrumental in making the “Tilly” a welcoming, accessible community venue.

“It gives everyone a place,” said Sheila.

It is students, more than any other age group, who call the “Tilly” home.

“It’s a place for the kids to call their own,” explained Sylvia.  “Those kids love that center, and nobody does anything to hurt it because it’s theirs.”

Sylvia’s husband, Arnold, is also a founding member of the Tillotson Center and remains a vital member of an intergenerational community found at the Tilly.

“He comes every morning and has a cup of coffee,” said Melissa. “He likes seeing the building being used. He’s put so much sweat equity, worry, and stress into it that he just wants to see people using it.”

Arnold and the students have formed a close bond.

“They all know Arnold because he’s here in the morning in the summer, and they come to summer camp,” said Melissa. “They were singing with him today, practicing. Not all of those kids have a traditional grandparent. So they’re hanging out with his 87-year-old man, talking and having conversations with him.”

That level of comfort also extends to other groups. When meetings of the adult fiber-arts group “Knitty Gritty” overlap with drama rehearsals, students often stop by to chat while members work on their projects.

The impact of the programs extends far beyond the center. Children who participate in the summer camps return to work as counselors, getting vital work experience. Students who age out of the drama club join the Tilly Players and then run productions for younger students. Teachers at the local schools who once took part in programs return to watch performances with their students.

Shortly before the holidays, students from Colebrook Academy and Elementary School brought the sounds of the season to the community in a holiday concert. Students spent the morning of the concert baking cookies to give residents of the senior housing in town.

By giving students voice and ownership in programs, Melissa works to teach resilience, agency, and a growth mindset.

Lil Pearson’s daughter Bryn began participating in rec programs when she was five years old. When she aged out of the program, she wanted to continue, but there was no drama program for high school students.

“They went to Mooch,” Lil explained, “and said, ‘ Is there any way we can continue doing this, for older kids as we go through high school?’ And she said, ‘Well, it doesn’t exist, but you could create it.’”

That is just what they did. With Melissa’s help, they received a grant from the Tillotson Fund that led to the formation of the Tilly Players in 2019, which continues to thrive today.

Lil’s daughter told her the most impactful lesson the program taught her was to see challenges as opportunities.

“She learned that just because opportunities aren’t obvious, it doesn’t mean they aren’t there,” Lil said.

Brigid Wonkka-Greene, a senior at Colebrook Academy, echoed those statements. In elementary school, Brigid participated in drama club productions. As a high schooler, she directs shows for younger students and works as a camp counselor.

“I think the program has made me realize how fortunate I am, and I can still have great opportunities even coming from a very small community like this.” She added, “I think I’ve learned to appreciate my town. While it can sometimes feel like a bubble because I’m a teenager who wants to go out into the world, I think I’ve just kind of learned to appreciate everything that I’ve had and everything that the Colebrook Recreation Department has provided me with.”