Board Member, Sponsor, Taco Titan
After over 40 years of service, I recently announced to MCT that I was retiring from my board position. What a journey it has been.
I grew up on the Montana Hi Line where my parents farmed, attended Rudyard High School and was one of 14 graduating seniors. I earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting at Montana State University. After receiving my CPA certificate, I worked for a large CPA firm in Denver and relocated to Missoula in 1977. My CPA work led me to the late Hal Fraser at First Security Bank. Happy Hal introduced me to MCT and immediately recruited me to work on a major fundraising project to purchase the vacant Central School.
Our goal was to accomplish the vision of MCT’s Founder, Jim Caron, to renovate the school and create a space focused on children and their unique talents and needs. It was a major undertaking; the work the Board (and many volunteers) did to make it happen was inspirational. I made many friends during this labor of love.
Jim had even more plans for us. He was convinced that we would understand the “heart” of theatre if the Board was involved in a Missoula Community Theatre production of Paint Your Wagon in 1992. There was no way this farm kid from Rudyard was going to sing and dance in front of an audience, but Jim insisted I audition. I complied but wasn’t worried about being cast. I knew there were people much more talented than me auditioning. Imagine my surprise that when I finished doing the 3 things Jim requested in the audition (read a couple lines, sing a few lines, and do a simple dance step) he stood up and said “Bravo! Langel, you’re in.” (gulp). At that time, I was building numerous Taco Bell stores in an attempt to be a Taco Titan, so I tried to bribe my way out of the show by offering free tacos for everyone. Jim did not accept the bribe, and the rest is history. However, he did make me bring free tacos anyway just to prove who the real Titan was!
When we finished the last performance of Paint Your Wagon, I understood MCT’s goal. To understand the effort and teamwork it requires to put on a production, you must live through all of it. Every rehearsal, every late night, every up and down, ceasing to shave for 8 weeks and finally experiencing the wonderful feeling of a successful community production. By doing this I understood more what the children experienced in their “plays”. MCT’s motto of “helping children reach a new stage” meant more to me than ever. The true gift is not the final round of applause; it’s the process the children go through to be part of a team and working hard to achieve the results…life skills they carry with them forever.
Later my children and 3 of my grandchildren were involved in MCT. All learned unique lessons from those experiences. Plus, they sang, danced and acted better than me!
I truly enjoyed my years of service on the Board. So many wonderful board members, too numerous to mention and I fear leaving one out. We worked side by side with MCT’s leadership to solve what problems were thrown at us. My last major campaign was the “Million Reasons to Say Yes” which we finalized in 2015. We picked that slogan, realizing that over a million people (probably closer to two now) have come through MCT’s doors and even more involved in the Missoula Children’s Theatre Touring program throughout Montana, Canada and overseas.
One of my favorite agenda items at a Board meeting was when letters of appreciation (fondly called ‘love letters’) were read to us from people whose lives were touched by MCT. One favorite was “MCT is not so much a place as a collection of remarkable people with amazing vision, passion and energy.” This is why people want to be a part of MCT.
Although I am retiring from the Board, my love and passion for all things MCT remains. It is a true gift to Missoula, all of Montana and will forever have my respect and support.