second row (l-r): Kelley Prock, administrative assistant, Hannah Ellis,
manager of volunteerism and quality assurance, and Jonathan Palmer, executive director; third row
(l-r): Sherman Patterson, janitor and maintenance, and Jeff Bartlett, executive coordinator
Photo by Dwight Hobbes
Over 80 years of lighting the way for those in need
By Dwight Hobbes
Contributing Writer
The Hallie Q. Brown Community Center (HQB) in St. Paul does a great deal more than give Penumbra Theatre a place to call home. Since 1929, it has lived up to its credo, “The lighthouse of the community.”
The organization is, to all intent and purpose, a one-stop shopping, full-service resource that, particularly in this economic day and age, goes a long way toward helping people make ends meet and otherwise get through the workaday world. They provide, for instance, an Early Learning Center (ELC), youth enrichment programs and a food shelf/clothes closet that, with winter right around the corner, comes in quite handy.