October 8, 2021
Dr. Karen Ferrick-Roman
Tull Family Theatre
Dr. Karen Ferrick-Roman is director of communications and education at The Tull Family Theater, a film-based nonprofit in the heart of Sewickley. In this role, she provides internal and external communications, interacts with traditional and social media and seeks grants. She also collaborates with outreach partners, and generates educational opportunities that add extra dimension to films through community and expert speakers.
She previously worked at Duquesne University for 10 years. As a writer and editor, she has been published in national outlets but spent much of her career at the Beaver County Times because of her commitment to community journalism. She also has served as an adjunct faculty member at Robert Morris University and Penn State Beaver.
Karen joined The Tull Family Theater team when the building was still under construction. Like everyone on this team, she tackles multiple responsibilities: internal and external communications, including traditional and social media, marketing and public affairs; grant writing; partnership building; outreach programming; and bringing multi-faceted educational opportunities to life alongside film.
A nationally published writer, freelancer and book contributor, she has been recognized for reporting, editing, marketing strategies and communications by national and regional organizations. Dedicated to community journalism, she spent 25 years at the Beaver County Times as a reporter and editor. Her career shifted into academic public relations at Duquesne University and has included adjunct faculty positions at Penn State Beaver and Robert Morris University.
In October 2011, a group of civic leaders identified a resource missing in communities northwest of Pittsburgh: an independent cinema. The nonprofit Village Theater Company was formed, and fundraising began for construction of a brand-new facility. With the support of Sewickley borough and hundreds of families, the Theater launched in February 2017.
The Tull Family Foundation sponsored the naming rights for the facility, now known as The Tull Family Theater. As a 501(c)(3) Pennsylvania nonprofit, the Theater has no owners. It is governed by a board of directors and administered by staff members. In addition to operating revenues, the Theater counts on financial support from the public—patrons, government, corporations, and foundations—to sustain this initiative for community vitality and expanded cultural options in the region.
Mission
The Tull Family Theater is a film-based arts organization created to strengthen cultural, educational and entertainment experiences in the region northwest of Pittsburgh. The Theater fulfills this mission by:
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- Offering an intentional wide range of films and genres—new releases, classics, documentaries, educational and foreign films, plus art, music, opera, and stage plays on screen.
- Attracting thousands of patrons each month and hundreds more for events and free cultural performances from Allegheny, Beaver, Butler and Washington counties; West Virginia, Ohio and beyond.
- Enabling hundreds of children from nearby underserved communities to attend screenings—many of them entering a cinema for the first time in their lives—by providing transportation, tickets, and a full cinematic experience at no cost.
- Pioneering sensory friendly screenings in the region northwest of Pittsburgh, opening new options to families, children and adults impacted by autism and other special needs.
- Launching free events designed for senior citizens, incorporating a film screening, live music and a panel discussion and Q&A session with experienced experts around relevant topics.
- Supporting underrepresented filmmakers through the Filmmakers in Residence program.
- Providing Cinema Maker Sessions (CiMS) workshop series to introduce middle school students to the basics of filmmaking, including the many career options involved with filmmaking, and its intersection with STEM disciplines.
As a still-young nonprofit, The Tull Family Theater will continue to expand the ways in which it fulfills its mission.
October 15, 2021
Joe Roberts – Pulmonary Embolism
Joe spent over forty years working in the Medical Device Developmental field.
During that period, he became aware of the tremendous risk of Veinous Clot.
As a result, he became very interested in the treatment and awareness of veinous clot in it’s many forms.
The presentation on October 15th will center around the formation of Pulmonary Embolism and its frequent tragic consequences.
During the presentation, he will attempt to touch on a variety of veinous clot manifestations that often end in Pulmonary Embolism.
