Star Center Children’s Theatre Inc. in Gainesville, also known as Star Center Youth Theatre, has been awarded a 2025 McDonald’s Golden Grant for $2,500. 

McDonald’s supports local communities through the Golden Grants program to assist education and nonprofit organizations that serve children from ages 5-18 in grades K-12.  

Star Center Children’s Theatre was among 12 North Florida and South Georgia educational organizations to receive 2025 Golden Grants totaling $45,000, according to a news release. 

“It’s a privilege to support the McDonald’s Golden Grants program, which, now in its fifth year, provides crucial support to educators and non-profit leaders in select parts of the Southeast,” Will Garcia, McDonald’s owner and operator, said in the release. “We are truly making a big difference right here in our local communities.” 

Star Center Children’s Theatre is under the umbrella of Star Center Theatre, a nonprofit organization founded 25 years ago by Rhonda Wilson. 

“I started it [Star Center Theatre] 25 years ago with just a couple of kids going around just performing like fairy tales or small shows wherever somebody would let us perform,” she said in an interview with Mainstreet. “And my goal was to make sure there was a space for all kinds of kids, all kinds of voices, families – anybody that could be a part of something.” 

Wilson said the Star Center Theatre has gotten bigger throughout the years to include not only the youth theatre but also educational programs and adult programming.  

“I just don’t want it [the theatre] to just be entertainment,” she said. “I want it to be a platform to build self-esteem, build literacy and just build a well-rounded adult out of all our youth and all of our adults that come through here.”  

Wilson noted that the grant will continue to help support the theater’s various programs, whether it’s through materials, skills, literature, etc.  

Among the qualifying activities for a McDonald’s Golden Grant, the release said, include student homelessness support, supply needs, technology programs, mentorship and empowerment programs, after-school programs, arts and music programs, community service outreach, sporting programs and other education initiatives. 

“When I wrote the grant, I built it to continue to work with literacy and foster creativity through theater and music,” Wilson said.  

Wilson encourages the community to come and support the Star Center Theatre.  

“Just support the arts because funding is not great all the time, and it’s always the first thing to go,” she said. “So, as much as you can support and go see a show, or a concert, or a dance recital, do that.” 

Nick Anschultz is a Report for America corps member and writes about education for Mainstreet Daily News. This position is supported by local donations through the Community Catalyst for Local Journalism Fund at the Community Foundation of North Central Florida.