Gateway History

Residents of Oberlin were made aware in March of 1990 that a bequest was being offered to the city from the estate of Madonna Morgan. The amount of $1 million dollars was to be used in the construction of an auditorium and civic center. From that moment on, the idea of  the community championing a building project that could propel this community into the 21st century was taking root in the minds of many young citizens.

This initial enthusiasm was met with positive and negative impressions as to Oberlin’s need for such a facility. Many people expressed concern about the impact of higher taxes for the facility’s construction and upkeep. Overall benefits to the community were considered to be an auditorium and theater for plays and live concerts: an exhibition hall for craft fairs, recreation, home shows, and dances. An indoor swimming pool was also initially considered. If the city could fulfill all of the requirements of the bequest, they could take advantage of slightly over $1 million dollars.  

The first bond proposal was defeated by a margin of 507 to 414. This defeat was exposed on the front page of the Wichita Eagle which said “voters in Oberlin said thanks, but no thanks to the million dollar bequest.” A group of supporters organized the Citizens of Oberlin Civic Center that was headed by Greg Lohoefener and Gary Anderson. Through their work a second bond election for the amount of $595,000 was proposed with the promise to raise from $100,000 to $200,000 through donations and other private sources. Donations were made by generous alumni, and former residents and surpassed $85,000. More than 250 families and individuals pledged funds for the project whose budget was limited to $1.85 million.

In March of 1992 the ground was broken to begin the process of building a civic center for Oberlin! Weather delays stalled the construction but the Oberlin Herald captured an 8 man crew at the project site the first of May as footings were being dug for the front of the theater stage.The massive construction project continued and on Friday, March 12, 1993 the Grand Opening of the Gateway brought renewed hope to the Oberlin community!

City offices were moved to the Gateway in 1999. The city continued to oversee the day to day operations of the Gateway and events that were booked into the performance venues and meeting rooms. Many events were hosted at the facility.The annual DCHS Alumni Banquet moved to the air conditioned comfort and space offered by the Gateway Arena. The DCHS Prom also moved to the Gateway.

Despite having many repeat customers that depended on the facility to host their events, many that would not be possible at other Oberlin venues, there were complaints about the Gateway not supporting itself and the expense of maintaining the facility. Community meetings were held by the city council to suggest new ways that could add financial support for upkeep and repairs. In 2009 the estate of Fred and Henrietta Bremer bequeathed more than a million dollars to split between the hospital and Gateway Civic Center. The money granted was to be used for day to day operations as well as other repair and improvement projects. A welcome donation indeed!

The Gateway continued to provide a place for the citizens of Oberlin and surrounding towns to hold weddings, meetings, concerts and programs. The population of Oberlin also began to decline that affected the use of the building.The city was to be commended on their care of the building throughout the years but everyday use takes a toll on any building after twenty plus years. Updates of original equipment were needed as well as repairs on the roof and in other areas. In March of 2020 the Covid Pandemic hit Oberlin as well as the rest of the world. With the shutdowns that were required, meeting rooms were not rented, large weddings could not be held, and the other events that helped support the financial end of the facility were non-existent. The city’s supervision of the Gateway became a very real concern.In the late summer of 2021 rumors in town suggested that the Gateway should be sold to reduce the tax burden. Just as in the early years of the proposal to build the facility, there were many citizens that wanted to sell and as many who knew the value of the Gateway and would not give up without a fight. Oberlin City Council held public forums to discuss the issues.

It was at this time that a group of passionate volunteers formed the Save the Gateway Committee. Led by three young, positive Oberlin graduates who returned to Oberlin - Derek Chambers, Zach May and Tyler Bruggemann - in addition to many volunteers who can not all be named. These young men desired to raise their children in this community as well as having the Gateway as an integral part of what Oberlin could offer its citizens.

Within 6 months time, the committee met with this city on numerous planning sessions to prove a viable plan and was able to organize their first annual banquet to begin consistently raising funds for the facility. After the first successful banquet raised around $50,000, the group began forming a corporation in order to obtain nonprofit status to be a separate supportive entity from the Gateway which would still be owned by the City of Oberlin. The Gateway Friends Foundation was formed in February of 2023 and by February of 2024, they received their official 501c3 letter of approval from the IRS for non-profit status. Its official board members are Derek Chambers, President; Tyler Bruggeman, Vice President; Zach May, Treasurer; and Pat Dorshorst, Secretary along with several chairs and committee persons including: Ashley Chambers, Regan May, and Susan Nelson. This board is always looking for individuals and committees willing to serve in a specific capacity to improve efficiency and expand on the types of events offered within the facility. The ideas are endless from bringing back MMA fights and concerts to holding volleyball tournaments (with the improvement of flooring and volleyball standards), gymnastics events, and skating rinks. However, ideas are only as good as the people behind them and hundreds, if not thousands of hours are volunteered by these active members every year toward the annual Gateway Friends Foundation Banquet held at the beginning of each February in addition to various events such as the Alumni Day and event rental coverage.

Due to government spending authority laws restricting the ability of the Save the Gateway committee from managing day to day operations of the facility, the Gateway City Board was organized by the Oberlin City Council in March of 2022 and now oversees the day to day operation of the facility. The City of Oberlin no longer rents spaces to be used, oversees day to day maintenance, or books entertainment. A monthly assessment from Oberlin citizens provides help to the Gateway City Board with day to day expenses. The Gateway City Board is composed of citizens of Oberlin appointed by the Oberlin City Council. These members have to willingly continue serving in their roles and be reappointed every few years. Derek Chambers serves as President, Robert Rouse as Vice President, Zach May as Treasurer, Janice Shobe as Secretary, and LaKen Duckworth as a board member – LaKen is also the facility’s part-time employed coordinator along with her husband Vaughn who helps with many maintenance and custodial tasks.

Simultaneously to all this in 2022, the “Save the Gateway” committee worked closely with the Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation to open a fund, under the umbrella of Decatur GROW. This particular fund, called the Gateway Friends Foundation Fund, has its own board of advisors, separate from the Gateway Friends Foundation and the Gateway City Board. When the Gateway Friends Foundation raises funds through its events and raffles, most of the proceeds make their way to the Gateway Friends Foundation Fund, where they’ll continue to be invested until the fund is large enough to offset the operational cost currently incurred by the public utility payers of Oberlin, Kansas. This is often referred to as the “retirement account” for the Gateway. Some of the proceeds remain with the Gateway Friends Foundation for the next year’s banquet expenses, other upcoming events (planned or desired), potential recreation equipment purchases, and usually some form of improvement project typically involved in the “endless auction item” at each banquet. Keep an eye out on our website for more information about how close we are to our fund goal each year.

As the volunteers began to work toward the challenge of keeping the facility open, volunteerism became the main source of the manpower at the facility. The floors were swept, bathrooms were cleaned, and many chairs and tables were moved by small volunteer forces that took on the tasks of ongoing maintenance and upkeep. New rental contracts were created to make the cost more accessible to the public. The volunteers supervised meetings and marketing began to attract new uses of the facility as well as serving past users. By November of 2022, the Gateway City Board was able to hire a much needed part-time facility coordinator as well as additional cleaning and maintenance staff. Many volunteers still contribute time to help cover events in order for a city employee to always be present. These volunteers are onboarded as city employees to be in compliance. Through much volunteerism, the Gateway City Board has been able to reduce operational losses to around $48-65,000.

Many grants have been written in the first two years for recreational equipment to include pickleball equipment, volleyball equipment, exercise equipment, and basketballs. Many items have also been donated. Open-gym nights were made available for the public to utilize these recreational activities. An avid pickleball group meets most weekday mornings at 9am and a Cornhole League meets on Friday night. Grants and donations from generous donors made it possible to replace the outdated sound and lighting systems in the theater and add new curtains to the stage the following year! In 2024, a projector and video screens were added in the arena for auctions, displays and business use. If a piece of equipment is desired to be upgraded, replaced, or brought in entirely new, the Gateway Friends Foundation and Gateway City Board are happy to work closely with interested individuals in making it a reality. Again, this requires more volunteers with more time.

Throughout the Gateway’s history the constant cry has been “It doesn’t pay for itself!” Many of us with the Gateway Friends Foundation disagree as the impact on our local economy has not been proven or disproven. With great responsibility in management of donations by investing for the future, the facility could one day be sustained without public funding. One bequest today - even remotely similar to the Bremer donation that occurred in 2008 – would accelerate this path to success by decades. Money donated now would no longer be exchanged hands amongst newly elected officials, but rather remain in the control of advisors who have a like-minded interest in the facility’s survival for many decades to come, just as its past donors have imagined.

Money cannot be our only consideration in providing our community and other surrounding towns a facility that serves us well and improves the quality of life in this small, Northwest Kansas town. It will take ongoing commitment through volunteerism and making ideas a reality to see continued success in and outside the Gateway facility.