Valerie Jensen’s Movie Theater Is Changing Lives

I’ve always believed work gives us purpose. When I moved to Ridgefield, Connecticut, in 2002, I found a small musical theater group for adults with disabilities right across the street. My sister Hope, who has Down syndrome, joined in, and I began volunteering to write and direct shows. The cast quickly became my friends. They’d tell me about the jobs they couldn’t get, the applications that went nowhere, and the discouragement of being turned away again and again. Watching their talent on stage, I knew the problem wasn’t their ability — it was the lack of opportunity.

So I set out to build one. Ridgefield was preparing to demolish an old movie theater, and I saw a chance to save the building and create something new. With community support, I raised the money to open the Prospector Theater in 2014. We screen first-run films, run a café, and employ more than a hundred people, 80 percent of whom have disabilities. We call our employees “prospects” because, like the prospectors during the gold rush, we search for hidden treasures: their passions and talents. That’s what we call “sparkle.” Our mission is to help each person polish that sparkle, build résumés and launch careers. Some have already moved on to jobs in real estate, banking, academia and Apple.

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Hope works all over the theater, from the box office to concessions to the clean team. Her favorite part? She’ll tell you herself: getting paid. And she’s proof that barriers can be broken. Today, Hope proudly juggles two paid jobs.

After working at The Prospector, many employees go on to careers at other places. “We’re a résumé-builder and a springboard,” says Jensen. “Several of our prospects have gone on to jobs in real estate, banking and even with Apple.”

Michael George

When the pandemic hit, I knew we had to get creative to keep jobs alive, so we doubled down on popcorn production, and that part of the enterprise has truly taken off. We’re in the midst of building a 5,000-square-foot popcorn factory right now. One of our most popular flavors is maple, made with syrup harvested by prospects at my nearby farm.

When Hope was born, doctors suggested my parents send her to an institution. Instead, they brought her home. Decades later, she — and every prospect — continues to show the world how much is possible when people are given the chance.