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Spirit of Partnership

The George Daily Community Auditorium is located on Ioway land in Oskaloosa, Iowa, population 11,500. Built in 1997, the Auditorium sits between the Oskaloosa School District’s middle school and high school. Beyond its 696-seat mainstage auditorium space, the facility contains a black box space and community meeting room each the same size as the stage. The founding partnership between the school district and the Auditorium is evident immediately upon entry. The school’s Central Offices are located right inside the front door. If you move into the lobby, you’ll see a large glass wall commemorating the individuals and businesses that financially supported the Auditorium’s construction.

"James and the Giant Peach," March 2020. Produced by the Oskaloosa Drama Department in partnership with the George Daily Auditorium

The Friends of the Auditorium employs four full-time staff members – an Executive Director, an Education Director, an Operations Manager – and a Development Director. In a year, the Auditorium building has up to 800 uses.

"Home Again," Summer 2018. Produced by the George Daily Auditorium in partnership with the Iowa Arts Council and The Oskaloosa Herald

The 24-year-old agreement between the district and the Friends of the Auditorium provides the district with office space at the heart of campus and a gathering place large enough for any school or community events. In return, the school covers the Auditorium’s maintenance costs, ensuring that Friends’ money can go as far as possible.

Auditorium Staff, 2018. From left to right: Andy McGuire (Education Director, 2012), Allison McGuire (Development Director, 2018), Jessica Vetter (Operations Manager 2012-2018), Erica Smith (Operations Manager, 2018), Randall Wright (Executive Director, 1997)

About George Daily

George Daily grew up in a poor family. His father, John, was frequently absent, working as a traveling house painter. Although times were tough, John sometimes purchased small pieces of land in tax sales during his travels. Through a stroke of luck, a piece of land John purchased in Louisiana turned out to be rich with oil. George later inherited this land.
 
 Although George regularly received checks from an oil company for this rich land, he lived as a poor man. He never cashed the checks because he wanted nothing to do with the father, who was so often absent in his life. No one knew about George’s money until the oil company sent someone to investigate why the property taxes weren’t being paid, and the checks they were sending weren’t being cashed.

Before George died in 1993, he established a will leaving his entire estate in trust for the Oskaloosa community’s benefit.

The George Daily Auditorium was made possible through the legacy of its namesake, who left his estate to better the Oskaloosa Community. What began as “A Seed for Growth,” the George Daily Family Trust motto, has grown into a venue for high-caliber performances and educational opportunities equal to those in big cities.

Since opening its doors in 1997, the Auditorium has provided the Oskaloosa community with a place to foster the arts and enrichment activities of all sorts. On any given day, the auditorium plays host to educational children’s theater workshops, high school play rehearsals, professional touring productions, regional dance competitions, business conferences, artist receptions, public interest lectures, school assemblies, concerts, and so much more.

Each year brings new opportunities to the George Daily Auditorium. Join us to experience firsthand the ways Daily makes a difference!
Many of the 1400 students who spend time at the Auditorium each year want to know one thing: who was George Daily? Plenty of adults want to know, too, so for our 20th anniversary in 2017, we installed a permanent display across from the donor wall inside the lobby doors.

Society conditions us to expect that men with structures named after them were powerful and wealthy, but George Daily was a brilliant loner who got by on very little during his lifetime. George’s inheritance of oil-rich land from his absent and neglectful father was of no importance to him until he established a will leaving his entire estate in a trust for the Oskaloosa community’s benefit. The Trust is a seed for growth, matching the investments made by the community for the community. The George Daily Auditorium grew out of our namesake’s legacy: when the community raised half of the funds for an auditorium, the Trust matched it. Today, George Daily’s statue sits on a bench under an apple tree in front of the Auditorium, playing checkers, one of his favorite pastimes.