Cochrane Treasures is breaking new ground in living up to its mission statement "Everybody deserves the nice and the necessary."

Cochrane's nonprofit second-hand store is offering a series of four free nights of first-run movies at the Cochrane Movie House. The first one is on Wednesday, Apr. 19, and tickets will be available on a first-come, first-served basis for all five cinemas following the confirmation of the movies and show times on Apr. 11.

Home Treasures manager Kayley Breeze says they know how difficult finances are for Cochrane families right now. 

"Everybody is really noticing the pinch on the cost of living, so when that happens, the nice things kind of go on the back burner," she says. "We wanted to see what we can do for the community to help them have a few of those nice things in their lives. One of the things that came up was community movie nights."

There are about 500 seats in total available between the five cinemas.

She says the first one is being held during National Volunteer Week and they hope some of the town's hardworking volunteers will come out to enjoy a movie.

Other free movie nights are being held Wed. Jun 14, Wed. Oct 11, and Wed. Nov. 8.

Breeze says they'll also be some "surprise" free movie days in the planning stage that won't be advertised. 

Cochrane Home Treasures has assisted with other community movie events in the past for Volunteer Week and free senior showings, but nothing like this.

In fact, Hal Wolfe, of the Cochrane Movie House, says nothing on this scale has ever been offered before, and they're thrilled to be helping Home Treasures stage the showings.

Some pretty hot spring releases have just opened, including Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, which topped the weekend box office. There's also plenty of anticipation for the Super Mario Bros. Movie and Air, both opening this week. There's a good chance some of those will still be showing, plus whatever else is fresh.

Cochrane Treasures gives back all of its profits to countless community causes. In 2022 alone, that amounted to $142,195. It's made possible by the community's generous donation of furniture and household goods that are sold in their store, located at 208-5 Ave. #2.

There are far too many causes to mention, but it was their generosity that saved Cochrane Light Up in 2021. They went on to be a major contributor again in 2022.

Most recently, Home Treasures donated $15,000 to the vibrant Cochrane BMX Association to repair some of their track.