(Chatham, NY—June 23, 2025)—Sue Baer fell in love with the movies at the Crandell in middle school. Now she’s bringing that passion for cinema full circle as a new Board Director of the Crandell Theatre Board of Directors. An accountant and lifelong Ghent resident, Baer was appointed by the Board at their May meeting. Led by Board President John T. Lillis, the Crandell Board is comprised of six Executive Committee Officers and nine Directors. Crandell Executive Director Brian Edward Leach is an ex officio member of the Board.
Baer, a mother to two children who is retired from public accounting, now travels, rides horses, and teaches yoga on Main Street in Chatham at Roots Holistic Wellness. She will join the Crandell Board’s Finance Committee. “Sue’s considerable acumen as a CPA for 32 years and as a very successful local business owner have not only benefited her clients but the wider community,” says Lillis. “She’s volunteered her time to help other nonprofits in the area, including Equine Advocates. She will add immeasurably to the Board and Crandell mission, as well as to our efforts in membership and community programming/outreach.”
A self-described “fun-loving accountant,” Baer is a lifelong resident of Columbia County who has loved watching movies of all kinds at the Crandell. “In middle school at Hawthorne Valley, they took us to see Gandhi,” she says. “I got to sit in the balcony and was captivated by the experience. As a mom, I took my daughter to see Don’t Breathe, starring [local resident and longtime Crandell supporter] Stephen Lang. Amazingly, he was there and we got pictures with him.” She came with a horse group to see the documentary Harry and the Snowman, and with a friend, she sat breathless watching Women Talking during FilmColumbia23. “What a treat it was last fall for me and my boyfriend to watch the original Nosferatu with live organ accompaniment. The Crandell is such a local treasure, and I’m looking forward to being a part of it.”
Photo, top: Baer with a four-legged friend in Iceland.