WAUKESHA, Wis. (CBS 58) – The director of the Horwitz-DeRemer Planetarium in Waukesha says its future is looking dim if necessary funds aren’t raised by the end of the year.

Lisa Swaney, the planetarium’s director, says they are seeking $200K to replace their aging equipment that includes projectors, graphic computers and other software.

“It’s just a matter of time before the projectors will no longer work and then we will need to find a solution fast,” Swaney said. “It would be a situation where we’d kind of lost this amazing gem of a community resource.”

Over 15,000 students visit the planetarium annually, but with community events, over 31,000 visitors come to the planetarium every year for shows and programs.

Brian Cieslak, an educator at the Horwitz-DeRemer Planetarium who has been teaching young people since the late 1980s, says the educational opportunities provided at the planetarium are astronomically important for the community.

“It tells us more about our environment beyond our atmosphere, what’s going on in space, that does impact us,” Cieslak said. “If those projectors go out, we’re done. We’re dead in the water here.”

As of Tuesday, Swaney says they’ve already raised over $137,000. The planetarium is looking to raise the funds as soon as possible but is aiming for $200,000 by the end of the year.

You can donate to the fundraiser to support the planetarium here.