In a world of streaming from the comfort of your living room, a Valley drive-in theater has survived the test of time. 

The WesMer Drive-In in Mercedes has been around since the early 1950s. Twenty years ago, Hector Garza took it over and made it into what it is today. His wife Lydia helps him run the theater.

“His heart is in this theater, especially when people come in and say, ‘Please don't shut this down, this is the best place ever,’” Lydia said. “He puts as much of his soul into it to make everything run as smoothly as possible.”

The theater shows two movies a night, that are usually either brand-new or in their second feature, at an affordable price that appeals to many families.

“The idea that they can come in with their entire family, for $10 a car load and enjoy the movie and have some family time and with little expense,” Lydia said.

However, the pandemic presented a unique challenge.

"Once everybody started opening, or the film companies started releasing, they were streaming most of the movies, so a lot of people were still preferring to stay home," Lydia said.

But people couldn’t stay away.

"It started trickling in once they found out we were open, and as time went by, by word of mouth, it was like oh okay because the other indoor theaters weren’t open yet," Lydia said. "So that helped us develop our clientele again."

Ismael Vela Jr. recalls going to the drive-in as a kid back in the 90s.

“My mom brought us—we used to come in our suburban," Vela said. "I mean times have changed, now everybody’s got their own vehicle and we’re all out here together as a family, I mean all the grandkids, brothers, and sisters.”

The WesMer Drive-In is showing West Side Story and the The King's Man every night this week. 

The first movie starts at 7 p.m. and the price is $10 per vehicle or $5 on Tuesdays.