The Becker Community Center hosted its annual Father Daughter Dance last Friday. The event, complete with sweet treats as well as Taylor Swift songs describing the magic of childhood, was a night to remember.
At the front door, a professional photographer captured portraits of daughters and their fathers dressed to impress. Daughters wore puffy and glittery dresses (and some even corsages!) while a few fathers, in button-downs, suits, sweater vests, and military uniforms, even dabbled on some cologne. Dinner was served on preciously decorated tables with red and pink balloons, confetti, and Sweethearts candy.
The most charming part of the night, however, was not the way everything and everyone looked but rather what was in everyone’s hearts.
One father said his daughters were looking forward to this dance, because they rarely get to see him. “As a service technician, I work crazy hours and don’t even get many chances to dress up, so I think they were excited to spend alone time with me,” said Andrew Olson, who came with daughters Ryiah (5) and Evelynn (2).
Another father, Tony Myles, whose daughter Johanna is (7), admitted it was their first time at the Becker dance but that they been to one before in Ohio and thought it would be fun to go to another. “Not only that,” he said, ‘But I want my daughter to know what it feels like to be a on a real date. I want to give her a good memory to compare to when she’s older.”
Although he was the only person to mention how this father and daughter dance is similar to a date, other dads talked about how their daughters treated it like a big date in getting ready for the occasion. Dave Luethmers, whose daughter Brynn is (8), said his daughter really enjoys preparing. ‘This has become a tradition for us; her mom and grandma take her shoe and dress shopping-the whole works. We spend more than we should on this dance, but it’s worth it to have her feel like the prettiest girl around,” he said. “I know one day she won’t think this is cool anymore, so I’m treasuring the memory.”
While others waited for dinner at their table, a father and daughter were found at a claw grab machine just outside the gym. Mike Timm was trying to insert a dollar into the stubborn machine, while his daughter (dressed in a sparkly champagne colored dress) anxiously waited to play. It’s funny that regardless of the age, one is always willing to spend money to show their date how much she means to you. Was the eventwhat he had expected? “My wife signed us up so I didn’t know what to expect, and thought our daughter Ellery might be too young. She recently started dance class and has proven to be quite shy and hesitant to perform at recitals, but here it’s like she’s taking the lead, and it’s great to watch.”
It was inspiring to see fathers interact with their daughters as the hours passed. Some carried their daughters and swayed to slow songs, while others held their hands as they walked them around. Girls bonded with their friends, showed off their hairdos, and took off their shoes to dance. DJ Dean-O-Mite did an amazing job engaging the girls of various ages on the dancefloor and even convincing the dads to participate in silly dances or games.
The smiles on daughters’ faces as they pulled their fathers’ hands into a twirl or stepped on their feet for support summarized beautifully the way the relationship between a father and daughter was both powerful and enchanting.
