Dads, daughters create memories at annual dance
Sherbet rainbow balloon arches, screaming girls arriving in a limo and Liberty Lake Mayor Wendy Van Orman, escorted by her father, were among many highlights of the third annual Father-Daughter Dance presented last week by the Liberty Lake Kiwanis and K-Kids.
“This is my first time,” said fourth-grader Madison Jesse. “A lot of my friends have been talking about the dance.”
She couldn’t wait to dance to Hannah Montana with her dad. “We wanted to support the community and had heard lots of good things about this dance,” said her father, Liberty Lake resident David Jesse.
Nearly 300 fathers and daughters gathered at CenterPlace in Mirabeau Point Park to enjoy music, refreshments, raffle prizes and lots of dancing. Returning for the third year, DJ Chris Roseanu spun old favorites like “The Chicken Dance” and newer hits like “The Casper Slide” by DJ Casper and “Girls Night Out” by Miley Cyrus. Girls were greeted at the entrance with a corsage, and inside there was a long line for portraits with their dad.
“A father’s impact on a daughter is astounding – just ask the adult women you know. But our culture doesn’t pay much attention to that influence, or too much else about father-daughter relationships,” writes Joe Kelly in his book “The Dads and Daughters Togetherness Guide.”
Liberty Lake resident Dennis Crumb said this is his third year taking his daughter, sixth-grader Tatiana Crumb. “This is a magical age for girls and for memory-making events,” Crumb said. “Every woman I know fondly remembers their father-daughter dances they had with their dads. This dance is the only chance the entire year I have to spend quality time together (with my daughter).”
Third-grader Cierra Weber will probably never forget her first date – with her father in a limousine for the evening. “Last year we couldn’t go because we had just moved in to Liberty Lake. And then my dad surprised me last month,” she said. Dad Rob Weber added: “I asked her if she wanted to go to the dance just as if I were asking her out on a date.”
In her book “Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters – 10 Secrets Every Father Should Know,” author Meg Meeker, wrote “The most important person in a young girl’s life? Her father. The love you give her is her starting point. If you have a good relationship, she will choose boyfriends who will treat her well. If she sees you as open and warm, she’ll be confident with other men.”
At this year’s dance many dads were seen escorting their daughters in gentlemanly fashion. Girls had precious smiles from ear to ear as they danced with their dads. Thanks in part to the Liberty Lake Kiwanis.