Family Dance Night puts a spin on having fun

[November 10, 2011]  Family Dance Night on Tuesday at the Lincoln Junior High School gym was for movers and shakers only. The second annual event was for District 27 students, parents, teachers and administrators who wanted to throw off their inhibitions and dance, dance, dance to the music. Having rhythm was not a requirement, but being a toe-tapper and hip-slapper was a plus.

Tunes like the "Macarena" and "Hokey Pokey" kept everyone moving. Jan Schacht, executive director of the Lincoln Area YMCA, helped open the evening by guiding dancers through the motions for "YMCA," the 1980s favorite that never fails to challenge even the most coordinated among us.

LJHS cheerleaders and the pompon team led dancers through several songs, and students from different grade levels took turns on stage to lead the crowd in action.

The fun time was planned by the District 27 Team Leadership Committee, made up of teachers, principals, Superintendent Mary Ahillen and assorted community members with connections to student programs and an interest in family involvement.

There were an equal number of observers in the bleachers and dancers on the gym floor, so a large group was sitting on the sidelines, but their singing and swaying meant the music was working.

Prior to the evening activity, LJHS Principal Kent Froebe said: "Last year was the first time we tried it, and people filled three-fourths of the gym floor. There is no way to know how tonight's event will turn out, but hopefully people will remember what a good time it was and we'll have a good crowd."

Mr. Froebe's wish came true, and the event lived up to its purpose by allowing families to just have a good time together -- dancing the night away.

[By MARLA BLAIR]