Daddies, daughters and a dance floor
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 8 years, 6 months AGO
Joel Martin/Columbia Basin Herald Fathers, daughters and the occasional cartoon character gathered on the dance floor Saturday night for the MLHS Daddy-Daughter Dance.
Joel Martin/Columbia Basin Herald Elsa (actually MLHS sophomore Renee Ohs) dances with some smaller – but no less lovely – princesses at the Daddy-Daughter Dance Saturday night.
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | February 26, 2018 2:00 AM
MOSES LAKE — The fathers were handsome, the princesses were resplendent and the superheroes were, well, heroic Saturday night at Moses Lake High School’s annual Daddy-Daughter Dance. The event raises funds for the choir students to take a trip to Hawaii next year, said Choir Boosters treasurer Travis Steffler.
All in all, the event brought in about 1,000 people, Steffler said, of whom probably 600 to 700 were daddies and daughters. It certainly looked that way on the dance floor, as if a small army of girls in sparkly, princess attire had invaded the high school commons. Among them were a wide variety of fathers (and other father figures), some in suits and ties and a few in uniform. The fathers sometimes looked a little self-conscious as they danced; the girls danced their little hearts out.
Mingling with the dancers were choir students dressed as Disney princesses and princes. Elsa, Prince Charming, Belle and other characters familiar to any child danced with the girls when their fathers’ feet wore out, and generally charmed them as good cartoon royalty should.
“We like to put on a family event, so we’re really cautious about making sure the music’s right and there’s fun things to do,” Steffler said. Some of the princesses lip-synced the songs their characters were known for, he added, which also enhanced the magic.
Elsewhere in the high school, a more boisterous affair was in progress as the Mother-Son Fun Night gave boys dressed up as superheroes (plus a few supermoms in costume) a chance to go wild on the bouncy houses and slides, race pedal cars and crash their way through a wall of cardboard bricks to rescue Mom.
Cody Miller, 4, said his favorite thing was the bouncy houses, while his brother, 7-year-old Carter, loved playing dodgeball. Their mom, Shelly Miller, had nice things to say about the root beer floats.
“It’s a really great event,” she said. “My daughter went to the dance with my husband. It’s a family event.”
“It’s been really great,” agreed Adriana Sica, whose daughter is a senior in the choir. “The kids are so excited. Some of them cry because they don’t want to leave.”
Exact numbers weren’t available, Steffler said, but he estimated that the event brought in about $12,000, roughly the same as last year. Attendees seem to have felt they got their money’s worth.
“I had a couple that texted me last night that they had accidentally bought two couples’ tickets,” Steffler said, “meaning they spent $50 by mistake on the website. So I said, ‘Well, just stop by and pick up the extra $25.’ And I never did see her. Then she texted me this morning and said, ‘You know what? Just keep it. It was worth it. My husband and my daughter had such a great time.’
“We try to put on a pretty cool event. We want to make sure it’s memorable.”
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
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Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.