Fireman’s Dance has a great first year
The first ever Fireman's Valentine's Dance was a great night for couples.
In what is hoped will become a yearly tradition, the Soda Springs Fire Department sponsored a Valentines Dance for adults at Tigert Middle School. The dance, which was the only public semi-formal Valentines event on the calendar for the county, let couples come out to mingle, dance, catch up with friends, enjoy some dessert, and spend a rare night out away from the hustle and bustle of the week.
Like all events in Idaho, organizers were concerned right at the starting time when the dance cards were mostly empty. However, also like all events in Idaho, the “fashionably late” crowd eventually made their fashionable entrance and the dance floor stayed busy throughout the night.
DJ Ryan Carpenter and his assistants kept music flowing with a mix of contemporary, 80s, and country music (the crowd seemingly agreed that country was the preference). Emcee DJ Carpenter, along with Fire Chief Dan Squires, also drew for the large number of door and raffle prizes throughout the evening. He took some time to introduce the notables in the crowd as well, including Senator Mark Harris.
During the course of the night’s events, a rifle was raffled off as the major prize, and was won by Hannah Beer.
Other prizes included handcrafted bird houses made by Bill Horsley, electric toothbrushes from Soda Smiles, Vortex binoculars from Dave’s Tackle, a couples’ photo session from Shena Smith, a room from the Black Swan Inn, gift card from Ireland Bank to Eruption Brewery in Lava, a $50 gift card from the Flower Box, and more. Other sponsors include Itafos, CMC, The Idaho Enterprise and others, as well as many volunteers. Sponsor Caribou Medical Center provided the desserts and refreshments for the night.
The idea came about as a recognition of the need for some sort of community-wide occasion for couples to spend time with each other and other couples in a fun setting. It might be noted that while those do exist, they are often focused on the couples’ kids. After discussions of some kind of event started, the Fire Department was seen as a logical sponsor for the event. “The Fireman’s Ball” is a time-honored social event across the country, after all. Dan Squire’s wife Jennifer, and Ryan Carpenter’s wife Lanae were in charge of the decorations and set up for the event, which was inviting and very nicely appointed. There was a fun “LOVE” backdrop against which couples and groups took pictures throughout the evening, and a full refreshment table for the shier people in attendance to retreat to.
After the initial reluctance to dance had been broken by Hannah and John Beer, couples began to take the floor and break in their shoes. By the end of the evening, full country line dances were underway.
The event was well-attended and a hit with those who were there, so there’s a strong chance it will be returning next year, bigger and better!
