Daddy-Daughter Dance proves to be popular event at AEDC

  • Published
  • By Andrea Stephens
  • AEDC/PA
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. --  Dozens of fathers and daughters turned out for the first ever Daddy-Daughter Dance at Arnold Engineering Development Center, March 23. The event was held at the Arnold Lakeside Center and was hosted by Arnold Youth Programs.

Although the event was limited to base employees who sponsored a child, the number of attendees was not limited nor was it limited to just fathers.

The event began with an invocation from Sue Sipe, who is the AEDC contracting secretary.

Regarding those who attended, Dr. Edward Kraft, AEDC's chief technologist and guest speaker for the evening, described the Daddy-Daughter Dance as a "complete evening of joy." He expressed the opportunity of being a part of this evening with both his daughter and granddaughter as being a "true delight."

Kraft said, "Even though the invitation was sent out to 'Cinderellas' ranging in age from 5-17, they were gracious enough to extend the invitation to my daughter who is well past 17 years old, and my granddaughter who is three and a half."

From getting their hair fixed just right to choosing the best shoes to match their dress and practicing their dance moves, for many of the little girls who attended the dance, it was their first time to engage in such a "magical" evening. The atmosphere was created from a child's perspective of a fairy tale.

The event began with a man in a black tuxedo wearing white gloves greeting the princesses-of-the-evening at the door. They were then met by a prince who adorned them with a tiara and escorted them along with their fathers to a table which was elegantly decorated. They were each served dinner and each couple was also provided with a keepsake photo.

The "Daddy-Daughter Dance" is expected to become an annual event at AEDC and will be geared toward bringing together fathers and daughters for an evening filled with music, laughter and memories which will last a lifetime.

Ralph Elmore, an ATA engineering technician, was the disc jockey for the evening, choosing each song appropriate to this very special occasion. Fathers and daughters danced the night away on the dance floor. It did not take long for the fathers to break out into the dance territory that their daughters were not at all familiar with; the daughters tried to turn the page and teach them a little thing or two about the more popular dancing of today.

"The music was enjoyable and kept the girls out on the floor the whole night," said Amber Wolfe, who portrayed Anastasia. "There were enough slow songs for it to be worth calling it a ball, but there were also enough fast songs that it made for some interesting dancing!"

Characters included Cinderella and Prince Charming, the evil step-mother (Lady Tremaine) and her daughters Anastasia and Drizella, Belle and the Beast from "Beauty and the Beast," the Fairy Godmother and several waiters and butlers.

Holly Jones, a co-op employee with Services who played the part of Cinderella, said she had many different highlights of the evening but one of the most memorable moments for her was when all of the girls went crazy when she came onto the dance floor.

"I told them to find their prince and dance with him, and it was all I could do not to cry tears of joy," she said. "It was truly a touching moment to see the little girls dancing with their daddies.

"The energy the little princesses had was so encouraging. The looks on their faces let me know without asking, they were having the time of their lives. It was really sweet to see them having such a fun time making new friends."

Jones added, "It melted my heart to see the little girls interact with their daddies. I think it allowed the two of them to have a special night to reconnect and bond."

Dr. Kraft said, "The event was exceptionally well planned and essentially a flawless evening. Everything from layout, characters, tiaras, photos, meals, music and format were first class. My hat goes off to the people who put this together."