A girl’s first true love is her father. (Anonymous quote:)
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, many girls and women are now getting ready for a dance date with their first love — their dads.
For the past four years, the Greenfield Moose Lodge 997 has been hosting a father-daughter dance on the Saturday before Valentine’s Day. This year’s dance will take place on Feb. 10 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Moose Lodge, 20 School St. It’s open to fathers and daughters of all ages. Just bring your dad — or your daughters — and come.
The father-daughter dance at the Moose Club was started by Isaac Mass of Greenfield, who used to go to an annual father-daughter dance with his oldest daughter, Chelsea, at the Holy Trinity School.
When the school closed, Chelsea was in sixth grade, and Mass still had two daughters, Aquinnah, age 6, and Auburn, age 4, at home. Since 2013, Mass has brought all three daughters to the Moose Club dance.
And Chelsea, now 19, is still going to the dances with Dad. When asked why, Chelsea said “I like to see my dad happy. They take pictures. There is good food, good decorations, Bobby C. It’s good father-daughter time with your dad. There’s been more and more people coming every single year.”
It’s also good family time for Kim Barnes, 53, of Greenfield, her father, Kenneth Kurtyka Sr., 78, of Greenfield, and Barnes’ two 30-year-old sons, who bring their own young daughters to the dance. Between Kurtyka and his youngest great-granddaughters are 72 years and four generations.
“I’m fortunate to have my dad for as long as I have him. But we don’t spend as much time with our dads as we should,” said Barnes. She said her father loves the dance and brings her corsages on dance night. He dances with Barnes and almost everyone else.
Mass said the daughters who come “could be 5 years old, or 50.”
“They’re mostly there just to have a good time,” he said. “Our goal is to provide a safe and fun environment for father and daughter to have a good time and to deepen their relationship.”
“We set out role models of expected behaviors for young girls,” Mass said. “There is research showing that young girls who have relationships with a strong male role model are more able to avoid domestic violence or to reach out more for help,” when they grow up.
“What if you don’t have a dad?” Mass continued. “If there’s no dad available, our goal is always Mom-approved surrogate dads — such as an uncle or a grandfather. If they don’t have anyone, we’ve had officers from the Greenfield Police Department willing to take children to the dance, on their own time, as volunteers.”
With three daughters all under age 6, Greenfield farmer Adam Martin’s dance card was pretty full at last year’s Valentine’s dance.
“It was awesome,” Martin said. “Last year was our first time. We’ve talked about it all year. We haven’t stopped talking about it.”
His three daughters, Addison, Ava and Ainsley were then ages 5, 3 and 2 years old. They wore new party dresses, and Martin bought them all corsages, which they wore in their hair.
“We danced for the whole two hours,” he said. “My heart is for my girls. I want them to understand how valued they are, how special they are.”
“Dads can talk about being good dads,” he added, “but you’ve got to show it. If you don’t have love, you don’t have anything.”
Martin said the two-hour dance had a big impact. “You can affect one little girl’s life for a long time.”
Disc jockey “Bobby C” Campbell has been spinning the tunes for the father-daughter dances since the days when they were held at the Holy Trinity School.
“It’s a wonderful event, and it gets bigger and bigger,” Campbell said. “We have girls that are 2 to 3 years old and daughters in their 50s. We play music based more toward the younger girls.”
Campbell said there are special line dances that the children know but “we make the dads come out” and learn the steps. “It’s great to see the smiles and see the girls dressed up special.”
Campbell also plays a few slow dances, so the daughters and dads can have at least one slow dance together. With dads bringing more than one daughter, a few slow dance songs like “The Woman in My Little Girl’s Room,” by Kim and Dean Hopper are played, so each daughter gets a slow dance.
The Moose Lodge father-daughter dances are open to everyone — including fathers and daughters of all ages. Moms who want to come are welcome, but the dance theme is still father-daughter.
“Some moms bring their parents, their dads,” Mass said. “If you’re a 50-year-old woman bringing your 70-year-old father, we want the little girls to see that you can have a relationship with your dad all your life.”
Besides the two hours of dancing, the event includes a refreshment table filled with Valentine’s cookies and treats, a “make-or-take your own Valentine’s card” crafts table, and a “fashion shoot” where Valentine’s dance families have their photos taken.
The cost is $10 per dad, with daughters getting free admission. Tickets are available in advance by calling 773-9030. They are also available at the door, until the room is full.
Co-sponsors of this event include WHAI, Bear Country Radio and The Recorder.
Following the father-daughter dance, Bobby C. will play tunes for a 1990s dance at the Moose Club, from 9 p.m. to midnight on Saturday, Feb. 10.
Staff reporter Diane Broncaccio has worked at The Recorder since 1988. Her beat includes west county. She can be reached at: dbronc@recorder.com or: 413-772-0261, ext. 277.