The evening started and ended with standing ovations.
Eleven couples braved the dance floor in the inaugural Dancing With the Shuswap Stars fundraising event for the Larch Hills Chalet expansion project at the SASCU Recreation Centre on Friday, Nov. 18.
Kicking off the evening’s main entertainment was the power couple of Jim and Marcia Beckner, the eventual winners of the couples division, dancing the lindy hop. In this category, couples were trained by a City Dance instructor. The runner up to the Beckner’s was city councillor Kevin Flynn and his spouse Cathy Bartsch, dancing country swing.
Other couples in the amateur division included Jaci Metivier and Peter Granger dancing the tango, Debbie and Alan Harrison dancing the jive and Ian Gray and his daughter Kaitlyn dancing the night club two step.
In the pro-am division, the runner up was John Thielman, owner and operator of John’s Ski Shack, and his partner Simone Goerner, dancing the salsa.
Cha-cha-ing their way to the top prize in the pro-am division was the Observer’s own editor, Tracy Hughes and her partner Orlando Robertson.
Also competing in the pro-am division was Dr. Ruth Brighouse and her partner Nic Faucher dancing the rumba, Dr. Stephen Hiscock and his partner Ingalise Abbott dancing the quickstep, EZ Rock’s Rich Daniels and his partner Heather Stranks dancing the foxtrot and Mayor Nancy Cooper and her partner Jens Goerner dancing the rock ‘n waltz.
The event was the brainchild of City Dance co-owner Jens Goerner, with oganizers Val and Barb Heckrodt and a committee of volunteers working to make the inaugural event a sold-out success.
While the final tally is not in, it appears the chalet expansion fund will be approximately $23,000 richer – a total which includes a $5,000 contribution from the Shuswap Rotary Club.