First Hansen Mother/Son dance a big hit
By Guest
The boys let loose on the dance floor (Moira Sweetland photo)
Dancing, games, camaraderie and fun! This was the theme at the first ever Hansen School Mother/Son ShamRock dance, which took place at the Hansen on Friday evening, March 15. Geared toward all K-5 students in Canton, the event doubled as a fundraiser for the Hansen community and attracted a sold-out crowd.
“We even had to turn people away prior to the event,” said dance co-chair Karrie Hylen. “We had 25 couples waitlisted, which is fantastic feedback for our first year hosting this event.”
The dance was the brainchild of Hansen parents Julie Beckham, Sharon Stemm and Hylen, who identified the need for an event similar to the popular Father/Daughter dance sponsored by St. John’s School.
“I watched my daughter go off to the Father/Daughter dance with her dad and thought, ‘I want to go out on a date with my son,’” said Beckham. “The Hansen is on a roll with successful fundraisers, and we were excited to host a town-wide event such as this and we hope this is the beginning of a new tradition in town.”
The dance was an all-inclusive event, featuring raffles and refreshments, as the co-chairs wanted moms and sons to simply come and enjoy their night. Raffle prizes included morning and afternoon announcements with Principal Peter Boucher, remote-control cars, a tent with supplies, public skating coupons, Wii games, a hand-painted flower pot certificate by Melissa Madden, and an Elizabeth Grady gift card, just to name a few. There were also dozens of free prizes given throughout the night — one lucky mom won a manicure gift certificate from Canton Nails for her moves on the dance floor. Others won Red Sox posters, soccer balls, shamrock t-shirts, and other neat prizes.
DJ Caroline Titus kept the music going all night long with a fabulous selection, including recent Hansen Flashback songs. The dance floor was packed all night with dancers of all ages, from kindergarteners to grandmothers. Boys also stopped at the Hansen tattoo station for shamrock tattoos and other activities, including Momma Mad Libs, guess how many Legos, and a basketball toss.
Slices of pizza from Apollo Pizza were available along with water and a decadent dessert table orchestrated by Janice Troy and Moira Sweetland. The evening winded down with Hansen kindergartener Ben Stark winning Celtics tickets.
The highlight of the night was Principal Boucher speaking to the guests, telling the boys about the importance of respect and appreciating their mothers. Then he asked all the boys to grab their moms for the last dance.
The Hansen CAPT would like to give special thanks to the volunteers, including Joan D’Alto, Amy Delello, Kevin Sheridan, and Hansen alumni Mattie Sutton.
The ShamRock committee co-chairs are thrilled about the turnout and success, and plans for next year are already being discussed. There is even talk of moving to a larger venue and turning this town-wide event into one of the Hansen’s largest fundraisers and making it a Canton tradition for years to come.
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