Hundreds of girls attend Father and Daughter Valentine Dance

Montana is handed a flower by Katy Bartholomew, a member of the Stafford Lion’s Club, at the annual Father and Daughter Valentine Dance. Photos by Amy Stanwick.

More than 200 little girls and their fathers attended the 15th annual Father and Daughter Valentine Dance at Stafford Middle School on Friday, Feb. 11.

The dance, co-sponsored by the Stafford Lions Club and the Stafford Junior Women’s Club, is held each year to raise money for various scholarships within the town of Stafford.

The dance is held as close to Valentine’s Day weekend as possible, and the turnout is great every year, said Jim Furness, of the Stafford Lion’s Club.

“We had 331 girls attend the first night,” said Furness, “and we hope to have over 200 tonight.”

Girls in kindergarten through fifth grade are invited to attend each year, and are accompanied by their father, uncle, grandfather, or other special man in their lives. Each little girl dresses in her finest party dress, is given a flower, poses for a photo with her chaperone, and gets to dance the night away to tunes played by Furness, who served as DJ. Raffle prizes are also donated by the Stafford Lions Club and Stafford Junior Women’s Club.