Long before digital devices made the transition from science fiction into our daily reality, some folks in this community got together and decided to create a unique “site.” It became an opportunity for friends and neighbors to “share” their common interests and spend some “quality time” together. For those who chose to make it a regular part of their lives; there is no form of “social media” that can rival it.
Their “platform” - a dance floor.
Thirty years ago, Kipling's Winter Dance Club was formed. Club members: Cliff and Ivy Johnson, Terry Ovans and Ron Sostorics say that the Winter Dance Club proved to be a “good fit” for this community from the beginning.
“The Winter Dance Club started with seven couples that were members of the Kenosee Lake Dance Club,” remembers Cliff. “There are some other Dance Clubs in the area that run during the summer. But, there was nothing during the winter. And, a lot of the people that wanted to come out to dances had more time in the winter than in the summer. So, we thought 'Why not start up a club in Kipling?'”
“That's right,” agrees Sostorics. “The dancers wanted to keep on dancing! For farmers, winter is our 'slack time'. So, a Winter Dance Club made sense for us.”
“We were all young,” adds Ovans. “We wanted to be able to get together and have fun, and get out to dances. A winter Dance Club gave us the opportunity to do that.”
Ivy remembers that these seven couples managed to get the news out about the new club very quickly.
“We got together and formed a committee. And we decided that if we could get about 50 people to join, that we would have enough people to make a Dance Club work,” she notes. “So, each of the committee members sat down with the phone book and started calling people that they thought might be interested in joining.”
“It worked out well,” Cliff says with a chuckle. “We had our first dance on October 22, 1988. There were 175 people there!”
“We had 216 people come out for our dance on December 9, 1988,” Ovans observes as he pages through the club's records. “So, I guess you could say that we had a 'positive response!’”
Sostorics notes that even though the number of people coming out for dances has declined somewhat, interest in the Dance Club remains strong.
“At this point, we have about 35 active members. But, when the weather is nice, we might still see about 50 – 80 people coming out to dance.”
Although the purpose of the club has always been “strictly recreational”, the members note that the Dance Club has had a very positive impact on the community.
“Over the years, the club has contributed with the money that was paid for things like Hall Rental,” notes Cliff. “When we've sold lunch, we made sure that we bought our supplies for those lunches at local stores. And, the Lions Club has had the opportunity to raise some funds, because they've been the ones running the bar from the beginning.”
“We've also donated towards some improvements to the Hall,” adds Ovans. “Money from the Dance Club went towards things like the drapes that are on the stage and the chair bumpers. And, the Dance Club bought a bed for the Care Home too.”
Sostorics says that the Winter Dance Club has also been a good opportunity for local bands to become better known.
“We've always had live bands - that was one rule that we had. Most of the bands come from the Melville area. But we did have some bands like the Olsons from Wawota. One fellow told me that our club was the first one to give him a chance as a One-Man Band.”
Over the years, the Dance Club has continued to provide a way for members to get together and socialize.
“It started out as an adult's club, although there were occasions when people would bring their kids along,” Cliff points out. “Now, most of the members are seniors because we've gotten older. But, there aren't really a lot of opportunities for seniors to get together and have fun. So, the Dance Club is a good thing for seniors in this community to have.”
On Oct. 15, the Kipling Dance Club will host a special dance to celebrate its 30th Anniversary.
“It will be a free dance and anyone who would like to come out is welcome to join us,” says Sostorics. “Hopefully, we'll have a lot of people coming out to help us celebrate!”
