Despite cancellation, fire chief shares details on event history
By Kellen Olshefski
Correspondent
While COVID-19 has forced the cancellation of what would have been the 50th annual Elkhorn Area Fire Department Firefighters’ Street Dance, organizers said the long, rich history of the event is one that still deserves to be shared in the greater community.
Elkhorn Fire Chief Rod Smith said the annual fundraiser was canceled this year for the health and safety of both the community and department staff. However, the long history of the event and its importance in helping the department function are still worth celebrating.
According to Smith, the first fundraising event – known as “The Fireman’s Ball” at that time – was held the night before Father’s Day in June 1970 in the dining room of the Sterlingworth Hotel on Lauderdale Lakes, with the dance itself featuring ballroom-style dancing.
That event was the impetus for a long-standing tradition, with the annual fundraiser having been held the Saturday before Father’s Day ever since the initial one.
The following year, in 1971, Smith said, the fundraising event was officially moved to the new-at-the-time fire station in the City Elkhorn, where the apparatus floor was transformed into a ballroom dance theme to match the theme of the night.
The event continued on as such for a few years, until the late 1970s to early 80s, when the event shifted away from the ballroom dance style to one that featured music and dancing in line with popular hits of the 50s, 60s and 70s.
Smith said the event’s name was also updated at that time to better reflect the dance, changing it to the Fireman’s Dance, with the apparatus floor transformed into a 60s-style dance hall.
The iteration of the dance most are familiar with today first came around in 1990, Smith said, with the dance being moved from the apparatus floor to South Broad Street just outside of the fire station. The name also changed to the Firefighters’ Street Dance and both the street location and name have stuck around since then.
Smith said the fundraising event has been invaluable to the department over the years, helping to continue to build a relationship with the members of the community it serves, and offset the department’s budget, supporting the purchase of specialty equipment for its hazardous materials and dive and water rescue teams.
Additionally, Smith said in past years the money raised has not only allowed the department to purchase an ATV for off-road fire and rescue operations, but also an inflatable fire safety house so the department can provide an even greater level of fire safety educational opportunities to youth throughout the area.
“The department would like to thank all who have sponsored, donated and attended the dances over the 50 years,” Smith said. “Your support is greatly appreciated.”
Smith said the department would also like to thank all of the sponsors that were on baord for the 2020 event: Frank’s Piggly Wiggly; Sugar Creek Mutual Insurance; Wedige Automotive; Leece & Phillips Law Offices; Elkhorn Collision Center; Elkhorn Roofing; Westenn Mechanical; Summit Development; McLane Food Service; Haase-Lockwood Funeral Homes; Stuart Tank Sales; Moy’s Restaurant; Southern Lakes Plumbing & Heating; Elkhorn Motors Ford; Vasili’s Corner Café; Paratech Ambulance Service; Markham Concrete Inc.; Elkhorn NAPA; Someplace Else Restaurant II; Godfrey, Leibsle, Blackbourn & Howarth; Komfort Heating; Precision Plus; Jackson’s Do It Best Hardware; Great Lakes Components; Lyle’s TV & Appliance Inc.; Geneva Labs/PSI; Bea Industries; Midwest Dental; Jackrabbit Fizz; Elkhorn Saloon; Seymour Kramer Koch LLP; Balestrieri Environmental & Development; Ketchpaw Hair Styling; United Sports and Rehabilitation; and Whispering Oates Farm.
