Sunflower Named 2022 Lights On! Champs
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Everybody cut footloose during 2022 Lights On! The annual dance competition featured the theme, A Night at the Movies, and it was the Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence’s Sunflower Elementary site that took first place with their Footloose medley Friday night on the Liberty Memorial Central Middle School stage.
Presented by McCarthy Auto Group, Lights On! was decided by a very narrow margin of victory. Sunflower earned first-place honors, Broken Arrow BGC finished in second and third place ended in a tie between Deerfield and Sunset Hill. Only a handful of points separated the winners. No matter the score, every team put on a performance worthy of the mighty Hollywood soundtracks they danced to. Pride beamed from each choreographer and mentor as they watched their kids perform the routines they’ve been practicing for weeks.
“I am so incredibly proud of them,” Abigail Parobek said, one of two choreographers for Sunflower. “They all worked so hard. I was more of the emotional support choreographer and Ms. Emily (Nasche) was the dancer, so she taught most of the dance. It made us so proud every single time the crowd cheered for them. I was literally shaking in the audience. Honestly, every single dance tonight deserves recognition. From their different moves to the costumes – everyone was great!”
All 14 sites put together a dance routine to a medley of songs from a movie soundtrack that was randomly selected for them. Movies ranged from Encanto to Hairspray and Grease to The Greatest Showman. For the last month, the excitement around the beloved dance competition was palpable from site to site. Each Unit Director recruited a choreographer either internally or by finding a community partner to come in and share their dance skills. What resulted was nearly 200 kids learning to dance with their teammates and displaying tremendous courage by getting on stage in front of a full LMCMS auditorium.
“I don’t think there’s anything in the world that is more special than watching our kids come together as a team, get all dressed up and basically go into battle together – in a fun way!” said Monica Dittmer, BGCLK CEO. “When the curtain opens, the lights come up and they are standing on stage looking at crowd who is cheering for them – there’s nothing else like that. Watching them get the recognition that they deserve, and to show them what it’s like to be in the spotlight, I don’t know of any other way you can get that experience as a kid.”
The crowd was treated to one terrific performance after another, made even more entertaining by the costume choices each team selected. Sunflower’s routine involved a costume change, but it was the sparkly red cowboy boots that made the outfits. The Broken Arrow BGC team had a whole cast of costumes for Shrek. Pink Ladies and T-Birds apparel was part of Sunset Hill’s dance for Grease. Langston Hughes’ School of Rock punk rocker costumes were perfectly suited for their School of Rock movie selection. Prairie Park BGC rocked top hats, white gloves and a variety of props during their The Greatest Showman performance. Every team rose to the challenge of creating the perfect fit to match their dance.
Jordan Diggs, known for his many years of emceeing dance and cheer competitions, was absolutely in his element on Friday night. He brought an infectious level of energy and kept the crowd entertained throughout the breaks in the show – not that the young performers needed much help providing entertainment. Undoubtedly, the most difficult job belonged to the panel of judges.
The valiant volunteers were tasked with scoring the dances in categories such as degree of difficulty, creativity, effort and overall showmanship. The 2022 Lights On! judges were: Ivani Bing (95.7 The Vibe, Fox4 KC), Hanan Misko (Lawrence Arts Center), Olivia Whitenack (Rock Chalk Dancers), Tatum Kempf (Rock Chalk Dancers), Mackenzie Thomas (Rock Chalk Dancers), Karl Kramer (McCarthy Auto Group) and Kay Emerson (Kansas Volunteer Commission/USD 497 Board of Education).
Beyond its before and after school programs, BGCLK serves many purposes. Part of creating an optimal Club experience is facilitating a sense of belonging and creating opportunities for youth that they may not get to experience otherwise. The annual Lights On! event does exactly that. This dance competition provides the chance for Club kids to shine on stage for all of their families, friends and fans in attendance.
The Afterschool Alliance organizes Lights On Afterschool to draw attention to the many ways afterschool programs support students by offering them opportunities to learn new things. Lights On! events send a powerful message that millions more kids need quality afterschool programs. As a partner of the alliance and the largest afterschool program in Lawrence, the Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence works every day to help fill that need.