Central Host First Father Daughter Dance

By Michelle Henry, Central United Methodist Church in Jackson

Saturday, February 8, princesses from all over Jackson dressed in their Sunday best to attend “A King and His Princess,” the first annual father-daughter dance hosted by Central United Methodist Church and The Ladybug Club.

Daughters and dads enjoyed dancing, door prizes, refreshments and a fashion show featuring the princesses. “We are excited to partner with Central United Methodist Church on this first annual event. We pride ourselves on building self-esteem and self confidence in our daughters and realize an important part in building is ensuring girls have a great relationship with their dad,” said Tonja Murphy, founder of The Ladybug Club. “We hope that girls and dads leave empowered and encouraged to continue a positive relationship with their daughters.”

The Ladybug Club is a non-profit mentoring organization for young girls and their mothers. The club promotes self-confidence, self-sufficiency, education and civic responsibility. The club’s focus is to embrace the needs of elementary, middle and high school-age girls to nurture and teach them through experiences that encompass The Ladybug Club’s four founding principles.

“It is the objective of Central United Methodist Church, through the office of the family life center, to provide positive activities for the members of Central and the community to help combat the negative influences our youth see on a daily basis,” said Michelle Henry, family life center director for Central UMC. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one with The Ladybug Club to help us reach our objectives.”

The organizers made sure that no girl was turned away because she didn’t have a father figure to take her. Through the generous nature of men at Central UMC and the community, ‘rent-a-pops’ were available to dance and take pictures with young ladies who came alone. A great time was had by all and event coordinators and participants look forward to next year.