The Marshall County Neighborhood Center’s Dancing with the Stars fundraiser broke its fundraising record last Saturday, February 9th, at its 11th annual event at Swan Lake Resort, raising $101,000 for the Center. A sold out crowd of over 450 people from around Marshall County and beyond came to support their families, friends, and co-workers who danced. In addition to the variety of performances, attendees enjoyed a buffet dinner, live auction, and general dancing throughout the evening.
Business owners and professionals, stay-at-home moms, cancer survivors, medical specialists, community volunteers, and students made up this year’s group of dancers. Each dancer or ensemble was paired with a professional choreographer and rehearsed for nearly four months leading up to the event. All of the dancers performed a variety of dance genres including jazz, Latin fusion, stiletto dance, contemporary, Tango, theatrical and swing.
This year’s winners were Plymouth natives, Kimberly (Baker) Farabaugh and Tammy (Parker) Bowling. Kim and Tammy were paired with professional dancer, Mike Anderson, and danced a sultry yet playful Rumba/Cha Cha number to the popular song, “Havana”. In second place was a group of teenage boys made up of Brandon Goetz, Miles Barger, and Cameron Ragan, who, by the end of their performance, had the entire room up on their feet in a standing ovation after their Hip Hop routine. And, in third place was Bourbon native, Jordan Fuller. Jordan, channeling his best Elvis Pressley, danced with Destiny Cartwright to “All Shook Up”. Gennifer Schaefer and Linsay Horvath rounded out the top five who all raised over 300 votes each this year – another record for the event.
This year’s dancers were made up of individuals living throughout or originally from Marshall County, and also included Tonya Warner, Melinda Satorius, Holly Nunemaker, Jessica Sills, Erin Klinedinst, Shannon Whitley, Ellie & Allen Longacre, Evelin Vargas, Joe Cartwright, Dana Wakeland, and Steve Keiser. The evening also included two performances by Las Chicas Dance Troupe. The winners of the event were determined by their fundraising, as opposed to their performance or technique. All of the dancers worked to sell “votes” in the months leading up to event.
The Dancing with the Stars event is the main source of funding for the Neighborhood Center, a nonprofit organization devoted to helping individuals and families in the community living at or just below the poverty line. The Center currently serves approximately 400 families or 1,000 individuals per month and supports them by give them what the Center calls a “Hand Up”. All proceeds from the live auction, ticket sales, and dancer votes go to the Center’s primary programs: Food Pantry, Household Development, and a New Building Fund.
To learn more about the Dancing with the Stars event or the Marshall County Neighborhood Center, please visit the Center’s Facebook page or call 574-936-3388. The Center is located at 402 W. Garro Street in Plymouth and is open Monday-Friday 9am-4pm.
Image 1: Winners: Kimberly (Baker) Farabaugh, Mike Anderson, and Tammy (Parker) Bowling
Image 2: 2nd Place: Brandon Goetz, Miles Barger, and Cameron Ragan (top)
Image 3: 3rd Place: Jordan Fuller and Destiny Cartwright
Photos courtesy of Photography by Jayme
