1940s dance a fun blast from the past
By Joe Vaccarelli - Grand Junction Sentinel Newspaper, Saturday, October 14, 2017
An old airplane hangar next to the Commemorative Air Force museum near Grand Junction Regional Airport was a blast from the past Saturday as dancers dressed in their favorite 1940s attire to cut it loose on the dance floor.
Approximately 200 people turned out for the first-ever 1940s hangar swing dance to raise money for the Commemorative Air Force.
Organizers with the CAF said they had heard of other chapters holding similar events in their cities. “The goal is to bring awareness of the era to the valley,” said Robert Owen, safety officer for the CAF. “The time has come where we need to do this.”
An old airplane hangar next to the Commemorative Air Force museum near Grand Junction Regional Airport was a blast from the past Saturday as dancers dressed in their favorite 1940s attire to cut it loose on the dance floor.
Approximately 200 people turned out for the first-ever 1940s hangar swing dance to raise money for the Commemorative Air Force.
Organizers with the CAF said they had heard of other chapters holding similar events in their cities. “The goal is to bring awareness of the era to the valley,” said Robert Owen, safety officer for the CAF. “The time has come where we need to do this.”
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Dressed in their 1940s best, three friends strike a pin-up girl pose beside a North American SNJ-6 airplane outside the hangar where the Commemorative Air Force’s dance was being held Saturday at Grand Junction Regional Airport. From left are Jennifer Diaz and Connie Pyle of Grand Junction and Jasmine Komatas of Palisade. |
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Grand Junction DanceSport instructors Rachelle and Ryan Reynolds lead a circle of party goers in a lesson on 1940s swing dancing at the Commemorative Air Force’s dance in Grand Junction on Saturday. |
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Patrons of multiple generations turned out to have dinner, take some swing dancing lessons and then show off their skills while the Swing City Express played through the evening.
The money raised will go toward keeping the CAF’s prized possession operational, a Grumman TBM Avenger plane that flew in the Pacific during WWII. The plane still gets up several times per year and costs about $400 per hour to fly.
Interesting costumes abounded at the dance. Teressia Talley was one of three women to show up dressed as Rosie the Riveter, the World War II icon who represented U.S. women working in factories during the war. Talley said she heard about the event from friends and thought it would be fun to dress up and dance.
She was hardly alone as people showed up in a wide array of outfits, ranging from a green and black zoot suit to USO uniforms and, like Gordon Koch, a Navy sailor outfit.
Les Armbruster was not in uniform Saturday, but he was the guest of honor for the evening. The Grand Junction resident served in the Army Air Corps during World War II and attended the event with his wife, Nancy. “I think it’s great,” Armbruster, 94, said of the event and the CAF’s efforts to preserve aircraft from his era of service and beyond.
Friday Night Swing GJ provided the dance instructors and sold tickets for the event, which generated a wait list and left the CAF eager to try this again next year.
“I think we will be repeating this,” CAF member Dorothy Dutton said.
The money raised will go toward keeping the CAF’s prized possession operational, a Grumman TBM Avenger plane that flew in the Pacific during WWII. The plane still gets up several times per year and costs about $400 per hour to fly.
Interesting costumes abounded at the dance. Teressia Talley was one of three women to show up dressed as Rosie the Riveter, the World War II icon who represented U.S. women working in factories during the war. Talley said she heard about the event from friends and thought it would be fun to dress up and dance.
She was hardly alone as people showed up in a wide array of outfits, ranging from a green and black zoot suit to USO uniforms and, like Gordon Koch, a Navy sailor outfit.
Les Armbruster was not in uniform Saturday, but he was the guest of honor for the evening. The Grand Junction resident served in the Army Air Corps during World War II and attended the event with his wife, Nancy. “I think it’s great,” Armbruster, 94, said of the event and the CAF’s efforts to preserve aircraft from his era of service and beyond.
Friday Night Swing GJ provided the dance instructors and sold tickets for the event, which generated a wait list and left the CAF eager to try this again next year.
“I think we will be repeating this,” CAF member Dorothy Dutton said.