By McKenna MIDDLETON, intern

It is the desire of every parent to be at the milestones in their child’s life – and a daughter’s first dance is no exception. It was a special night for both father and daughter at Valley View Elementary School’s Daddy Daughter Dance held on Friday night, Feb. 7. The seventh annual event took place in the school’s auditorium from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

This year’s dance was themed “A Night in Paris,” and decorations were complete with fancy lighting and Parisian flair. Mothers dressed in French-inspired clothing helped transform the space into a ballroom and later served food to the dads and daughters. A feast from Scarantino’s was followed by delicious desserts donated by parent bakers.

“It’s a chance for the girls to dress up for their dads and spend some one-on-one time with their fathers,” event coordinator Robin Weston said.

This year’s Daddy Daughter Dance was particularly special for the sixth grade girls. They were reserved a special seating area on the stage for dinner. The gym itself was packed with over 270 dads and daughters.

The girls took photos with their fathers in a nearby classroom where a backdrop was set up with a faux street post that pointed to the Eiffel Tower.

After dinner, the benches and tables were moved out to leave room for the dance floor. Daughters and their dads danced to a wide range of music from One Direction to The Temptations that kept everyone’s feet tapping.

More lovely than any of the decorations, though, was the smile each dad turned toward their daughter. The smiles were returned by their little girls, forever sealing dad as their favorite date.

  Mckenna MIDDLETON, Taylor MIDDLETON