by Ron Johnston
Former Churchville resident Elsie May Johnston, my mom, looked pretty stylish in her square dance outfit.
“I don’t know if I should let you go out tonight,” I remember teasing her as she started to leave the house.
She just looked at me and laughed.Thing is, mom always looked beautiful in anything she ever wore.
Mom passed away five years ago, but I can still hear that laugh. It was very distinctive, and everyone in a crowded room knew who the person was. The laugh was spontaneous and amusing. It made you smile and feel good about being a part of the scene.
.Mom loved to swim, dive, bowl, and square dance – and not necessarily in that order. Actually, she loved to dance. Period. Once, back in the mid-1960s, she and dad slow-danced to the big band sound of Ray McKinley and the new Glenn Miller Orchestra at the Rochester War Memorial. And, that was pretty cool.
I was there and mom even showed me some dance steps. Also on hand at that dance was Luke Easter, the Rochester Red Wings slugger, and his wife.
Square dancing was probably what mom liked to do more than anything, though, especially with dad. Just about every Saturday evening during my teens, the happy twosome would head out somewhere, sometimes with my grandparents, Charlie and Betty Podgers, and square dance the night away.
To them, it was party time and a good way to meet and make new friends. They just loved the fellowship.
Some of the couples and people they befriended were Jim and Mary Ann Higgins, Gerald and Barbara Cody, Marv and Kay Falls, and Bernie Balsam and his wife.
Often, in the summertime, everybody and their families got together at someone’s house, and occasionally at local campgrounds. That way, I and my siblings got to meet and make new friends with Tim and Mike Higgins, twins Jerry and Barb Cody, Linda and Danny Falls, Dave and Steve Balsam, etc., etc.
During the summer of ‘64, I also played American Legion baseball in Churchville for Head Coach Gerald Cody.
Even when the Johnston family moved to Connecticut, mom and dad continued to square dance. After dad passed, mom eventually headed south to the Sunshine State – and, yes, not surprisingly, she was the life of the party at square dances on the Gulf Coast.
“Try to get back before midnight,” I teased.
She just laughed that laugh of hers as she opened the car door.
Ron Johnston is the author of One-Game Wonder
and a retired newspaper sports editor/reporter.
Note: For those who want to try square dancing, Cloverleaf Squares will be hosting a free open house dance party on Sunday, September 17, 5 to 7 p.m., at the First Baptist Church of Chili, 3182 Chili Avenue. Singles (no partner needed) and couples are welcome. No previous dance experience of any kind is necessary. No special clothing is necessary. For more information, visit www.cloverleafsquares.org or call 987-5972.
