Mary Ellen Dix’s prom dates came 47 years apart.
“This one’s a little different, though,” Dix acknowledged Sunday afternoon as she and her husband, Raymond, sat with friends in the Iola High School gymnasium.
The Dixes were among 40 or so guests — mostly senior citizens — attending the Senior Citizen Prom, sponsored by the Iola High School Leadership Class.
The high school’s junior-senior prom was the night before, and leadership students figured leaving the decorations up an extra day would provide an ideal opportunity to connect with folks of a different generation.
Mission accomplished.
“I wasn’t sure if I wanted to come,” Dix said, “but my sister talked us into it. I’m glad she did.”
Mary Ellen Dix last attended the prom with Raymond in 1964, while both were high-schoolers at IHS.
Students mingled with their older guests throughout the two-hour dance, and just as frequently found willing dance partners in the process.
With Iolan Scott Stewart at the DJ controls, a myriad of songs from both generations filled the room, from Glenn Miller’s “In The Mood” to more recent pop music and country and western hits.
A highlight for attendees came in the form of line dances, in which the older dancers were shown the steps to “Boot Scootin’ Boogie” and “Cha-Cha Slide” and eagerly joined along.
“This has been a blast,” said Gladys Turner of Burlington, who attended the dance with her husband, Max. “We heard about the dance and knew we had to come. We wouldn’t have missed this.”
Senior citizen prom bridges generation gap
