By Theo Vuong, Staff Writer
During the time around spring break for Fountain Valley High School (FVHS), Fountain Valley Key Club (FVKC) hosts its annual dance fundraiser, the other one being in the summer. Its purpose is twofold: raise money to fund upcoming club activities and train the newly-elected board members.
“We always hold two dances each year,” said senior President Nick Lee. “We use the money we get from the fundraiser in order to pay for stuff like our club field trip to District Convention (DCON) and build a bank that we can pull from if unexpected things arise. Usually by this time, we will have picked out our entire board for next year and this event allows the old board to sort of teach the new board on how things are run, so they can fly solo when they host the dance in the summer.”
Planning typically starts with the selection of a theme. Board members meet up in person to brainstorm ideas, keeping in mind that decorations and a backdrop will have to be made to match. This year’s theme revolves around the song “Where This Flower Blooms” by popular rapper Tyler, the Creator.
“I pitched the idea this time around and it got chosen. I think it is going to be interesting because our previous themes involved darker colors; we did “Star Wars” and “A Night to Remember” the last few times,” said senior Historian Yasir Khaleq.
After a theme is selected, several small committees including, backdrop, decorations, presale and publicizing, are formed to handle various tasks. The backdrop committee is in charge of painting a large mural related to the theme so that dance attendees can take pictures and the decorations committee decorates the venue in accordance to the theme. On the dance’s Facebook event page, the presale committee marks down the names and other identification factors of students who have signed up for a discounted price. Finally, the publicizing committee takes to social media creating graphics and spreading the word around to ensure that people attend.
“The work is divided up pretty evenly, with the committees usually corresponding with your board position. The secretary and treasurer, for example, would most likely go to presales because they would be the ones handling the approved list of attendees and the money we raised,” said Lee.
Next, board members seek out some chaperones, a DJ and a venue. This time around, FVKC deviated from the usual selection of a DJ and venue.
“We always have to find chaperones to watch over us, otherwise [the Kiwanis Foundation who supports all Key Clubs] will shut down our event. Additionally, we always went with Inviscus Entertainment and the Huntington Beach Elk’s Lodge for our dances. This time, we are going to have our dance at the Garden Grove Elk’s Lodge and have junior William Tran be our DJ,” said Lee.
On the day of the actual dance, board members and regular members who volunteer their time to help arrive a few hours before the dance officially kicks off, bringing necessary materials such as tables and water. The backdrop and decorations are set up, along with a checkpoint system so no dance attendees can sneak in for free or introduce illegal substances into the venue. A water station is set up so that people may take a break from the dancing. For the entire time that the dance is taking place, board members play a crucial part in ensuring the smooth operation of the dance.
With the dance quickly approaching, it seems that this one has the most potential to succeed compared to previous dances.
“We have a lot of presales this time around and I think the theme is really nice too. Everyone is on top of their work and really prepared. The venue and DJ are new, but I have complete faith that it will be better than all the other times. We would love to see you all attend!” said Lee.
Event Details:
Location: Garden Grove’s Elk Lodge (11551 Trask Ave, Garden Grove, CA 92843)
Date: March 10, 7 p.m. – 10 p.m.
Price: $10 with presale, $12 at the door
Special Notes: Wear casual attire and bring a valid high school student ID
You can find the Facebook event page here.
