Michael C. Anthony from 101 The Rose served as emcee for the night and musical entertainment was provided by The Bob Troxell Big, Big Jazz Band and Dance Jam Productions. Guests were treated to an elegant dinner, a delectable dessert bar and enjoyed music and dancing at every opportunity! 

Celebrities taking to the dance floor were:  Kim Lemon of WGAL-TV8; Lisa Horst, LPGA golf professional; Dr. Daleela Dodge, general surgeon, Lancaster Surgical Group; State Rep. Bryan Cutler; Dr. Dave Simons, local anesthesiologist, Community Anesthesia Associates; and KayJay Miller, wide receiver with the Central Penn Piranha football team. Dance pros who performed with these local celebrities were:  Ken Wilson and Barbra Snyder, Ballroom on the Square; Charlie Harris, Dancing with Style; Joel Martzall, Arthur Murray; Melissa Radabaugh, Camelot Dance Studio; Jessie Foster, Jessie Foster’s Ballroom Studio; Rebecca Gentry, independent instructor; and Mandy Kuhn of Always Time for Dancing. A highlight of the event was a special performance by Lancaster General College of Nursing & Health Sciences students Meghan Lachman and Christine Reed, current second-year nursing students and Robert Hostetter, a 2003 nursing graduate.

Star “judges” were on hand to offer commentary following each celebrity performance.  Serving as judges were Bill Beyer, a retired attorney, teacher and ballroom dance enthusiast; Robert Brock, Artistic Director of the Hole in the Wall Puppet Theatre in Lancaster; and Amanda Deitrich, Director of Public Relations for Doneckers of Ephrata.  Benji Schwimmer and Heidi Groskreutz, stars of the 2006 hit TV show “So You Think You Can Dance” also participated as judges for the evening. Benji and Heidi delivered an energetic dance performance and Benji performed a solo modern dance in honor of the event’s Community Chairperson, PJ Winchell. The evening also included exciting exhibition performances by award-winning professional dance couples Kevin Fitzhugh and Tammy Brown and Sam and Denise Miller.

The evening’s top award, the Dancing for Dreams Overall Champion, was determined by the panel of judges.  The couple receiving the highest overall score from the judges was Kim Lemon & Joel Martzall. 

Audience members were also actively involved by voting for their top choice in a number of different categories.  Best Performance went to Dr. Daleela Dodge & Charlie Harris, dancing Theatre Arts/Waltz; People’s Choice was awarded to Kim Lemon & Joel Martzall, dancing the Samba; the Choreography award went to State Rep. Bryan Cutler & Barbra Snyder, dancing the Fox Trot; the Technique award was given to Lisa Horst & Jessie Foster, dancing the Cha-Cha; Best Dress went to Dr. Dave Simons & Rebecca Gentry who danced the Hustle; the award for Musicality was presented to Kay Jay Miller & Mandy Kuhn who danced West Coast Swing; and finally, the Shining Star award, which was based on audience donations made in their honor, went to Kim Lemon.  To add to the excitement, each celebrity and dance pro couple had their own fans out in force wearing pins and feather boas, and carrying signs to show their support!

Mary Grace Simcox, President of the Lancaster General College of Nursing & Health Sciences addressed the crowd and thanked everyone for coming out to support healthcare education in our community. Dancing for Dreams directly benefits the College, where there are nearly 600 students enrolled in various programs of study.  Lancaster General College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and operates under the Certificate of Authority from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Updated 10/11/07