Wayne State students had the chance to dance the night away on Feb. 13 at the Kia Family Barn located outside Pender. The dance was open to all college students, including friends from other schools.
Every spring and fall semester, Wildcat Catholic hosts a barn dance. This encompasses a beloved activity of Midwesterners: swing and line dancing. This event is student-planned and organized. The event is usually determined by the members of Wildcat Catholic and overall encompassing availability of the student body. The hospitality leader is the head of this detail. Krista Jorgensen, the current hospitality student leader of Wildcat Catholic, bares this responsibility.
“I give our campus minister, Jared [Ludwig], a list of dates, and he asks the Kai Family if we could rent the barn out for that night,” Jorgensen said. “It’s super cool that they let us do this, as they are parishioners at St. Mary’s Catholic Church. After we get a date set, I send in an event form.”
The barn dance ran for three and a half hours and students swung their partners round and about. Boots slammed onto the wood floor, ringing in the barn. Friends laughed and snapped a few keepsake photos.
“I really enjoyed going out and dancing with my friends.” student Cassie Schlautman said. “It was a great way to relieve the stress of the long week of school.”
One of the unique parts of the barn dance is the DJ. Wildcat Catholic recruits Fr. Zach Tucker to run the music. An avid lover of music, Fr. Tucker plays the given queue, requests and occasionally his own personal tastes.
“Fr. Zach has been our DJ, so I asked him if the date works for him as well,” Jorgensen said. “Once the date rolls around, we fill up some jugs of water and dance the night away.”
The barn dance has been a tradition at Wildcat Catholic for longer than current students have attended Wayne State. It is a treasured custom, upheld by swing-loving friends and compatriots.
“This is a tradition Wildcat Catholic keeps continuing because Catholics and swing dancing just go hand in hand,” Jorgensen said. “Wildcat Catholic is an outlet for faith-centered fellowship, and things like barn dances are excellent ways to grow in fellowship with one another.”
Regardless of denomination or lack thereof, Wayne State students find community in nights such as these. Blaring country music, dizzying spins and dust-covered boots may just be the good time needed to persevere through the semester.
