Barbara Lawlor, Gilpin County.   After they huddled out of the cold and hustled through the door of the Gilpin County Recreation Center, the young girls emerged from their coats and hats and scarves like butterflies breaking free of their cocoon. They fluttered a little, loosening up the twirlable skirts of their dresses and shook out their hair, except for the do’s that were held up with tiaras.

Their dads, who had shed their Carhartts and boots and donned ironed shirts and ties that often matched their daughter’s dresses, were big, soft blobs of love. Their little girls had them wrapped around their fingers for one gala night on the town, for an evening that was just theirs.

In a room lit pink and splattered with shiny red hearts, the annual Father/Daughter Sweetheart Ball hosted at least 36 beaming beauties who brought along their dads. Each of the girls received a bag of Valentine type gifts, including hunks of sticky stuff that kept getting stuck on the ceiling. The girls delighted in getting daddy to heft a long pole and try to remove the gelatinous gobs from the tiles.

Dancing to the romantic music of the 50s, fathers held their daughters like precious jewels. “You Are My Special Angel.” Jiving and waggling their knees and elbows, the couples found their groove in “Doing the Twist.”

Mark Ragan and nine-year-old Juliet were pros at the country swing moves. They had obviously done the dance many times before. Ragan said he and Juliet drove up from Denver because he was looking at a home in the area and wanted to see what the community  was like. He couldn’t have picked a happier time to see Gilpin and Nederland families at their best.

A table filled with snacks, including sugar-loaded frosting piled high on Valentine’s cookies, kept the energy level at max as the girls batted balloons and morphed from dancing with their dads to gymnastics with their buddies.

Ten-year-old Sarah Lovett said she has attended the dance every single year since she was three years old. She had the distinction of wearing a pair of white gloves, reminiscent of junior proms. “Well, they are comfortable and they go with the outfit,” she said.

No outfit is complete without snazzy footwear and the night’s styles ran the gamut from Mary Janes to cowboy boots to high stacked four inch wedgie heels that lasted about a half an hour. Stocking feet was the norm after an hour or so.

Six-year-old Skyley Ramsey said she’s been coming every year since she remembers, and “This year is the best.” She wasn’t sure why it was the best, she just knows she liked slow dancing with her dad to songs like, “My Funny Valentine.”

Gilpin County school teacher and basketball coach Paul Hanson tried to keep up with his daughters, but it seemed like one was always rocking while the other was rolling and soon he was groaning and trying to straighten his back. His daughter Kari, 7, said it was fun having a special time with her dad and it was also fun going shopping for a special dress for the dance.

After the dancing, it was all about the outfit.

The Dad/Daughter Sweetheart Ball is a memory maker. It is an event that the girls will outgrow, but will always remember as the time their dad swirled them around the floor and then held them tight in a glittering pink room with pink balloons and Valentine music.