For the first time, dancing was OK during a Langley Charitable Nights series dinner/dance on Saturday, Feb. 26.
Led by Surrey-based singer/guitarist Dan Hare, the band Centrefield performed the music of Credence Clearwater Revival (CCR) and John Fogerty during the evening fundraiser, held at George Preston Recreation Centre in South Langley.
People danced the night away while wearing masks, as now allowed under B.C.’s current pandemic restrictions, which were updated in mid-February.
Benefiting 10 Langley-area charities, the Langley Charitable Nights series concept was launched by the Fairhaven Group of Restaurants and partners, with more dinner/dance nights planned as this winter turns to spring and summer.
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“We got it going last October, and since then we’ve done three of these events,” Fairhaven boss John Tomlinson noted during the Centrefield show.
The company’s restaurants and bars include The Lodge Steakhouse and Horse & Ryder Pub at George Preston Recreation Centre, The Fort Pub & Grill and Rail and River Bistro in Fort Langley, and Sip n’ Slice in Langley City.
On dinner/dance nights at the rec centre, a special buffet dinner is served to guests for $100 a person (taxes in), followed by live music and good times.
Next up is the country band Gaslighter, a tribute to The Chicks, on Saturday, March 12, with a menu that includes Corn Bacon Chowder, Southern Fried Chicken, BBQ Ribs and Jambalaya.
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“It’s a chance for people to get out, have some fun, have dinner, listen to some good music and raise money for these charities,” Tomlinson said.
“The concept is to support 10 charities per quarter during the year, and we’ll take a blended average (of amounts raised during each event),” he explained. “So if we have a snowy night, like we did, we don’t want to have a situation where that one charity gets wiped out because attendance is low that night. So the money will be split equally among the charities, who really need the help right now.”
The current series benefits Langley Hospice, Langley Volunteers Bureau, Langley Animal Protection Society (LAPS), Valley Theraputic Equestrian Association, Langley Soroptomists, Ishtar Transition Housing Society, Langley Meals on Wheels, Langley School District Foundation, Township of Langley Firefighters Charitable Society and Langley Lodge.
RELATED STORY, from Feb. 8: The first Langley Charitable Nights event a success.
In partnership with Cris Schandl’s Sonic Flower Entertainment, recent events featured Dreams playing the music of Fleetwood Mac, and a “Rat Pack” night of Vegas tunes. Later this month, the music of Rod Stewart will be featured on March 26. More event details are posted to thefairhavengroup.com/langley-charitable-nights.
“It’d be nice if we can put $10,000 a show into their coffers, at $100 a head,” Tomlinson said. “If we put on four shows a month, like we want to do, on Friday and Saturday nights every couple of weeks, that’ll help those charities. We can see it getting there.
“Things are opening up now, with dancing and larger capacities,” Tomlinson added, “so we’re looking to get this going even stronger. We know it will be popular. It’s a great meal with great music, you can’t lose. We can put 200 people in the hall here every night, and tonight we have around 117. If it gets really wild in the summertime and more people want to come out, I have a curling rink here for use, and there’s a hockey arena next door here, too.”
tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com
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