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Dads give undivided attention
By JULIANNE WU, Times Staff Writer SEMINOLE -- Jim Kubisiak had his hands full Friday when he accompanied his three daughters, Ashley, 13, Ellyn, 9, and Katie, 7, to the Heart-to-Heart dinner dance at the Seminole Recreation Center auditorium. "We'll take turns dancing with him," said Ashley, an eighth-grader at Osceola Middle School. "From the youngest to the oldest." It was Katie's first time at the annual daddy-daughter event. She is a first-grader at Starkey Elementary, where Ellyn is in fourth grade. Katie proudly showed off the wrist corsage her father bought her. Her two sisters also had wrist corsages to match their pretty party dresses. "This is a special time for me and the girls," said Kubisiak, dressed in a suit and tie. "In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, this is some quality family time." The Kubisiaks were among the 100 or so dads and daughters at the dinner dance, which began with a catered dinner by Cherubs New York Deli and Restaurant of Seminole. White linen tablecloths accented with red hearts and balloons helped provide ambiance, while the partygoers dined on real china on prime rib, baked chicken, salad, potatoes and chocolate mousse for dessert. Waiting patiently for the festivities to begin were 7-year-old Rebecca Wunderlich and her dad, Jeff. She showed off her wrist corsage of tiny pink rosebuds and baby's breath and pointed to her dad's boutonniere. "This is fun," said Rebecca, a second-grader at Pasadena Fundamental Elementary School.
"We were here last year, too," said Wunderlich, of Seminole. "It gives us a time to ourselves, where we can have a good time together. My 10-year-old son, Jeffrey, gets a lot of my attention with baseball, but this is just for Rebecca." When the dancing started, DJ Phil Pasek mixed the music with lots of slow dances, some rap and other tunes. He even played The Chicken Dance, which caused the little girls to be giddy and their dads somewhat embarrassed. It got worse for the dads when they briefly had to get down on their hands and knees for Who Let the Dogs Out. A perennial favorite, Butterfly Kisses by Bob Carlisle, saw a few dads wiping tears away as they danced with their daughters. The song is a poignant one about a father who is about to give his daughter away on her wedding day. A highlight of the evening was when Paul Coe, of Seminole, sang Happy Birthday to his daughter, Kirsten, who turned 9 on Friday. Kirsten Coe is in third grade at Indian Rocks Christian School. "I think this is fantastic that the dads can share this time with their daughters," said Coe. "They are growing up too fast on us." Kirsten Coe was excited. "I'm happy my dad sang to me," she said. One person who was a little disappointed Friday was Joyce Coffey, of Seminole. Mrs. Coffey was one of several mothers who tried to peek in at the soiree, but she could only look in from the hallway. Her husband, Terry, was inside with daughter Shannon, 9, a third-grader at Orange Grove Elementary School in Seminole. "I just couldn't resist," said Mrs. Coffey. "You should have seen the look on her face when her daddy gave Shannon her first corsage. It's so touching. I feel a little left out. This is the first time I haven't gone out on a "date' with my husband." In addition to the dining and dancing, the little girls posed for Polaroid photos with their dads and got keepsake bags filled with candy Kisses and stuffed toy puppies.
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