By Ed Karvoski Jr., Contributing Writer
File photo/Ed Karvoski Jr.
Marlborough/Hudson – It's time to get the poodle skirts and leather jackets out of storage. And remember those blue suede shoes for dancing. The second annual “Rock Around the Clock Sock Hop” will jog memories Saturday, March 22, at 7 p.m., at the Hudson VFW Post 1027, located at 3 Palmieri Drive.
Presented by two Marlborough/Hudson-based fundraising teams known as the Sunflower Girls and the Hot Walkers, proceeds will go to the Just “Cause Breast Cancer Walk and the Marlborough-Hudson Relay for Life.
Returning as event co-chairs are Marlborough residents Vikki Crowley and Pauline Smith, both cancer survivors. Last year's inaugural sock hop prompted fond memories for them.
“Those are my happy days,” Smith said. “We did the stroll and the hula hoop. It all generated so much laughter.”
Crowley added, “People were laughing so hard while doing the hula hoop that they were crying.”
Contests for hula hooping and best dressed will be reprised this year, and a limbo competition will be added. Nostalgic tunes will be provided by All About You DJ Services with Donna Tebo and Peter Cook volunteering their time.
Guests can work up an appetite for servings of spaghetti and meatballs with Italian bread. A cash bar will be available.
In addition to a 50/50 raffle, lucky gamblers could win prizes such as jewelry, gift baskets, New England Patriots folding chairs and gift certificates for local businesses.
The co-chairs hope the event will not only raise funds for cancer research, but also increase awareness of early detection.
“I discovered it through self-exam,” Smith shared. “After my fifth year of treatment, I became free and clear. You just keep fighting back and giving back at the same time to help others.”
Also returning to this year's sock hop will be a memory board on which guests can sign names of anyone affected by cancer.
“It was really touching to see people go over to the memory board and sign it,” said Crowley, a four-time cancer survivor. “Some of them actually broke down crying as they wrote the names of people who are fighting the disease or had lost the battle.”
Smith added, “There may be some tears, but there will mostly be laughs. Laughter is healing.”
The Just “Cause Breast Cancer Walk, a three-day 60-miler, will be held Friday, May 30, through Sunday, June 1. Proceeds are shared between the Gillette Center for Women's Cancers at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and the Virginia Thurston Healing Garden in Harvard.? For donation and participation information, visit justcausewalk.org.
The Marlborough-Hudson Relay for Life will be held Friday evening, June 6, through Saturday morning, June 7. Proceeds go to the American Cancer Society. For donation and participation information, visit relayforlife.org.
For the “Rock Around the Clock Sock Hop” fundraiser, order advance tickets for $10 by calling 508-294-3194 or emailing [email protected]. Tickets will be available at the door for $15.
