The Ogden Dunes Charity Ball
a.k.a the
New Year’s Eve Follies
Information and memorabilia needed for Archives
[Written in May 2008 for the “Hour Glass Newsletter”]
Recently, Connie Daley, former resident of Ogden Dunes, contacted the Historical Society offering to donate archival material on the boy’s soccer team’s trip to Russia in 1971 and the New Year’s Eve “Follies”, known in its first two years as the Ogden Dunes Charity Ball. The Historical Society gladly accepted her offer. The materials include newspaper clippings on the Russian trip and the 1968 Follies, programs from the 1968 and 1970 Follies, as well as sheet music and script material. Shortly after receiving Daley’s material, the outgoing president of the Women’s Club, Jean Bargeron donated the archives of the Women’s Club to the Historical Society. These materials included the Club’s minutes for the first fifty years, as well as some records of its social programs, including additional material on the Follies. As a result of these gifts, we are anxious to receive other materials relating to the Follies, as well as the soccer program.
John and Connie Daley with their children lived at 23 Bittersweet between 1965 and 1972. Connie was one of the organizers of the soccer trip to Russia and a number of the “The Follies” that were sponsored by the Woman’s Club from 1967 and into the 1970s. [Note: The original name of today’s Women’s Club was Woman’s Club.]
The Ogden Dunes Woman’s Club, from its founding in 1938, sponsored each year a number of social events, including the annual New Year’s Eve party that was held at the Fire Hall after it was built. In 1967, the event became a major production and was called “The Charity Ball” with the proceeds going to the club’s Good Works Program. The theme of the second annual ball was “Nostalgia Night” with words and music adapted from songs from George M. Cohan and Cole Porter. Lynne Schroeder, a resident of Ogden Dunes, was the writer and director of the production and the party. Connie Daley was stage manager and sang in the skit, “Cohan’s New York.” Current Ogden residents who participated in the 1968 “Follies” include Sally Olsen, president of the Woman’s Club, Joe Costanza, who acted as M.C. and Barker of the event, Marilyn Senour, one the Ogden Dunes Adorables, and Sylvia Griem, one of the Ogden Dunes Availables. The party committee included Hilda Hoham; the show committee Bette and Dick Hutter. Tom Tittle handled the electronics.
In 1969 the Woman’s Club dropped the name The Charity Ball. In that year, the theme of the New Year’s Eve production was “A Night in Old Baghdad: (or oh! what a bag dad had).” Barbara Beiser was producer/director with Connie Daley as assistant director.
Connie Daley became general chairman for the 1970 New Year’s Eve party and co-produced and directed the production, “Those were the Day, My Friends.” In addition to the above listed current residents who had roles in both the 1968 and 1970 productions, Pat Schuler, Lorraine Ialeggio and Geri Stimson are listed in the 1970 program. Dick Hutter prepared and edited the stereophonic tapes for that production. We also know that many other current residents were active in later productions.
We hope to publish articles in “The Hour Glass” on both “The Follies” and on the 1971 soccer trip to Russia by a group of northern Indiana boys, organized and led by Connie Daley and Nick Matavuli, who coached the team.