FANCY DRESS DANCE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 193, 15 August 1936, Page 15

FANCY DRESS DANCE.

MANGERE EAST SCHOOL. The annual children's fancy dress ball of the Mangere East district was held in the local hall on Friday night, under the auspices of the Mangere East school committee, when there was a large attendance of children from all the surrounding districts. The hall presented a gay and animated scene, there being a profusion of multi-coloured balloons, whilst the stage was decorated with masses of golden wattle, interspersed with bowls of spring flowers. The task of the judges, Mrs. W. J. Nicholson, of Papatoetoe, and Mrs. A. Murdock, of Otaliuhu, was exceedingly difficult, there seeming to be no end to the ingenuity of the parents in designing and making of dresses. Mr. E. W. B. Caddy, the headmaster of the school, and his" staff trained the children for the grand march and several community fancy dances which were enthusiastically received. Before calling upon Mrs. Massey to present the children with their prizes, Mr. F. G. Massey, the chairman of the school committee, thanked the judges and the teaching staff for their work, also Mrs. J. Gillies, who supplied the music, each of these people being presented with a beautiful bouquet. The awards were as follow: —Best costume —Ten years and over: Boys, Brian Pirie (Crusader); girls, Nora Fothergill (superstition). Eight to nine years: Boys, lan Brown (Empire trade); girls, Anita Roberts (eat more fruit). Six and seven years: Boys, Bruce Kay (Emperor of Abyssinia); girls, Heather Holmes (paint box). Five years and under: Boys, Lance Fitcliett (letter box); girls, Betty and Jackie Prangley (old-fashioned couple). Best original costume: Boys, Ronnie Coburn (railway crossing signal) 1, Mervyn Shelley (the Dionne doctor) 2; girls, Patricia Hosking (flags of the Mothers' Union) 1, Mary Steen (poultry producer) 2. Best home-made costume: Boys, Alan Whiting (Father Time); girls, Valerie McFlynn (dining table). Best sugar bag costume: Willie Leslie (Highlander). Extras: Barry Heather (clock), Howard Watts (benzine), Murray McFlynn (Frenchman), B. Cain (Duchess of Devonshire), B. Gordon (snowman), R. Hannan (Japanese), Z. Fenton (old-fashioned lady), Jeanette Rowley (old-fashioned lady). Another item of special interest? was a presentation to one of the teachers, Mr. Vasey, who is shortly to be married. This took the form of a pen and pencil set presented by Mr. Massey on behalf of the committee and an oval dinner wagon presented by a schoolboy on behalf of the scholars.