How the Sadie Hawkins tradition began at Woodstock

An earlier news item on this website from one of our student interns was a report on the recent Sadie Hawkins dance This prompted memories in one of ouralumni, who replied with the following letter:

To Gonpo "Fuzer" Lama

Hi Fuzer

I must tell you how much I enjoyed your article on the Sadie Hawkins Day. You are talking to the person who originally started Sadie Hawkins Day and the dance in 1955.

I originally come from Texas and when I returned to Woodstock in 1955, I saw there was a huge gap in the boyfriend-girlfriend arena. I had attended a Sadie Hawkins dance in my hometown in Texas and as a Freshman I decided Woodstock definitely needed a new agenda. Also, I had my eye on a handsome young man in the class ahead of me and I felt the dance was my best weapon of contact.

I worked hard in convincing the missionary teachers. It wasn't easy. Some of them were Mennonite and believed in no dating, and that dancing was a sin, but after explaining the dilemma of the girls, and that we would dance square dances, they relented with great trepidation.

I arranged for the first dance to be held at the College. It had the most room. I was on the school newspaper. The newspaper allowed me to advertise the dance. The girls really got into it. The boys were just like you described, but lucky for us, television was unheard of and they had no excuse to dodge their invitations.

The day before the dance, I suddenly realized that I had not asked my intended date. I had been too busy organizing. To my surprise a girl nicknamed "Buggy" had asked my date and he had accepted. I was crushed! The dance was orchestrated for my invitation and now I didn't have a date for my very own invention. A mad scramble among my volunteers discovered that Steve Settle (a very handsome boy in my own class) had turned down most of his invitations. Rumor was that he was hoping I would invite him! Being grateful for his resignation, I immediately asked him, and he accepted.

A few days later, after the dance, I saw my first intended date chewing gum in front of the canteen. He wallowed that gum from cheek to cheek and I found it absolutely disgusting. I breathed a sigh of relief that Buggy had beaten me to the punch. I never thought the boy was handsome again.

No relationship came about with Steve Settle, but I was left content that everyone had a great time, and for the next 40 years Sadie Hawkins was an annual affair.

I am delighted that the tradition has begun again.

Maudie Davis Brookshier, Class of '59

Note: if, like me, you had never come across the Sadie Hawkins dance before, click here to read an explanation of the origin.