Back in the day, in a time when balls were held in country halls and light suppers were served, rural communities would gather for a dance and a get together.
Today, the team behind the resurrection of the Balldale Ball are proud to have put the ‘ball’ back into Balldale after their 2022 comeback event.
“Before 2022, we can’t be sure when the last ball was held at Balldale,” Kat Nixon, part of the organising committee, said.
“We’ve been told by 60-year-olds that they recall their parents attending the annual events.”
And in those days, it was perfectly okay for kids to ‘camp’ in the cars while their parents kicked-on at the ball.
These old fashioned balls were commonplace throughout rural Australia and thanks to a motivated social committee, Balldale once again drew a crowd of 120 people to the small hamlet north of Corowa in southern NSW on Saturday, October 21.
“We had a great night with Liam Dalby getting everyone on the dance floor and people being bussed in from Howlong, Brocklesby, Corowa and Buraja,” Kat said.
Local woman Julie Bartlett, who died in January, was the driving force behind the event.
“Julie got it off the ground and there was a group of about 15 of us who were her worker bees,” Kat said.
To honour Julie’s memory, this year’s belle and beau of the ball were renamed the ‘Crown Jules’ and went to Cate Barlow and Tayler Rourke.
“A $60 ticket to the ball included supper, which was a grazing table, hot food and dessert, plus entertainment and either a stubby holder or glass, with drinks available at bar prices,” Kat said.
The event has been so successful that funds raised go back into town improvements.
“We were pleasantly surprised that we made a profit thanks to our major sponsor the Balldale Hotel and other local businesses,” Kat said.
“We have been able to put money towards the installation of outdoor blinds around the west-facing verandah at the Balldale Recreation Reserve.”
Locals frocked up and suited up before a bumper harvest begins; one last chance to catch up somewhere other than the sample stand.
For those wanting to join in the festivities next year, follow the Events in Balldale Facebook page for more details. This page also includes information for the Balldale Family Christmas, Easter event and Anzac Day.