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Ball allows fathers, daughters to unite in call for abstinence
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Lane Sanford, right, dances with his daughter Alexandra, 14, Thursday during the Father-Daughter Purity Ball at the St. Michael’s Event Center in Greeley.
BRET HARTMAN / bhartman@greeleytribune.com
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Jakob Rodgers
February 15, 2008
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Fresh from a dance with her father, Alexandra Sanford, 14, turned her attention to a subject she feels strongly about -- abstinence.
"I definitely think its very, very important to keep myself pure until marriage, and this is just one way of promoting that," Alexandra Sanford said.
Fathers and daughters from across the region joined in echoing a message of "just wait" Thursday night at the 2008 Weld County Father-Daughter Purity Ball at St. Michael's Event Center, 3050 67th Ave. in Greeley. The event, sponsored by the Weld County Abstinence Education Program, aimed to give fathers and daughters a chance to spend time together and join in the call to refrain from sex until marriage.
Standing next to his daughter, Alexandra, Lane Sanford said that along with being a pleasant evening with his daughter, it was a chance to re-enforce some values they have discussed for quite some time now.
"Well, we're already working with Alexandra, and it's just about maturity and growing older and as part of that, I guess we see that it's just the next step in maturity -- of taking control of her own actions," Lane Sanford said. "And in this particular case, we've talked about it for many years about her purity and keeping that for her future husband. So this was just something that worked out well with what we were already working with, with her mother and I."
Featuring dancing lessons and a cake reception, the evening also allowed for a chance to educate youth about the benefits of saving sex until marriage, a message highlighted by a performance by Phil Gwoke and Garth Heckman of Black and White Productions.
Kelsey Smyth, 15, right, of Eaton hugs her friend Alexandra Sanford, 14, with joy after receiving a purity ring from her father Thursday during the Father-Daughter Purity Ball at the St. Michael’s Event Center in Greeley.
Bret Hartman / Bhartman@greeleytribune.com
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Appearing at Eaton, Platte Valley and Greeley Central high schools earlier in the day, the two-man group from Minnesota has given tours around the nation for eight years about the advantages of abstinence. Before performing, Gwoke noted that remaining abstinent is often perceived as an "impossible task." However, the challenge of changing that perception is something they enjoy.
"We think it's worth the cause, and it's the greatest way to help save people's hearts and lives and strengthen America through strong family values and strong marital values, and so we'll take it head on," Gwoke said.
Heidi Musil, an abstinence coordinator at the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment, agreed, noting that 63 percent of those between the ages of 12 and 19 wish they had waited to have sex. However, she also noted that the evening was also simply a chance for fathers and daughters to spend time together -- a relationship she feels is just as important.
Juan Trujillo of Greeley said that was one of the best parts of the evening, spending time with his 14-year-old daughter, Zjhanesha.
"It was an opportunity to spend the evening with my daughter and, you know ... we don't get to do a lot of things, so it was a really nice opportunity to spend Valentine's Day with my daughter,"
Alexandra acknowledged the pressure to have sex before marriage. However, she remained steadfast in her beliefs.
"I know that it's not as important to most people as it is to me, and I think that the main reason that I can stay here is because I have Jesus in my heart," Alexandra said. "And so that's just a lot more important, I know to me, than to a lot of people I see around me. That's really sad, I think."
For more information about Weld County Abstinence Education Program, visit http://www.weldwaits.com
For more information on Black and White Productions, please http://www.bwunited.com
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