Homesteaders revives its long history as community center

HOUSTON — The crowded floor was the chief complaint folks offered about the July dance at the Homesteaders Community Center in Houston.

Members of the newly reconstituted nonprofit say they hope this month’s dance is the last with that problem.

For now, the “dance floor” at Homesteaders is a few sheets of plywood placed side-by-side over the well-worn rug. But after months of bake sales, yard sales, plant sales and even a quilt raffle, members have raised $1,839 to replace 1,000 square feet of flooring in the center’s main room and entryway with laminate.

This month’s dance is at 7 p.m., Sept. 21. Bring a dessert to share. Dances are the third Saturday of each month. Admission is $2.50, and donations to the flooring fund are appreciated.

Expect to see Cliff Darnell and Laura Brady on the dance floor at Homesteaders Saturday. They met at the Mid Valley Senior Center and have been dance partners for many years, even taking a few lessons together.

After learning the foxtrot, waltz and the chicken dance, Darnell said they called the lessons quits.

“Gosh, that’s all we need to know,” he said.

Brady said it’s hard to find places to dance if you are an adult. Dance classes are another offering she said she’d like to see the center offer.

As part of its annual Octoberfest Dance Oct. 19, Homesteaders also will host an open house — if all goes as planned — to celebrate the completion of the its new floor. And the band Alaska Main Squeeze will perform.

Built in 1959, the center sits on 40 acres of land donated by the state to the borough for use by the nonprofit. A plaque on the wall marks its dedication: “This community building constructed by people of the Houston-Pittman area as a Governors work project. Dedicated Dec. 7, 1963. William A. Egan, Governor.”

The Mid Valley Senior Center, several senior housing units and the Houston Community Garden also are housed on the parcel. But about 35 acres of land remain that could provide space for other nonprofits, said chairmen Clifford Darnell.

After longtime president Bruce Babcock died in January 2012, the remaining members formed a new nonprofit and elected a new board of directors in April 2012.

Since then, they’ve hosted monthly community dances and organized a handful of fundraisers to replace the center’s well-worn flooring.

“We’re trying to start it up again,” Darnell said. “The whole point of the community center is for community use.”

The Homesteaders Community Center, at Mile 53.5, Parks Highway at Hawk Lane in Houston, was built in 1959 and is dedicated to serving the community as a center for public events.

Homesteaders is now visible from the Parks Highway, thanks to clearing work done by Gorilla Fireworks crews this summer.

“We’re starting to put it all back together,” said Homesteaders secretary Norma Frick. “It will probably take us a couple of years to get there.”

She said the center has awarded scholarships annually in the past, and would like to resume that practice, too.

Board member Diane Dusek said groups like the Strong Women’s Exercise Class, which meets there at 1 p.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays, and the Iditarod Masonic Lodge have met at the center for years.

There also are one-time community events like wedding receptions, birthday parties or meet the candidate events that book the center, which includes a commercial kitchen.

Dusek said Robert Hall of Gorilla Fireworks uses the building to conduct employee training and Wednesday morning Kristie Parsons of Trapper Creek taught a ServSafe Food Protection Manager Certification Class at Homesteaders.

The center also includes a commercial kitchen and a certified ServSafe Food Protection Manager, Dusek said.

“We are trying to reintroduce ourselves to the community,” said board member Harold Clark Jr.

Before there was a Houston City Hall, senior center or Willow Community Center, Homesteaders was the only game in town, Darnell said.

“It’s a community building. The more it’s used, the better it is,” he said. “We’ve got to use this.”

To contribute to the flooring fund, send checks to Homesteaders, 11840 W. Mid Valley Way No. 14, Wasilla, AK 99623.

For more information, contact 892-8488, 892-7288 or 892-7446.

Contact Heather A. Resz at 352-2268

or heather.resz@frontiersman.com.