FORT HOOD, Texas - "You put your left hand in, you put your left hand out. . ."
People dressed in poodle skirts, t-shirts and camouflage spun around while laughing and dancing to the "Hokey Pokey", R&B and a mix of 1950s era music.
It may sound like an odd blend, but for many of the children at Clarke Elementary School, it was a good mix.
Soldiers of 15th Special Troops Battalion, 15th Sustainment Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), showed the Students of Clarke that they still knew how to "shake it all about" at the school's sock hop dance here, Oct. 23.
Clarke's sock hop dance, which had an overall 1950s theme, was a fundraising effort by the school to donate to United Way, a charity which promotes and advocates education, financial stability, and good health.
15th STB Soldiers regularly volunteer at Clarke, the battalion's adopted school, every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday and to support special events like the sock hop about every other month.
Soldiers blew up balloons, set up tables, decorated with polka-dots, sold hot dogs, and ran various games for the children.
The event included a cake walk, hula-hoop contest, limbo, ring toss, face painting, food and various music based games.
"It's good for the community and [for] kids to know that Soldiers don't just go overseas [and] fight," Sgt. Jonathan Brady, a 15th Financial Management Company financial specialist said.
He's right, Soldiers don't just fight - with a little prodding, they dance. One student was even seen trying to entice Col. Larry Phelps, 15th SB commander, with a dollar bill to show some moves on the dance floor. Phelps respectfully declined.
Volunteering at the school made some of the Soldiers feel good they said.
"I've got kids in school so just coming back into the elementary school and seeing the little kids run around ... it's fun," Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Swinson, a 15th STB operations noncommissioned officer, said.
The Soldiers will get their chance to help out again soon with the school's fall festival and holiday bash both coming soon.
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