>La Grande Observer | Union and Wallowa Counties' News Leader

NEW HOME FOR DANCE GROUP: Star Promenaders Pat Phelps and Bob McRoberts dance at the Blue Mountain Grange. (The Observer/Laura Mackie-Hancock).

By Jeff Petersen

Observer Staff Writer

The Star Promenaders square dance group came to the rescue when it heard the Blue Mountain Grange, located one mile south of Island City, was on its last legs.

Seven Promenaders became Grange members and took over upkeep on the building, moving their weekly dances from downtown La Grande to there in early March.

"When we had our first potluck out here it was so natural," said the Star Promendaders' Pat Phelps. "It was amazing to listen to the voices, all the laughter, joy, happiness."

The first dance was great too.

"When we got to going, we got to going," said Phelps' fiance, Bob McRoberts. "It was awesome."

Now the group wants to share the ambiance of the 1872 building with others, and fix it up. The roof needs repair, and the hardwood floor on the main hall is warped and needs to be flattened. The floor fix will allow four squares to fit for dances rather than the current three.

The building includes an entryway, a main hall, a dining hall, kitchen and bathrooms, all heated very adequately by an oil furnace.

The Star Promenaders will seek grants to help pay for the repairs, and have already been donated paint to dress up the outside of the building.

They hope other groups will want to rent the Grange hall.

"It would be a wonderful place for family reunions, potlucks, dances, weddings, other group get-togethers," Phelps said.

"Auctions too," McRoberts pitched in.

Anyone who wants to rent the hall can call Richard Ribicam, president of the club, at 963-7193.

The Promenaders have done lots of cleaning and hope to decorate in a country style for a kind of barn-dance atmosphere.

The brightly lit dining room is a congregation point, with members' coffee cups hanging over the serving area separating the dining room from the kitchen. A 48-star American flag sits in the corner of the dance hall adding a patriotic flavor. In another corner sits a Meister concert grand upright piano waiting to be played.

Besides the indoor work, the Promenaders also hope to improve the outdoors. One project is to increase the parking, especially the overgrown area to the east of the Grange hall.

The group seems eager to roll up its collective sleeves and get to work.

"The Grange has brought our group to life," Phelps said.

It seems like a natural fit, a Grange hall and a square dance group.

According to its Web site, "the Grange is comprised of families and individuals who share a common interest in community involvement, agricultural and rural issues. They all work together in a family environment.Programs, projects and activities offered in every local Grange reflect the interests and talents of its member with special focus on family activities."

Now at the revived Blue Mountain Grange, when families gather to dance and caller Dale Counsell gets revved up, dancers can hear not only voices of laughter and joy of the present. They will also hear echoes of happy voices from 130 years of Grange hall history.