by Magdalena Dajka, ’20
After a full week of study and work, Thomas More students are always ready for some celebration over the weekend. This Saturday, they were treated
to a contra dance in the College’s own Mercy Hall, the stunning beaux arts mansion in Nashua once owned by the first Catholic governor of New Hampshire and then the Sisters of Mercy. Music was provided by the Contra Banditos, a band of which Mr. Tom Ford, the Buildings and Grounds Supervisor of the College, is a member. Students were eagerly waiting all day for this last jolly frolic before Lent.
After dinner, the vans transported us to the mansion, and we trooped up to the ballroom on the top floor, where the dance was to take place. That ballroom presents a rather striking scene. Its sloped ceiling is painted a warm pink, and painted pastoral scenes grace the nooks and crannies in the walls. Alcoves of different sizes are tucked into the walls, providing a perfect place to withdraw from the bustle of the dance to spend some time in conversation or gaze through the antique leaded glass windows at the stars over the rooftops of Nashua. There is even a small raised stage where the band can play. It is the perfect room for an evening of dancing.
The fiddles struck up a tune. The caller, Mr. Dudley Laufman, called everyone to the dance floor, and the students formed into lines. There followed several hours of promenading, do-si-doing, swinging, and “stripping of the willow,” as Mr. Laufman—who has been calling dances for over seventy years—instructed the dancers in their moves, explained the stories and traditions behind the dances, and regaled everyone with his jokes.
A highlight of the evening was a performance by senior Miss Jacinta Yellico, who sang two pieces written by her great-grandfather, George Vaughn Horton. Horton, one of eleven children born to a coal miner and his wife in the Allegheny mountains, was a country singer and songwriter in the mid-twentieth century. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame; his songs have been recorded by Dolly Parton, Bob Dylan, and other well-known singers; and his “Mockin’ Bird Hill” even reached #1 on the country music charts in 1951.
Mr. Ford grew up listening to his music, so he and Miss Yellico were delighted to collaborate on a performance of her great-grandfather’s songs. Accompanied by the Contra Banditos, Miss Yellico sang “Come What May” and “Mockin’ Bird Hill”—Mr. Ford’s favorite song when he was courting his wife—to the great admiration of their audience.
The dancing then continued, as lively as ever, until it was time for the band to call it a night. As has 
become tradition, the students bid them farewell with a song—this time, it was the Scottish folk song “Bonnie Charlie.” The students were healthily tired out by the hours of vigorous dancing, but the exercise and camaraderie had only raised their spirits; they were not done with the night yet. And so, when they returned to campus, the folk music enthusiasts kept the festivities going by bringing out their instruments and starting a jam session. With the penitential season of Lent around the corner, what better way to celebrate Carnival and get your rowdiness out than by spending the night singing and dancing?
