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Chuck and Teresa Howard were burning up the dance floor.

The Paola couple twisted and twirled Saturday night. They two-stepped and waltzed, and they did it all in perfect synchronization, without missing a beat.
And the best part was, they weren’t alone. A packed dance floor was just one of the many high notes at the Cowboy Christmas Gathering at Louisburg’s Middle Creek Theatre.

“I think everyone who attended had a wonderful time,” event organizer Judy Johnston said. “That’s what we heard over and over again.”

For four years, Johnston let the idea of the celebration grow in her mind. A onetime resident of Texas, she missed the Christmas balls she attended while making her home in the Lone Star State. She missed the fun times with friends that the events afforded, the dancing and the chance to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

This year, she decided to do something about it. Now a Louisburg resident, Johnston is a regular attendee at The Reverend Carl Garrett’s Cowboy Church. The church is housed at Rutlader Outpost, which is home to Middle Creek Theatre, and Johnston thought the theatre might provide the perfect venue for what she had in mind.

Rutlader owner Bill Harris figured she was right.

“I was all for it,” he said. “It would certainly fit into the plans of what our complex was all about.”

In a month’s time, Johnston managed to shape her dream into reality. A number of vendors were booked — purveyors of everything from original artwork to clothing, jewelry and accessories with a western theme. Cowboy poets and singers were contacted, and Middle Creek Theatre’s house band was booked to provide music for the Cowboy Christmas Ball.

More than 100 people showed up to join in the fun, and while Johnston would have liked to have seen an even larger crowd, she thought the event was an all-around success.

Is there an encore in the works for Christmas 2010? That is definitely a possibility, she said.

“I have had several people ask me ‘Are you going to do this again?’” Johnston said. “Having done it now once, I would love to do it again. But I would need some help the next time.”

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