Spotted in Vancouver: Dancing with the local stars

Not only does he deliberate, discuss and debate budgets, bylaws and bureaucracy — his moves and grooves are the bee’s knees!

Vancouver City Councilman Larry Smith took top honors at the Fort Vancouver National Trust’s Dancing with the Local Stars competition Sept. 11 at Pearson Air Museum.

The nonprofit event raised $68,000 for educational programs at Fort Vancouver National Historic Site. More than 380 people turned out to watch six local celebrities pairing up with Arthur Murray Dance Studio instructors to show off the moves they’d practiced in advance. Attendees were encouraged to vote, in person and online, for their favorite dancer with dollars.

Smith, a retired Army colonel, thrilled the crowd when he made his entry in an Army Jeep — his dance partner decked out as a Red Cross nurse — and unleashed a swinging tribute to the local military incorporating retired and active-duty soldiers as well as the Lewis and Clark Young Marines portraying Vancouver Barracks soldiers from the Civil War through today. His swinging soundtrack was “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.”

The other celebrity dancers were: Susanne Cox of Vesta Hospitality, performing a rumba to “Sway”; Carol Curtis of Windermere/Stellar Group, swinging to “Fly Away”; Lisa Dow of West Coast Bank, swing dancing to “Get Ready”; K.C. Fuller of Eric Fuller & Associates, swinging to “You’re the One that I Want” from “Grease”; and Nelson Holmberg of the Port of Woodland, rioting to “Zoot Suit Riot.”

Before Smith was crowned winner, a group of dancers from previous events flashed gold lamé pants and performed a hip-hop dance to MC Hammer’s 1990 signature song “U Can’t Touch This.”

“Many thanks to the dancers from Groove Nation Academy for teaching us the MC Hammer routine,” said Kim Hash, “and for performing with us to make us look as good as humanly possible while wearing Hammer pants.”