Balmoral Lights Up The Night With Back to School Glow Party
by James Coulter
As the sun set upon Balmoral Resort in Haines City, the pool area outside the bar and grill illuminated with glowing sticks and the flashing lights from the DJ booth.
Children big and small, wearing glowing jewelry around their necks and wrists, gather around the pool. On the count of three, several dozen glow sticks are tossed into the water, followed by the splashing of little feet and hands swimming to grab them.
These wet and wild festivities were some of the fun glow-in-the-dark activities hosted last Friday during the Back to School Glow Party at Balmoral Resort.
For the low cost of $15, children and their families had access to the pool area, where they could splash about and have fun with glow-in-the-dark games and activities.
DJ Melvin offered some sweet tunes to liven the gathering that evening, with participants getting their groove on both in and out of the pool.
Best of all, anyone who brought along $5 worth of school supplies received a free order of chips and salsa. Of course, anyone could order anything they wanted off the menu, from flatbread wraps to tacos.
With Polk County schools having recently re-opened for the new school year, especially amid the COVID-19 crisis, this back-to-school event was hosted to allow children to enjoy the last few moments of summer before returning to yet another stressful school year.
“We did this event because we knew the kids had a rough week going back to school with COVID and make sure that they get to enjoy the week,” said Amber Pearce, Senior Event Manager of Feltrim Sports. “We wanted them to be able to come out tonight and enjoy their evening while being COVID safe.”
More than two dozen children and their families arrived that evening for the event. Even a few hours of late Friday night fun was more than enough to allow children to enjoy their last moments of summer and help prepare them for the upcoming school year.
“I am really happy with the number of kids we have out here,” Amber said. “It seems like they are having a great time and that is the goal ultimately. I am enjoying being able to hang out with the kids and see them enjoy themselves. That is the most important thing.”
Balmoral Bar And Grill hosts various family-friendly events every day of the week. They host Munchkin Monday will children and crafts, trivia nights on Tuesday, karaoke on Wednesday, The Lineup on Thursday, live music on Friday and Saturday, and a family dance party on Sunday.
On Fri., Sept. 25, Balmoral will host the Northeast Polk County Chamber of Commerce 38th Annual Pig Roast and Political Rally, where local political candidates will mingle with guests over barbecue to discuss the political issues of the day. Pearce and her venue are most excited about being able to host such a momentous community event.
“I think I never worked for a more quality company in my life, and I am grateful to work here and work with Balmoral Resort,” she said. “What they are doing in our community with our families and without children, providing a fun, healthy place for them to come and hang out.”
Lynn Zembra, a local from Haines City, regularly visits Balmoral for their events big and small. She enjoys frequenting the bar and grill for the food and drinks, and especially for live music.
While the music offered at the Back To School Bash was not her cup of tea, she appreciated being exposed to music outside of her comfort zone, and she likewise appreciated being able to see something hosted for the local children.
“It is family-oriented with a lot of families and interaction with other people,” she said. “I think they are doing great trying to remote everything we can do as a local business in the area.”
