Jason Carducci wanted to find more ways to connect with his daughter and create special moments together, but the options felt limited.

• “I’ve had the idea of doing something for a while to bond with my daughter because it’s super hard as a dad to find ways to connect,” Carducci said. “She wants to get her nails done every weekend, and that gets expensive. So I thought, why not create an event that gives dads and daughters something special to do together?”

That idea became Ties and Tiaras, a father-daughter dance scheduled for Jan. 24 at Emerald Coast Harley Davidson in Fort Walton Beach. All proceeds will benefit Children in Crisis, a local nonprofit providing emergency shelter and foster care for children across Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton counties.

The event runs from 6-9 p.m. and will feature DJ Zoran, food, drinks, a mocktail bar for children, photo booths and bouquets provided by Our Greenhouse Floral. Tickets cost $35 for a father-daughter duo, with family packages available for $60 covering a father and up to three daughters.

Carducci co-organized the event with Megan Serafin, community engagement manager at Children in Crisis. The idea crystallized after Carducci saw photos from the organization’s Blue Moon Gala, an annual mother-daughter event held each September for girls in their care. He wondered why there wasn’t something similar for dads and daughters. After visiting the Children in Crisis campus, he wanted to create that opportunity for the girls there while offering it to the whole community.

• “When you look around, there’s nothing going on,” Serafin said. “A couple of schools used to do this, but really nobody is doing it anymore.”

The event welcomes anyone who wants to give a young girl a special night out. Single mothers, family members or friends can purchase tickets. For those who attend without a male companion, several community members have offered to serve as dance partners if the girls would like.

“We’re not turning any child or little girl away,” Serafin said. “If you are a single mother and you have no man that can possibly take your child, you can come.”

Organizers have capped attendance at 200 people and hope to raise $10,000 for Children in Crisis, with about $5,000 already secured through sponsorships. Several local businesses are contributing services at no charge, including Just Think Cake providing desserts and photographer Lindsay Buckley handling event photography. DJ Zoran is providing his entertainment services and Emerald Coast Harley-Davidson offered up their facilities for free. 

• Our Greenhouse Floral is selling special bouquets for $25, with net proceeds donated to Children in Crisis. The florist will also provide complimentary bouquets for all girls from the organization attending the event.

“The ticket covers everything — the food, the DJ, the drinks,” Carducci said. “Families don’t have to come with any more money.”

For families unable to afford tickets, sponsors have purchased tables specifically to provide free admission.

Serafin said male role models play a vital part in the lives of children at Children in Crisis, particularly for girls who may have experienced trauma or neglect.

• “I think it’s huge for girls to have that male presence in their lives,” Serafin said. “I’m a single mother, so I understand the importance. When you have 30 kids on campus and only six male figures, some of whom work day jobs and aren’t able to be present, we do our best to show them the importance of having both female and male presence in their lives.”

The organization operates what it calls a “Children’s Neighborhood” off Beal Parkway and Racetrack Road, where it currently serves 30 children and four young adults. The campus includes five family foster homes, an emergency shelter and a Transitional Living Program for young adults aging out of foster care.

The facility is the only shelter in the four-county area capable of housing sibling groups together, preventing separation when children enter foster care. Children stay in the emergency shelter for approximately 30 days before moving to one of the family foster homes.

One couple has served as shelter parents for five to six years and cares for up to 12 children at a time. Their son and his wife also serve as foster parents at the facility, and the son’s mother-in-law recently joined with her husband, creating three generations of one family serving as foster parents in the neighborhood.

Kevin Maloney, president and CEO of Children in Crisis, and Justin Schwab, grant and proposal development manager, are among the male staff members who regularly spend time with children on campus.

• “They will purposefully go out to the playground just to put a male presence with some of the kids,” Serafin said.

At last year’s Blue Moon Gala, foster mothers read inspirational messages to the girls at their tables. One foster mother read to two sisters who had arrived at the facility just two days earlier.

“The little girls are just are bawling,” Serafin said. “You just see how much neglect, and the lack of love they’ve had. They see what actual love from parents is – that fills them, and you just see how they’re starved of it.”

Children in Crisis operates debt-free and does not construct new facilities until fully funded. The organization is currently raising money for a recreational center on its undeveloped 10 acres, which would give children an indoor space for activities during inclement weather.

Tickets for the Ties and Tiaras event remain available online. Those interested in volunteering or sponsoring the event can email Megan Serafin at meganserafin@childrenincrisisfl.org.