Collingswood Prance Raises Money, Spirits, Eyebrows

Collingswood Director of Community Development Cass Duffey admits that she's in the business of making dreams come true.

So when she got word from Pop Shop owner Connie Correia-Fisher and Patch blogger Robb C. Sewell that they wanted to host a public event based on a campy YouTube exercise video, the only thing to do, really, was pick a date.

Collingswood did the rest.

The Collingswood Prance (or Prancerdance, which for legal purposes, makes it effectively distinct from the source material, even for the sake of parody) brought out about 100 festively dressed residents for a quick jaunt up Irvin Avenue from the Perkins Center for the Arts to the Pop Shop on Wednesday night.

They were there to have a good time and raise some money for charity—but also to celebrate the fact that their hometown is a place where even the strange and random impulses of its residents can be brought to life with an eye on fun.

"Everything we do is just about having a good time," said Mayor James Maley. "It's just about having a disturbingly fun time."

"We're game for anything," said Morgan Robinson, owner of Frugal Resale, which offered a discount for shoppers buying prancewear for the event.

But the prance also raised about $400 for the Pop Shop Party Fund, which Correia-Fisher said is intended to give underprivileged children from nearby Camden a chance to have a trip to the restaurant.

The first party, planned for August, will reunite eight Camden children who have all been in foster care together, and treat them to a party at the Pop Shop, Correia-Fisher said.

The money raised through the Prance will help pay for a limo ride, birthday presents and a framed photo. If the idea takes off, Correia-Fisher said the Pop Shop Party Fund could hope to host as many as three or four such events monthly.

"We have such a great town to support something this silly," she said.

"I thought it went great," Sewell added. "I had a blast. I'm stoked. I can't wait to do it again."