Listerman retires after 11 years of leading Monday Night Dancers

For 11 years, Zella Listerman coordinated the Monday Night Dancers at the Vestavia Senior Lodge.

In late July, though, Listerman retired and handed the reins over to Doris Kinny and Carl Jones, who will oversee the group as they have now moved to the Dogwood Room at the Vestavia Hills Civic Center, with the lodge being torn down.

Listerman danced, taught others how to dance, brought flowers, organized parties and did much behind the scenes to make the Monday Night Dancers, a group of senior citizens who gather to dance, more like a family than just a dance group.

“It’s been great; I’ve loved every minute of it,” Listerman said.

The dancers, who range in age from 55 years old to 96 years old, have learned different kinds of dances, have held costume parties, patriotic parties, Cinco De Mayo parties and always celebrated birthdays and other life events, like wedding anniversaries.

Listerman has several photo albums of the group in her Hoover home, full of photographs and stories she can tell.

A few years ago, the group had started to plan a birthday party for their oldest member, Don Dunham, who was about to turn 104 years old. Sadly, Dunham passed away a few weeks shy of his birthday. But the commitment to each other continued as group members continued to plan birthdays and other parties for each other.

Listerman said she’ll miss the people she’s gotten to know, like Dunham, over the years the most, as she’s been able to be there to help them celebrate “what’s special to them.”

“Some people don’t have [a birthday party],” Listerman said. “They make friends [at the group].”

Over the years, Listerman has also helped the seniors improve their dance skills. She has the experience needed to teach, as she’s been dancing since she was 15 years old.

Some of the seniors that come haven’t danced in years, Listerman said, but the group helps them get back in the swing of things, teaching them how to line dance, salsa, tango, cha-cha and other types of dance, Listerman said.

Most of the dancers, Listerman previously said, are single and they’re always willing to dance with a different partner. Some dances are entirely based around that idea; at one January dance, the band’s singer called everyone with December birthdays onto the floor. She began to play, but every time she called out “Snowball!” those on the floor would have to choose a new partner from the seniors still sitting.

Some of the seniors who come don’t dance, Listerman said, simply enjoying the company of friends, both old and new. The group usually has about 65 people on average.

“It makes them feel very special,” Listerman said. “It gives them something to do on Monday nights.”

When Listerman was asked to step in and lead the group 11 years ago, it came naturally to her, as she said she’s been volunteering since she was 15 years old. She grew up in a community near Fairfield and said there wasn’t anything for teenagers to do. So she went to the president of the Civitan Club and asked to use a community building, then a party for local teenagers with music, food and, of course, dancing.

During her time as leader of the Monday Night Dancers, Listerman brought in live music for the group and transformed it into a tightknit family, not just a dance group. She was honored in late July by Vestavia Hills Mayor Ashley Curry for her work over the years.

While she may no longer lead the Monday Night Dancers, Listerman can still be found joining them in the Dogwood Room on Monday evenings, dancing the night away.

“Oh yeah,” Listerman said. “I’ll keep on dancing.”