Enjoying the music are Valentine's Dinner Dance guests, from left, Vesta Stenta, Bob Sheehan, Kathleen Rivord and James Marzec, all of Merrimack. Photo by LORETTA JACKSON

MERRIMACK – Pink balloons, catered dinners and table decorations of twinkle lights in glass vases surrounded by scatterings of foil-wrapped chocolate hearts, greeted guests attending on Feb. 14 inside St. John Neumann Parish function hall a Valentine’s Dinner Dance featuring the Bedford Big Band orchestra, based in Bedford.

The event, modestly priced at $20 per person and catered by Only Catering in Nashua, was hosted by the Parish Council of St. John Neumann Parish based in the church located at 708 Milford Road in Merrimack. The Rev. Robert Glasgow, pastor, leads the community.

“This was a community event at a price that everyone could enjoy,” said Jennifer Noury, parish council volunteer party planner. “It was a welcome night out with a great live band.”

The Parish Council is credited with supporting the activities of the Roman Catholic congregation through a variety of services, including the planning of an annual Harvest Dinner and assisting in administrative projects such as parish surveys. New members are welcome.

Noury noted that Bedford Big Band orchestra, a group of 20 instrumentalists and two vocalists, regularly practices in the spacious hall where the party was hosted. The event was a show of appreciation for their talent and a desire to share their music with the community.

Rich and Mary Zore, residents of Brookline, take advantage of the Bedford Big Band dance music at the recent Valentine's Dinner Dance. Photo by LORETTA JACKSON

Bedford Big Band Director Karen Sayward, a resident of Windham and a professional pianist, vocalist and expert at flute and guitar, offered the crowd a repertoire of swing, pop and jazz renditions. She taught music for 33 years at schools in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

Recently retired after 13 years as Jazz Vocal Director at Boston College, her musicality now flies high at public performances with the band that was launched in 1998.

The band’s upcoming events include ‘“Singin’ and Swingin” at The Rex,’ 2-4 p.m., Sunday, March 8, along with DeCadence Vocal Quartet, at The Rex Theatre, 23 Amherst St., in Manchester. More event postings are updated online at bedfordbigband.com.

More information on other activities sponsored by St. John Neumann Parish also is available online at sjnnh.org.

Valentine's Dinner Dance Volunteers, from left, Louise Hickey, Deacon Brian Lester, Jennifer Noury, Brian Noury and Sheila Burnett are manning the tables where the fare provided by Only Catering in Nashua included stuffed shells, sausage with peppers and onions, salads, pastries and desserts. Photo by LORETTA JACKSON

Members of the Bedford Big Band, founded in 1998 in Bedford, New Hampshire, entertain guests at a recent Valentine's Dinner Dance hosted by the Parish Council of St. John Neumann Parish at the church's function hall on Milford Road in Merrimack. Photo by LORETTA JACKSON