For Samantha Grover and her team of competitive dancers, this Halloween will be far from the normal night of children’s trick-or-treating and passing out candy.

On October 31, the Hal Holmes center in downtown Ellensburg will be opening its doors for an adult Halloween masquerade dance

The ball is being hosted in order to raise funds for the Ellensburg Community Dance’s All Star Competition Team, a free program for youth.

The Masquerade Ball is open to members of the community, ages 18 and over.

“It’s a wholesome adult-themed party that gives college aged students and adults the opportunity to do something that’s not geared toward the bar scene,” Grover, the director of Ellensburg Community Dance, said. “It’s also for people wanting to do a mixture of both; start at the masquerade then [go] out to the bars.”

Ellensburg Community Dance will be hosting a night of dance and masquerade fun for adults.

The masquerade will have refreshments, food and live music, as well as performances from the E.C.D team, ballroom dance lessons and live paintings by local artists.

“Events like the masquerade help us – the community – see the work they put into their fundraisers as well as the talent and hard work they put in daily,” Grover said.

Following the style of a traditional mid-century masquerade ball, guests are encouraged to come dressed in costume with decorative masks and remain anonymous until the night is finished. Prizes will be handed out to guests with the best costume, best mask and best overall attire at the end of the night.

“We always wanted to do a masquerade in Ellensburg because we’ve never had anything like that here before,” Grover said. “We will also be playing guess-the-guest game, where guests have to keep their mask on the entire night and everyone gets to guess who is who for prizes.”

The Ellensburg Community Dance All-Star Competition Team is a group of young adults ranging from ages 11-18.

The team has dedicated their time and effort on maintaining good academic standing, being contributing members of society and also competing in dance events across the nation.

“We are raising money to send our competitive team to show off their skills at competitions,” Grover said. “These girls have been working very hard to create a fun Halloween night for their parents and the community.”

The team hopes to attend and place in at least three dance competitions this season.

The masquerade ball will be a fundraiser to help the youth team attend a dance competitions in Tacoma and Las Vegas. The team hopes to raise $10,000 by the end of the year.

“Living in a small town, it’s difficult to get enough money to pay for the costs of competitions. E.C.D is a free dance program, so we have to raise money for everything that goes towards that,” Grover said. “Vegas will be a reward for their hard work. It’s a vacation and a competition for the kids.”

Grover, a self-taught dancer, founded Ellensburg Community Dance in February 2012.

“We all thought that the masquerade theme was an appropriate and fun idea for both the team and the adults,” Grover said.

Grover and the All-Star competitive team have been working hard designing costumes and performance routines for the Halloween event for four months.

“This is wholesome adult activity that will not only be fun, but it is for a great cause,” Grover said, “We are hoping to put on a Winter Ball for underage students this holiday season as well.”