The Bee States Ballroom has been in the Bee community since 1939, and recent improvements have helped assure its relevance for years to come.
Vladimir Sobotka designed the hall 85 years ago based on a dome-shaped building he saw in Europe during World War I. Sandy Roberts, born and raised in Bee, said it has always been the largest staple of the town.
“It’s a big deal because it’s about the only old building left in town, I mean, we’ve got the post office, part of that building, but otherwise, in the 40s, half the town burned down, and we don’t have much left,” she said.
The hall is home to basketball tournaments, the Bee Buzz Run, the St. Wenceslaus chicken dinner, dinner theaters and barn dances. People also rent it for weddings, graduations and other events.
“There’s not a lot of other opportunities to be social in the community, so that’s why the hall means a lot,” said ballroom volunteer Tyler Dolezal. “We try to do quite a few things just to get people back into town and support the community.”
Over the past several years, the Bee States Ballroom volunteers have added a trophy case to display memorabilia from the village, refinished the floor, repainted the lines on the basketball court and made the front door handicapped accessible.
When they refinished the floor of the hall, they added Bee’s town logo to the center, Dolezal said. His dad, Roger, designed the logo for the town’s 100-year celebration in 1988. The original logo he welded sits on Main Street, and Bee has been using the design to represent itself ever since.
The volunteers also added colored strip lights around the dome of the hall over the past year, which Dolezal said have been a hit for dances.
The improvements are not finished yet. The volunteers are in the process of re-sanding and refinishing all the woodwork in the hall, replacing some of the doors and adding benches by the monument and in front of the hall.
Roberts said she has many memories of attending weddings, graduations and upkeep fundraising events at the ballroom. She hopes to rent out the ballroom to more people in light of the improvements.
“The communities around us have supported us tremendously in all the things we’ve tried to do.”
Visit the Bee States Ballroom on Facebook to get involved with the building’s upkeep or rent the venue.
