Disco parties were hot stuff in the 1970s at Seabreeze | Cheryl Whitaker

I'm a Wilmington native, born at Community Hospital in December 1960.

I've got many fond memories here, starting with growing up in the area known as "East Wilmington," consisting of Maids Avenue, Manley Avenue, Clay Street and Evans Street.

However, I haven't always lived in Wilmington. I've lived in two New York City boroughs -- Brooklyn and Queens -- as well as Sacramento, California.

My mom, three sisters and I left Sacramento in the summer of 1979 to live with my grandma because she was ill.

In those days, flying was too expensive for a family of five, so we traveled by bus, taking five days to reach our final destination, my grandma's house, which was located on Clay Street (just off of Princess Place Drive).

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If my memories serve me right (yes, I'm already talking like an old-timer), Clay Street wasn't even paved yet. And Independence Mall had just opened.

So, since it's the summer of 1979, what do teenagers do for fun?

That brings me to another memory: Discoing at Seabreeze. And I can't mention Seabreeze without mentioning Fire Disco.

Still collecting my thoughts, I do recall my sisters (not the youngest one though) heading out to party. I believed it started from Thursday through Sunday nights.

What did we stumble across and what or who were we following?

Well, the era of disco has begun.

It has been stated that for many young people, disco was a form of rebellion, both against mainstream culture and counterculture. It wasn't a form of rebellion for me, though. There wasn't much to do and hanging out at clubs was the norm.

And party we did with Fire Disco with Kenny Grady, known as "The hottest man in Disco Land."

The chat I recall was F-I-R-E.

Even though we started partying on Thursday, Saturday night was still the best and most important night. That's because on any given Saturday night, in those days Seabreeze on the pier was the place to be.

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One of my best friends, Valentina Pollock McKoy, posted on Facebook in 2019 that "I'm partying at Seabreeze on Saturday night on the pier with Fire disco Old!"

Yes, Seabreeze was the place to be on a Saturday night.

To this day I still cannot believe how little that pier was. But who cared? No one. Even on the pier it was so hot, but that still didn't stop me from heading to Seabreeze. Sometimes if I was lucky a breeze would come through.

Disco wasn't the only reason people flocked to Seabreeze. It was the clam fritters they were also seeking.

And Seabreeze wasn't the only destination to follow Fire Disco.

I don't recall the exact days that Fire Disco was at these night clubs, but I do recall that we didn't leave home until after 11 p.m. (unless it was ladies' night and ladies got in free or at a cheaper cost). The clubs didn't start until midnight or later. That was the norm because we didn't get home until just before the sun came up.

I remember visiting clubs that are no longer around: Club Valentino (Brunswick County), New World (Northwest) and club Ebony (Wilmington).

We partied with Fire Disco at all of these clubs. Club Valentino and New World, the clubs in "the country" at the time, seem so far, far, far away coming from Wilmington.

Fire Disco always drew a crowd, so these little clubs were always so packed, liked sardines in a can, and it seemed liked we had to parked so far away and walk over a mile down those dark "country" roads.

There were good and bad times at these clubs and Seabreeze. I remember many nights that we had to "duck" from stray bullets behind parked cars, praying that we would be OK and always saying we are "NEVER COMING BACK."

But come back we did!

"I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor should have been my anthem.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Cheryl Whitaker: Seabreeze in New Hanover the place for fun in 1970s