My dear friend Martha Weaver
that I have been dancing with for over 30 years!

       

As soon as I noticed all the girls lined up to dance with a friend of mine,
I immediately asked him to teach me to dance.

The dance was Country Swing; the year was 1973.

Fast forward to 1975. While looking for work, I noticed a newspaper ad for "Dance Instructor! No experience necessary!" Remembering the fun I had had back in '73, the opportunity sounded good to me. I was hired and found myself learning the dances quickly; East Coast Swing, West Coast Swing, Cha-Cha--I learned whatever they threw at me in record time. Before I knew it, I had reached the Bronze Level of training at the studio. This means I had mastered 10 dances and 10 patterns in each dance, man's part and lady's part!

My first dance partner was an owner of the Fred Astaire studio here in Tucson. She taught me the West Coast Swing, and we then traveled around doing dance demos. It was during a benefit show for Toys For Tots, that I caught the eye of a studio owner in Toledo, Ohio.

When he made me a job offer I couldn't refuse, I drove to Ohio, where I went on to achieve the Silver Level of dance training. Ten more patterns in ten dances! Now I was teaching students and staff and also participating in dance competitions.