President’s Letters

Hi!

Hope you had a great Fourth of July break!

My apologies for not keeping you updated on our activities. Our April 15 Springtime in Paris dinner dance at the Edgewood Club was successful as a fundraiser for our outreach programs, and as entertainment thanks to Amanda Wolf our DJ, presentation by the Special Needs Adaptive Program participants, Chuck Watson and Lynne Preisser, and Matías Johnson and Irene Yarovoi. I appreciate our board members who made the décor special and all who attended. Chris Drum, Waltz instructor and DJ, enlivened our May 20 dance at Wightman School Community Center. June 17 found us at the VFW in Coraopolis where Brian Lee was the DJ, and Aaron May and Anne Wildenhain taught basic and syncopated Hustle.

We’ve finished the third and final session of this year’s Special Needs Adaptive Program with a majority of students who were prior participants in the Yes, You Can Dance! performance team. If we can recruit more adult mentors, and certify more teachers, we will hold six-week beginner’s class as well as a performance team class when we start up again in September. Dance experience is preferred, but not critical. Barb Johnson, the coordinator, is planning a pre-session workshop in working with special needs students and reviewing the upcoming dances that will be taught. Please contact Barb at (412) 720-0610 if you’re interested in becoming a mentor.

We’re looking forward to our July 15th Beach Party dance at one of the best dance floors in the region at the Palisades in McKeesport. We’re planning some fun dances, including a Jack and Jill mixer competition (with prizes) and a Limbo dance (for those of you who are supple), and some summer-type games in addition to dancing to John Siefken’s music. Christine Zone is going to teach Cha Cha. We haven’t been to the Palisades since before COVID, so we are hoping for a great turnout! Beach attire (not bathing suits) is desired.

The 2024 USA Dance National DanceSport Ballroom Dance Championships will be held at the Wyndham Grand Hotel in Pittsburgh on March 21-24. Our role is to support the national volunteers who run the competition. We’ll be looking for local competitors, volunteers to help during the competition (including set-up and break-down) and spectators to watch outstanding national dancers. So, let me know if you’re interested in participating.

Happy dancing!

Jane Downing, President, USA Dance Pittsburgh Chapter #3007

Hi! Happy winter!

Past Events

Many thanks to Brian Lee and Jon and Stratton DeWitt, Nova Ballroom Co., for making our December 17 dance at the Lauri Ann West Community Center enjoyable, and to  Christine Zona, Night and Day Studio, and Mark Boucher for energizing the dancers at the VFW. Thanks also to the USA Dance Pittsburgh Chapter members who ratified the 2023-24 board of directors: Jane Downing, President; Andy Orochena, Vice President; Megan Stanis, Secretary; John Siefken, Treasurer, and Janine Hauck and Mary Ann Gaser, Members at Large.

Future Events

Our February 18 dance will be at the Wightman Community Center. Frank Blakemore, of Frank and Victoria, will teach West Coast Swing and will be the DJ. 

From February 17-19, the CMU Ballroom Dance Club is hosting the Carnegie Classic, a dance competition, social dance and dance camp open to all at Rangos Hall, 2^nd floor, Jared L. Cohon University Center, CMU campus. We are one of the sponsors.  The welcome social dance, Starlit Soiree, on Friday night, 7 – 10 pm, features NY Ballroom DJ David Ho. $15.00/person. Volunteers are still needed for the competition on Saturday. and spectators are welcome. Workshops and group classes with World Champions Glenn Weiss and Inna Ivanenko are on Sunday. Further information at https://carnegieclassic.com.   We encourage you to drop into our dance at Wightman after the competition. It’s close by.

We expect the second session of the Special Needs Outreach Program will start at the end of February. Barb Johnson is being certified as the lead teacher by Yes, You Can Dance! Founded in 2011 by Becky Stern and Chris Roth, YYCD operated in Pittsburgh for five years.  Barb worked as a dance mentor with students in the South Hills YYCD program. Barb will hold a training session for mentors prior to the start of the program so if you’re interested in being a mentor, let me know.  More information forthcoming.

Save the date for our March 18 dance at the Wightman Community Center and the dinner dance on April 15 at the Edgewood Country Club!

Hope to see you soon!

Jane Downing, President, USA Dance Pittsburgh Chapter #3007

Hi!

On November 19^th at the Keith Holmes VFW Post #402 in Coraopolis, we danced to Mark Boucher’s music, learned a lively Tango from Mikayla Schultz and enjoyed the Tango routine she and Cris Sharpley, both instructors at the Arthur Murray South Hills Studio, performed at half time.

Our December 17 dance at the Lauri Ann West Community Center in O’Hara Township will feature Jon and Stratton DeWitt teaching Viennese Waltz and Brian Lee’s music. 

There’s still time to indicate your interest in becoming a board member! We’ll take your self-nomination form at the December 17 dance.

Members of the current Board of Directors have agreed to stand for re-election:  Michelle Clark; Jane Downing; Janine Hauck; Andy Orochena; John Siefken; and Megan Stanis. We will present the slate for 2023/24 at the January 21 dance at the Coraopolis VFW. The more volunteers we have, the easier each activity becomes. We particularly need volunteers to help with social media/marketing and the special initiatives- collegiate and special needs outreach programs.

It’s been a busy 2022!  We supported the USA Dance Inc. National Competitions on April 1-3; tested different formats for incorporating competition preparation in three dances including two on Sundays; launched the Special Needs Dance Program; and hosted nine social dances including a dinner dance on the third Saturday of the month, a social dance at Nationals and a segment of Jeff Shirey’s Summer Dance Festival at Avonworth Park.

We’re beginning to plan our activities for 2023 and would appreciate any feedback you might have on new activities we might try, or things we tried this year and could have done better.

I am grateful for the contributions each of our board members brought to our activities; Eva Maschak and the volunteers who helped during the USA Dance National Competitions; Christine Zona for her help in programming for collegiate dancers; all our instructors and DJ’s; and everyone who has attended our dances. 

Best wishes for a meaningful holiday season and hope to see you dancing soon!

Jane Downing, President USA Dance Pittsburgh Chapter #3007