You are the one that makes social dancing possible in Gainesville. You make all the difference.
I was playing basketball at the JCC in Boca. On my way in I walked by the dance studio where I saw a youngish guy teaching Israeli dancing to a room full of elderly ladies, a few old guys, and one hot Russian chick.
My dad had always pushed me into doing stuff, saying, "You are young. You are tall. Go join in. Other people will see you and join in too."
When I saw Ira teaching Israeli dancing, I thought other younger people will look in and see Ira and Diana, and think she is his girlfriend. They will think this is a group for elderly folks and they will walk by.
If I go in to Ira's group, people walking by will see Ira, me and Diana, and think this is a group for younger people too and will join in. That is what happened. Ira's group grew into a popular group for younger people and we danced there for many years.
Because of Ira's success, Ira helped bring over a friend from Israel, Nissim Ben Ami, and helped Nissim get set up running Israeli dancing in Ft. Lauderdale. Nissim's group grew into one of the largest in the US.
Today Ira and Nissim have two of the largest folk dance channels on YouTube helping many people around the world learn folk dancing.
Nissim Ben Ami on YouTube
670 Videos
35,000 Views since September (had to restart his account)
www.youtube.com/user/DanceNissim
Ira Weisburd
538 Videos
1.8 Million views
www.youtube.com/user/iraweisburd
All because one day after basketball I went in to Ira's dance session.
Actually I went every week to Ira's session and encouraged other people to go. If you want to have dancing in your town, you have to consistently support dance groups for them to be successful.
My Tango teacher's group had dwindled to just a couple of us, but we encouraged her to keep teaching, we kept showing up and we encouraged others to go. Now she has a dozen regular students and their support allows us to have Tango dances three Saturday nights each month.
What can you do to support the dance community? The most important thing is to show up and encourage others to go.
Let group leaders know what they can do that will help you to show up more. If financial considerations are an issue, let group leaders know. We have ways you can help out.
In 2005 we had no community swing or tango dances. Now we have several each month. Thanks to you, Gainesville's dance community is growing. Your support is appreciated.