Parkwood Heights Senior Living Community joined in the square dancing fun on October 21. Nelson and Linda Espenscheid, members of Boo Bull squares and residents of Parkwood Heights, squared up with folks from Boo Bull Squares and Copy Cats. Many members of the Parkwood community showed up to enjoy the demo. Dancers included: Jeff Blood, Alice Bubel, Gary and Lorraine Granath, Rick and Donna LaDonna, Phyllis Smeltzer, Jet Thomas, and David and Mary Jo Webster. Thanks to Gary Bubel for organizing and calling, and to Amy Aeckerle for recruiting dancers.

Submitted by Mary T. Martin

Each September, Copy Cats welcomes its newest class Kittens at our annual open house. This year was no exception as folks gathered at Bay Trail Middle School in Penfield for an evening of fun, food, and dance. Club members, who spent weeks preparing for this event, were rewarded as 19 folks turned up to give square dancing a spin. Of course, by the end of the evening, Ron Brown (caller and instructor) had everyone up on the floor, dancing, laughing, and generally having a good time. Subsequent to the Open House kick-off, Copy Cats and Kittens continue to meet each Tuesday evening at Bay Trail for Mainstream and Plus lessons accompanied by laughter and friendship. Come on by and join us! See you in a square!

Submitted by Mary T. Martin

We would not be dancing if it weren’t for the extra efforts of folks who consistently go out of their way to make things happen in square dancing. They promote square dancing; they welcome and encourage new dancers and they help keep experienced dancers engaged by providing organization, leadership and direction. The Daphne-Norma Leadership Award is one of the ways we recognize these special people.

The award is presented each year in May—at Dance O Rama—to honor an individual or couple who have made an outstanding contribution to dancing in our area. Recipients are selected from nominations sent in by dancers like you.

If there is someone whose consistent service to square dancing in your club or in the wider dancing community has caught your attention, please fill out a copy of the Daphne-Norma Nomination Form, which you’ll find in our Awards section There, you’ll find links to the History and Guidelines, a list of Past Recipients and the Nomination Form.

Send your completed Nomination Form to the award’s most recent recipients, Jim and Lurine Gotta at 12 Bent Oak Trail, Fairport NY 14450, or via email: gotta@rochester.rr.com (phone: 585-421-9241).

If that’s too much trouble, simply send an email to them at gotta@rochester.rr.com—with the following information:

Nominee’s Name(s)

Your reasons for nominating them

Your name and club affiliation

Your email address and phone number

It’s that simple!

Selection for this significant honor is a cumulative process. Nominations are due by the end of February, but they are also held over into future years, and can accumulate to build a compelling case for “your” nominee. So, please don’t hesitate. Send in your nomination now!

The Copy Cats’ Mainstream Square dance class this year has 12 new dancers—the 2019–20 Kittens. This year’s class Turkey Raffle was won by Eric McClellan (pictured). If you are an experienced dancer with Tuesday evenings available, and you would like to help bring new dancers into our activity, then consider coming to Bay Trail Middle School Cafeteria (1760 Scribner Road, Penfield, NY) from 7pm to 9pm on Tuesday evenings to help angel this class.

Photo credit: Jet Thomas

On October 26, the Copy Cats hosted the 2019 edition of their “Spooktacular” Halloween costume dance, with the Hip Boot Boys and Alice Bubel. The costumes were wild and crazy and the dancing was fast and loose.

Photo credit: Diana Spencer (RIT) and Peter Emmel

On October 28, the Belles ’N’ Beaus hosted a Halloween Costume dance, that included a birthday celebration for Roy Baird. Costumes were varied—and scary—and the cake was delicious!

A raiding party from the Village Squares took a road trip on November 16. Our aim was to steal a banner from Penn Yan’s Friendship Squares. We had a good meal in Penn Yan and a great time with our Penn Yan friends, dancing to the music of Gil Porter and Eileen Webster.

Submitted by Peter Emmel; Photo by Tom Powers

The Rochester Area Federation is experimenting with a new way for clubs to participate in its regular meetings. Club leaders and interested dancers may now attend RAF meetings by phone.

The call-in number is (605) 313-4441, with Access Code 347590.

The RAF is an association of area clubs. Its core purpose is to foster inter-club coordination, with the goal of increasing the number of dancers at member club events.

To accomplish this, RAF officers and club representatives get together for a formal meeting most months of the year. Meetings run about 90 minutes and involve active planning for promotion and recruitment programs as well as special events. Discussion is lively and ideas flow freely.

Meetings are monthly (except December, June, July and August). The day of the week rotates, to avoid overlapping with the same club dances every time. The physical meeting place is Bill Gray’s, on Jefferson Road in Henrietta. Up to now, the meeting time has been 7:30 pm, but starting last month the time has been moved to 6:30pm as an experiment, in hopes of making it easier for folks to attend from further away.

The full schedule of meetings can always be found via the Meetings and Minutes button on the Federation Page of this website. The call-in number and access code is listed there also.

Since RAF member clubs are spread across western NY, from near Buffalo to the Finger Lakes, a call-in option seems like a good way to enable more clubs to be represented in RAF discussions and planning efforts.

In announcing this new option, RAF Vice Presidents Debbie and Jeff Blood had this to say about it:

“We are hoping member clubs will consider dialing into the RAF meetings when traveling to meetings is not an option. Presently, we are using a cell phone at the meeting as the speaker/microphone, but depending on the popularity of dial-in access, we will review our options for better equipment.”

If you have any questions about this new feature, please contact:

Debbie & Jeff Blood—dfbjvbhome@aol.com or 585-225-8751 (home—leave a message)

This year’s Fall Friendship Ball in Penfield on September 28 drew 57 dancers. Nine of these were recent graduates—a significant increase over last year. As usual with dancing, everyone had a great time.

We know this not only from the lively atmosphere at the dance, but from respondents to the dancer survey, who voted overwhelmingly (26:1) to keep this dance on the RAF schedule. Depending on how many of these sheets are from couples, they represent up to 95% of those in attendance.

Twenty-seven completed surveys were received, responding to questions about location, cost and format. A full tally of responses is given below.

The Fall Friendship Ball is an annual “area-wide” dance organized by volunteers at the RAF. It is intended as a kick-off for the new season, bringing together dancers and especially returning graduates from all RAF clubs. To encourage dancers from further away, it’s an afternoon dance, followed by an optional meal. It’s scheduled late in September, to avoid distracting attention from club Open House events. To spread exposure and hopefully increase dancer attendance, it features multiple area callers and cuers.

The dance location has moved around, in an effort to make it accessible for clubs in all parts of the RAF region. The pricing has been kept low, and this year was skewed to provide a stronger incentive for recent graduates. Instead of being catered, the dinner this time followed a potluck format.

2019 was the fourth edition of the Fall Friendship Ball, and as you can see from the survey questions, we are still working on ways to tailor it to serve its purpose of bringing together new and experienced dancers from all clubs in the RAF region.

If you have suggestions to add or questions to ask, please contact your club’s RAF representative, or your club president, or an RAF officer, or send email to raf_pres@squaredancingrochester.org … and mark your calendar for September 19, 2020, for next year’s Fall Friendship Ball.

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Fall Friendship Ball 2019 Survey Results - 27 surveys turned in

Question 1 - Do you think RAF should continue Fall Ball? (27 responses)
    Yes (26)
    No (1)
    Comments:
        • It’s fun
        • Nice time to dance
        • Great social & friendly environment - love the multiple callers and ccuers
        • Maybe evening instead of afternoon
        • Move time to evening either Friday or Saturday
        • Mainstream with plus
        • More promotion during summer
        • This is our first year - graduated last year
        • This is our first year
        • Dance

Question 1a - If yes, would you attend next year? (26 responses)
    Yes (25)
    No (0)
    Don’t know (1)

Question 2 - Should dinner be offered? (24 responses)
    Yes (19)
    No (5)

Question 2a - If yes, would you prefer catered or dish to pass? (19 responses)
    Catered     (4)
    Dish to pass (15)

Comments / suggestions (underlining, exclamation marks, emojis taken right from comments)
    (sub bullets are multiple comments made on single survey sheet)
    • Either dinner style works
    • Put more snack or finger food out during 3hr dance. No need to have addditional 2 hours after 3 hour dance
    • I like the moving location. Maybe move east to pick up Fulton, Baldwinnsville, etc.
    • Get a place with air conditioning please :)
    • Please advise if the location can get warm / hot in the early fall session so we may dress appropriately—thank you!
    • Like the afternoon
    • Love the afternoon ending with dinner, thank you!
    • If potluck and dance, need ovens, ref, & crockpots extra electricals
    • Lots of fun, nice get together from the summer plus practical practicee dance
    • Eliminate dinner. Dinner is adding a lot of work for a small number off people.
        - Bring snacks like a “normal” dance.
        - Thanks to all involved for putting on the 2019 Federation dance!!
    • Nice to get together with everyone from different clubs
    • Keep up good work
    • If dinner, need snacks also
        - Simpler prices—present grads free, others $3
        - Like afternoon time slot for dance
        - Had a great time!!!