Independent Dancers Could Change Face of Square Dancing

I’m meeting increasing numbers of dancers who have chosen to go independent rather than belong to a square dance club. Who can blame them? No dues. No kitchen duty and door duty. No cooking or buying potluck food before a dance. No arriving at the hall two hours early to decorate. No meetings to attend. Just pick your favorite venue, pay the $5, and dance the night away.

Square dancers “star through” at a dance.

A long-time square dancer and club member recently told me, “I’m tired.” Square dancing was one of the areas she was considering dropping. Contributing square dance club members face an increasing amount of work as clubs shrink and members grow busier, become older or die. A quick tour of the Boring Barn’s walls tells the story of dozens of once-thriving clubs that have folded and now are just a pennant on a wall, a name, a memory.

If the trend of shrinking and dying clubs and a growing population of independent dancers continues, the club model for square dancing could end. Instead of club members banding together to sponsor dances twice a month on competing nights, two or three for-profit venues in a city would host weekly or bi-weekly square dances. Entrance prices would have to go up. Food, drinks or snacks would no longer be free. But all dancers would have to do is show up.

The advantage to this scenario is that dances would be better attended because fewer venues would exist. Shrinking clubs would no longer have to worry about recruiting new members for lessons, planning and advertising dance themes, and wearing themselves out. 

The disadvantage? You decide. The choices the square dance community is now making are actually a vote. Is the present club model superior to a for-profit square dance model? Are the benefits of club membership worth the work? Should the club model continue? But if square dancing were to become a business, would it survive?

Tony Haskins, Aug. 8, 1950 – March 16, 2012

Tony Haskins served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam era. He was chairman of the Oregon State Grange's veteran's committee.

Tony Haskins, beloved member of the Checkerboard Squares, died of a heart attack on March 16, 2012. He was 61 years old.

 Tony served as president of the Portland Area Council of square and round dancers. He also was first vice president of the Oregon Federation of Square and Round Dancers. He was poised to become state federation president next year, had he lived. His black Ram pickup pulled many a float in the Starlight and Gresham Teddy Bear parades.

The Grange was another of Tony’s interests. He was master (president) of the Rockwood Grange. He served as chairman of the Oregon State Grange’s veteran’s committee.

On Mondays and Wednesdays, Tony bowled on two senior bowling leagues.

He was a member of Greater Grace Lutheran Brethren Church. He was responsible for the church’s Snow Cap donation barrel and enjoyed delivering the collected food to Snow Cap.

Tony was born in Prairie City, Ore., and grew up in Bates, Ore., a lumber mill town. During his high school years, he played the trumpet, often performing taps at military funerals. He enjoyed cross-country skiing and snowshoeing to his family’s mountain cabin on a gold mining claim. He was an excellent guitar player with a country-style voice.

Following high school, Tony served twice in the U.S. Army. He was in the infantry and was a chaplain’s assistant. He attended college in Idaho where he studied journalism and restaurant management. Restaurant management became his career. He was restaurant manager for the Sambos chain in California, where he oversaw multiple restaurants as a district manager. He managed many other restaurants until he retired at age 45.

Tony was known for his sense of humor, his wide smile and his big heart. We love you, Tony, and we miss you. We will never forget you.

Square Dancers Wield Political Clout (Just Ask Jimmy Carter)

Former President Jimmy Carter attributed the launch of his political career to his fellow square dancers in a Time magazine article published Jan. 30, 2012 (page 64).

In the interview article, Carter told writer Belinda Luscombe that during his first-ever political campaign in 1962, his square dance friends campaigned for him throughout his district.

He said he won the election by a narrow margin. Luscombe quotes Carter as saying that he probably would have left politics had he lost that first election. And Carter admits he probably wouldn’t have been president if he hadn’t been a square dancer.

So square dancers, you’re in good company!

Celebrate Buffalo Bill’s Birthday With the Checkerboard Squares

The Checkerboards are celebrating Buffalo Bill’s birthday with a western-themed dance on Feb. 25. Rumor has it that our club president-turned-bouncer, Steve Rogers, will be confiscating all caps guns and water pistols at the door (so you may want to leave them at home).

I’ve also heard that Grange master Tony Haskins is a little worried about spurs scratching his pristine wood floor at the Rockwood Grange. Tough luck, Tony. We’re expecting a crowd of cowboys and cowgirls. So pull out the cowboy duds, spurs and all, and come dance with us!

2012 Mid-Winter Photos Bring Back Happy Memories