More Horsepower needed!

"(Help). I need somebody". Like the Beatles, the Swing Into Spring committee needs some help ... specifically more committee members if the dance weekend is going to continue into the future. For such a major dance, it is unrealistic to expect 2 or 3 individuals to be able to organize an entire weekend event like Swing Into Spring -- but with more helpers, the workload can be shared and become manageable!

Do you have a bit of time to help out?

Committee meetings are few and far between (and conducted online, so there’s no travel required).

We need committee members to help with:

• determining the dance programme
• locating high-quality dance leaders
• advertising the event

AND volunteers to help with:

• setting up the dance areas before the event and clearing up again after the weekend is over
• helping during the event

Swing Into Spring 2024 is still a way off but the committee needs you on board now. If you are willing to contribute even a small amount of your time to support dancers in our area, please contact secretary@SwingintoSpring.ca or contact one of the current committee members.

Graham Ingram Passes Away

Graham Ingram retired back in 2016 after 35+ years of calling! He was “The King” of the One Night Stand ... a term callers use for special events where they get non-dancers up for a fun evening of square dancing for the first time. Graham called Squares for Square Dancers, cued Rounds for Round Dancers and prompted Contra for Contra Dancers.

Graham will be missed by all.

From his daughter, Karen ...

Creating and connecting communities through music in many ways was a calling for Dad, more than a hobby or past-time. It was present in all he did.

Our father, Graham Williams Ingram, passed away at 4:13 a.m., surrounded by music and singing, on March 7th at the Peter D. Clark Centre in Ottawa.

We are beyond grateful for the care the staff provided for Dad. Most of them had been with him since he moved there December 2019. Their connection and love for him was visible as they too began to grieve his passing.

Watch for details on the celebration of life for Dad, which will take place on April 15th, 2-5 pm at Zion-Memorial United Church in Carleton Place.

The afternoon will be full of what Dad loved in this world and certainly not traditional!

Rest easy, Dad, we'll keep the beat going here.

Caller Information Session

Interested – or curious – to know more about what it takes to get into the calling field. Drop in to an information session on March 18, hosted by John and Wendy.

François Demarais will be missed

François called for the Swinging Swallows in Pembroke and was instrumental in the formation of the Glengarry Tartans in Alexandria. François was a long-time member of Meri Squares, serving as President with his wife, Barb, from 2018 to 2020. His sense of humour and positivity were legendary!

François' obituary is available at this Ottawa Citizen link

A celebration of François' life will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that those who are able make a donation to the Ottawa Hospital Foundation

Condolences may be sent to:
Barbara McLellan
102-2019 Carling Avenue Ottawa K2A 4A2

Harold Moore Passes Away

Well known Seaway Valley Square Dance Caller, Harold Moore, passed away on January 6, 2023.

Harold is survived by his wife, Marion Moore and his sons Stuart, Ronnie and Danny. A celebration of Harold’s life will be held at the Royal Canadian Legion in Morrisburg on Jan 21 at 1:00 PM. There will be a reception following the service.

Here's some information about Harold’s square dance history and Harold’s obitiuary.

Sympathy cards or notes may be sent to Marion, Moore, 13396 Country Road 18, RR#2, Williamsburg, ON. K0C 2H0

Seaway Valley Association -- No Longer

Seaway Valley Square & Round Dance Association had their meeting on October 23, 2022 and it was decided by the member clubs to dissolve the Association. The members, who all have positions in their own clubs, were not willing to step into the executive positions which were needed to keep the Association going.

Special thanks to our executives, who, for the last six years, supported our two dances every year. Thanks to the following people for their support:-

• Lee Warriner as vice President
• Jeannie & Russ as our secretary who did an amazing job.
• Bill Shield, our treasurer, who wanted to continue as treasurer,
• Co-ordinators Carolyn Greenhough, Deryl Neron, Sandy & Allen Brown and Shirley & Colin Brown for their help during our two dances, Christmas & Mother's Day for the past six years.
• Helgi & Sharon Goodman, as Editor, (Helgi passed away on October 31, 2022) were SVSRDA greatest supporter, they worked very hard on the 35th Anniversary calendar, gathering the history of the Association, and he completed all the graduation certificates for all our new graduates, the flyers for our Christmas and Mothers' Day Dance as well as the dangles. They both worked hard on every calendar in the last five years.
• Pearl King for helping Helgi with the names of the past presidents and history of the Association
• Helen McCallum for helping us find the banner, we searched with determination to have the banner for the 35th Anniversary
• Wendy VanderMeulin as our Caller Rep
• Ario Speer for helping us with our virtual meetings, Lamar Mason also helped with our last virtual meeting.

It is with great sadness that the Association dissolved, a lot of work but not enough support.

Gerald & Marlene Casselman, President of SVSRDA

Celebrating Geoff Clarke calling for 25 Years

At the October meeting of the OACA (Ottawa Area Callers Association), Wendy VanderMeulen presented Geoff Clarke with a certificate, on behalf of CALLERLAB, to recognize Geoff's 25 years of calling. Both Wendy and Geoff are members of CALLERLAB.

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CALLERLAB is an international organization of square dance callers. Their mission is “to foster the art of square dance calling, and improve caller skills”. CALLERLAB provides guidance and education, certifyies caller coaches, maintains standardized lists of calls and definitions, and generally promotes the square dance activity.

Didn't Complete all the Quizzes?

Dave Hutchinson and Mary started sending out square dance quizzes back in March to keep us busy during the early days of COVID-19. If you were like me, you started doing some of the quizzes and then may have slacked off a bit, hoping to get back to them later.

Good News! The quizzes are NOT lost; you still have a chance to finish them. They've been captured from the bulletins and now reside on the eoDance website where you and future dancers can see them forever.

Even simpler. All the quizzes have been made interactive: you can read a question, select your answer and check if you are correct -- all on the same page. And they also provide reminders of the names of moves at each level to make it easier.

The quizzes are linked from the "Dancers" page. Click here.

Paul Adams

We are devastated to announce the sudden and unexpected passing of beloved husband, father and caller extraordinaire, Paul Adams. Paul & Judy have dedicated their lives to the Square Dance Movement for 45 years and Paul's passing leaves a huge hole in the dance hall. Paul brought joy to so many lives on and off the dance floor. .

When writing his blog, Paul always signed off with "See you on the dance floor". Sadly, tonight, the dance floor has gone dark.

Paul's Biography

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