The Cha Cha, Fox Trot, and East Coast Swing are just some of the moves that dance lovers can learn in Warsaw at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1126.
The classes are taught by Melissa Culbertson, 34, Fort Wayne, who is the ballroom dance instructor.
Culbertson said she has been dancing since she was 7 years old, and started in tap, jazz, ballet, and gymnastics.
She started teaching those skills when she was a teenagers, then began teaching couples dancing 10 years ago.
Culbertson had dance studios in Fort Wayne, Columbia City and Huntertown.
She now teaches out of a dance studio in Mishawaka and the Eagles Lodge in Fort Wayne.
She also travels to dance competitions and has been a dance judge all over the U.S., and in Canada and Mexico.
Culbertson has taken a group of dancers on a dance cruise in the Caribbean.
“Ballroom dancing has grown a lot with television shows such as ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ and “Dancing with the Stars,’ and has gotten people to realize it’s not only dancing and fun, but interaction with others and exercise,” Culbertson said.
Dance classes at the VFW are Feb. 7, 14, 21, and 28 at 1350 W. Center St., Warsaw, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Beginners Foxtrot is at 7 p.m., beginners East Coast Swing is at 7:30 p.m., Cha Cha for beginners and intermediate dancers is at 8 p.m., and open dance is from 8:30 to 9 p.m.
The cost is $4 for the first half hour and $3 per half hour after that.
Plans are to offer the dance lessons every Tuesday since the lessons in January were such a hit, Culbertson said.
Dance classes were previously offered the last three Tuesdays in January at the VFW.
The classes averaged about 40 people each Tuesday.
Culbertson said a person does not need to have dance experience to participate in the classes. The classes accommodate beginning dancers as well as the more experienced.
“People do not have to be a couple to dance and can come as a single person and they will be matched up with a dance partner,” Culbertson said.
Ed and Jeanne Gooding, Syracuse, are one of the couples who have participated in the dance sessions at the VFW in January.
Jeanne said her favorite dance is the Cha Cha, while Ed’s favorite dance is the East Coast Swing.
“This is fun, and allows us to brush up on our dancing skills and meet new people,” Ed said.
Jeanne said there are not many places to go dancing locally, and that the lessons at the VFW provide a good dancing experience.
“We wanted to meet up with other couples who enjoy dancing,” Jeanne said.
Ed said he started square dancing in 1969, and then ballroom dancing in 1973.
The Goodings met when they were dancing at the Moose Lodge in Marion in 1980, and have been married 29 years as of Jan. 21.
The Goodings taught country couples dancing previously in Hawaii.
To learn more about the dance classes at the VFW, contact Culbertson at 765-348-9363.
