HERMITAGE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The square dancing community welcomes new dancers of all ages to clubs around the midstate every week including to a special Valentine's dance in Nashville.
Square Dancing is the United States' National Folk Dance and has clubs in every state.
"It's just a fun activity. It's ages eight to people that can still walk. Every every vocation, every walk of life. The group behind me represents all of Middle Tennessee. There's people from every club," explained Cumberland Valley Square Dancing Association Nashville Secretary Sherry Neergaard.
There are seven clubs in the midstate with even more in surrounding counties. Cumberland Valley Western Square and Round Dance Association's clubs hosts multiple square dances throughout each week.
"I've been dancing about 45 of my 61 years," said Neergaard. "About four nights a week I do a lot of different levels types. So it is just a family for me."
"There's no foot work. It's just walking. Whatever the caller says we do," explained Neergaard. "There are multiple levels of calls. There are 62 calls in the first two levels, and you learn them."
The caller memorizes about 800 'calls' to keep the dance moving.
"When I'm calling the dance. The people obviously do what I tell them to do. That's what the caller does," explained Nashville Area Square Dancing Callers' Association Caller Gene Aldridge.
He said it can take months to get the basics down and years to go up in level.
"When I say competent, I mean that you get to that level you can actually carry on a conversation in the square on any subject just about because you're not concentrate you already know the calls," he explained. "The brain is triggered by the first words out of the caller's mouth, and they immediately know what to do without even thinking about it. And that's the level that we want to try to get everyone at."
"It's a chance to get out and have some good exercise because during the course of a dance, you're gonna walk a few miles and to fellowship with other people and eat good food. And just, just be around other people, with friendship," explained Aldridge. "And of course, the exercise the heart healthiness of it that makes a big deal for us."
The American Heart Association recommends square dancing as a lifelong activity as two hours in the square can equate to walking nearly five miles.
"My doctor loves it that I dance every night of the week," explained Neergaard who had Type 1 Diabetes. "It's social, mental, emotional, just playing friends. We're friends outside of the dance floor. We do weddings, we do baby showers. We do funerals. We've danced at all of those things. So we're real family."
If you are interested in finding a club near you, visit wheresthedance.com.
For Neergaard, without any family close by, she says the clubs have become her family and she hopes others will find the same connection.
"I think we are just doing something that's just physical, mental, emotional exercise friendship, all rolled into one," she said. "We're family and we have a saying that square dancing is friendship set to music."
The association's Valentine's Day dance is set to begin at 7 p.m. on February 14th and last until 9 at Christ Lutheran Church (299 Haywood Lane) in Nashville and is open to pairs and singles.
