A little about Wanda and Jim
Wanda and Jim started their career in dance instruction as a fund raising project for their
church. They decided to share their love of country dancing and
hired the instructors from their adult school class to teach the night of
the dance. Their instructors, Rich & Trish Dolph, suggested that
for everyone to really enjoy the dance, there should be dance classes
prior to the night of the activity. Wanda and Jim took this as a
challenge and decided to teach these first classes; they taught beginner
dances like Cowboy Boogie, the 16-step, and the basic 2-step. After
four weeks of teaching "everything they knew," they had a successful dance
with Jim DJing for the first time, using a combination of home stereo
equipment and a borrowed mixer. For the next few weeks, they got
calls from people saying, "We all should be dancing instead eating snacks
in front of the TV." Ever since, they have been dancing in the
church hall enjoying old friends and meeting new who get "Hooked On
Dancin."
On Friday nights, except during July and August, approximately
50-70 people gather the Dance Hall at St. Francis. Wanda and Jim
teach both new dances and old favorites. With his new digital DJ system,
Jim plays the dancers' requests throughout the evening.
Wanda and Jim are also instructors at South Plainfield Adult
Education. They have taught for the Tim Gillis Band, at the Whiskey Cafe,
Colorado Cafe, Victorian Manor and private and corporate parties. They
have also taught their dances at events in Kansas City, Indiana, New York, Pennsylvania and at the
National Senior Olympics in Virginia. Their dancing had taken them as far
away as England, Switzerland and Venezuela. In addition, they have
choreographed the award-winning dance "Late Night Swing" as well as
"Whoops, I Fell In Love," which has been on dance floors all over the world.
"Whoops" (choreographed with Joanne Brady) was nominated for a Crystal Boot Award as the "Beginners
Dance Of The Year" with ceremonies in Blackpool, England. Their
partner dance, "Lovers' Swing", has been taught at weekend events and dance
halls in all over the US and Canada.
Wanda and Jim have two adult children, Allison 27, and Brad 25.
Allison just bought her first house with her husband, Brian, and teaches
business and computers (like her Mom) in Chesapeake, VA. Brad
graduated with an A.S. in
Automotive Science from Brookdale Community College, lives in Woodbridge and
works for a local Cadillac dealership.
This page last updated
11/25/2007 05:04 PM
