BCS Newsletter December 2000

SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING

Since Ed and Corinne Renauld announced their retirement as our club caller and cuer effective at the end of December, the Executive Board has contacted many callers to complete this dance year. After much deliberation, we have chosen Jerry Maurice.

In accordance with the Club bylaws, there will be a Special General Meeting of all paid members on December 11, 2000 at 8:00 PM at the Horse Pond Fish and Game Club. The purpose of this meeting is to allow members to vote and confirm his appointment. This should be a very short meeting, and your attendance would be greatly appreciated.

Donations for the Gathering Place

At our Holiday party on December 18^th, Bob and Bette Williams will collect donations for "The Gathering Place", a social meeting place for the mentally ill. Toilet articles such as toothpaste, powder, deodorants, bar soap, mouthwash and non-perishable snacks are needed as well as hats, gloves, underwear and socks. Donations of other new items are also appreciated!

Happy Holidays!

Come celebrate the holidays on Monday, December 18^th from 7 - 10 PM at the Horse Pond Fish and Game club. Cost $5 per dancer. Our harmonizing duet, Ed and Corinne, will do the honors.

There will be dancing for all. Be sure to invite our friends from the neighboring clubs. This is not a closed party/dance; all are welcome. If you haven't met our new members, be sure to introduce yourselves and welcome them.

Members, please bring a potluck dish for the food table. The board members will provide the desserts. Santa and Mrs. Claus will be present to pass out the gifts for those who wish to participate in the gift exchange. Gifts should cost no more than $5.00. Men should buy for men and ladies for ladies. If you bring a gift, yo u go home with one.

This is the last club event of the Year 2000. There is no workshop/class on December 25^th (or January 1^st).

On Monday, January 8, 2001 we start a new class at 7 PM but we need your help. Please bring someone so we can continue our dancing fun on Monday nights!

	Cancellation Information

In case of bad weather,
Listen to:	WHOB	106.3 FM	1-603-889-1063 or 889-2106
	WSMN	1590 AM	1-603-882-5107
	WZID	95.7 FM	1-603-669-5777 (Manchester, NH)
	WFEA	1370 AM
	WQLL	96.5 FM

or call:	Bob Baker		1-603-884-1677
	Wayne and Priscilla Griffin		1-603-598-7529
	Horespond F&G Club (after 6:30 PM)		1-603-880-2057

Volunteers Still Needed

No one has volunteered! We still have no Publicity Chairpersons. We have no representatives at NSSARDA meetings, no representatives at EDSARDA meetings, our treasurers committee is still in need of volunteers and we have no Convention Coordinator. The board members are trying to manage the additional tasks such as publishing the monthly newsletters and dance flyers but don’t be surprise when you don’t see these valuable documents.

We have a sign up sheet for those members wishing to order or renew their subscription to the Northeast Square Dancer Magazine. The bulk rate is $19 per year instead of the normal $21 until January when the cost goes up $4. The order will be mailed on December 5^th, so don't miss out.

Corinne and Ed‘s last Round dance waltz lesson will be Monday, December 11^th. Monday, December 18^th will be their last time calling and cueing for us as our Club Caller and Club Cuer. We will miss having them as our teachers.

Many square dancers celebrate the ringing in of the New Year at a dance. This year, the Heel & Toe SDC in Manchester NH and the Montachusett Twirlers SDC in Leominster MA are two of the closest clubs hosting New Years Eve dances. For details, check the NSDM or the flyers from these clubs. The dances normally go from 8:30 PM – 12:30 AM and cost about $8.00 per person. One feature we like, is that there is No drinking except perhaps a toast at mid-night using a non-alcoholic beverage.

The 43^rd New England Square and Round Dance Convention is once again being held in Manchester NH. We need your help. Border City is one of New Hampshire’s host Clubs so we are expected to play a significant part in the success of this Convention. Sitting at a hospitality table and/or in the Communications booth is easy and you will appreciate the time off your feet. Please help us meet our responsibilities by signing up on the sheets that will be posted on Monday nights. If everyone takes a turn and does his and/or her fair share, all of us will still get plenty of time to dance.

The theme this year is "New Hampshire Naturally" so we need ideas and help to create decorations that show our state’s natural beauty. We need someone to coordinate the decorating of one of the halls.

We would like to take this opportunity to tell you how much you have meant to us during our time as your caller and cuer. We consider ourselves very fortunate to have been your teachers. In a time of so much uncertainty about the future of Square Dancing, your willingness to try new things both in recruitment and teaching have made you stronger and stronger.

It has been our pleasure to watch the club grow but we don’t mean in numbers. Actually we have no idea how many members there were when we came compared to the number of members who currently call themselves Border City Squares dancers. Increasing the membership has never been our goal. Instead, we have watched each of you mature as dancers and in this respect we consider our time with you to have been a great success.

We have been a part of introducing some of you to a more modern way of dancing that requires more knowledge of square dance movements. Although some of you may not have noticed a change over the years, we remember the first tip Ed called for you. J

We have been a part of a stronger emphasis on round dancing as a part of your overall dance experience. Seeing the increased number of BCS dancers getting up for rounds at dances has given us great pride and pleasure.

A very caring leadership has made decisions that have helped to give your overall membership a very broad mix. No incident shows this more than the quick and decisive actions of the board in reducing the membership age requirement which encouraged families to participate in our wonderful activity.

All of these things have helped to make Border City Squares one of the best clubs in the area. Others have noticed this and we have been reminded over and over again of how lucky we have been to be your caller and cuer.

In spite of the beautiful fall weather we have been having, summer returned to Border City Squares at our "Last Summer Fling" dance on November 11^th. Greg Maconi and Marilyn Rivenburg came up from the sunny south (Massachusetts) to call and cue for this mainstream dance. We knew this would be a fast-paced dance when the caller arrived before any of the club members were there to open up the hall at 7:30! With the contingent from Concord Coach arriving only a few minutes later, we knew we were in for a busy night. From then on, the pace never slowed down.

We had three clubs retrieving their banners at this dance: Single Squares with 12 members, Firesiders with 9, and Concord Coach with 17. The Square Riggers also came to raid one of our banners with 10 members. We had visitors from the Wolf Rockers (2), Queen City Promenaders (1), and the Pine Tree Riots (2), and one guest caller – Norm Poisson. There were 26 BCS members in attendance. Thanks to Ray and Debbie Benoit for hosting this dance and to Steve Wurtzler, Wayne, Priscilla, and Julie Griffin, Mary Raymond, and Mike and Joyce Peterson who helped set up the hall for this dance. Thanks also to the many members who brought food and helped with clean up after the dance.

A Reminder: The practice at our dances has long been for club members in attendance to bring at least one item for the food table. We have noticed that the food table at our last few dances has been a bit sparse. At the November dance, Ray Benoit had to leave the dance to buy snacks to see us through the evening. Please don’t forget to bring food to our dances!

Our next dance, on December 9th will be a Plus dance with Cindy Hawley calling and Barbara Nutting cueing. I believe this is the first time Cindy Hawley has called for us, and I hope the club will turn out in force to welcome her. The theme for this dance will be "Holiday Ball," and Mike and Joyce Peterson will be our dance hosts. If you can help with the setup, please join us at the church hall at 12:30. We are expecting four clubs to be raiding: the Firesiders, Pelham Partners, Heel & Toe, and the Square Wheelers. Hope to see you all there!

Please come celebrate with us at our Holiday Party/Dance Monday Dec 18^th from 7 – 10 PM.

Hi Everyone, The class is off to a great start. On Sunday, Nov 19 we attended the WMSARDA Fall Festival in Chicopee, MA. This was a multi-level dance having a Beginner, Mainstream, Plus, A-1 and Round Dance hall. Something for everyone. Class members attending were Lori Forrence, Susan & Bill Leuci, and Diane Troyer. Other club members and friends attending were Bob Baker, Kathi Butt, Tammy Dorris, Debbie Coit, Becky Statz, Dennis Marandos, Margie Shank, Cheryl Palucchi, Ed & Corinne Renauld, Eric Magrath, Jonas Green, Bill & Vivian Thompson & Hank Perigny. It was noticed that Border City Squares with 19 had the most dancers in attendance.

The class was busy dancing, shopping and just having a great time. They danced to many callers like Lenny Stratton from Richmond, NH, Gene King from Huntington, MA, Cindy Hawley from East Longmeadow, MA, Paul Roy from Chicopee, MA, & Don Bachelder of Athol, MA, to name a few. The anticipation was high waiting for the first tip to start but once the new dancers realized their potential to dance well, they had a great time. Around 3:30 p.m. everyone gathered in the Plus hall. There was a parade of Banners at which time we gave the honor of carrying our BORDER CITY SQUARES banner to some our newest club members, Bill and Susan Leuci. After the dance, 13 of us went to P.J. Scotts for dinner. It was a wonderful day for everyone.

Saturday, Nov 25 the class attended the Pine Tree Riots class dance called by Charlie McLeod in Weare, NH. Pine Tree had six squares in attendance. The Border City class was represented by Susan and Bill Leuci, Diane Troyer, Jim Hawkins, Katherine and Amy Bollenbeck. Club members and friends supporting the class were Kathi Butt, Chris Howard, Dennis Marandos, Ed Jette, Viv and Bill Thompson and Hank Perigny. Other clubs attending were Heel & Toe, Concord Coach, and the Square Riggers.

On October 31 we had a Halloween Party/Dance. As usual the costumes were outstanding. We had a parade to pick the funniest, most original, scariest and the sexiest. Preston Walsh, Eric Magrath, Penny Guild and Lori Forrence were our judges and had a difficult time picking our winners. The funniest was Jewel Griffin, scariest was Estelle Ogle and Ernie Desmarais, most Original was Chris & Norma Howard dressed as cats from the play "CATS" & the sexiest and cutest was won by Amy & Katherine Bollenbeck. We would like to thank our judges and everyone who contributed to our buffet table. It was a great night for everyone.

December is a busy month for class level dances. We will have to pick & choose because there is more than one dance on the same date. Mark your calendars for these dances, good clubs and very talented callers:

We know this is a busy month for everyone with Christmas shopping, decorating, baking, parties, etc but let’s hope we can get the class out to a few dances. Let’s collect those banners and pass last years class in number.

On January 13, the Border City Squares dance at Infant Jesus Church will be a Class level dance hosted by our current class. The theme is Pajama Party and pajamas are acceptable attire. We must however be conservative in our attire. The class should also start thinking about decorating our hall for this event.

We are trying something new and exciting this year, starting a second class at mid year. The new class will be starting January 8th & we need to recruit new members. So remember to ask friends, neighbors, relatives, pass the word around. We hope the current class is enjoying the activity and that you will get your friends involved. We would like to thank everyone for coming every Monday to Angel our current class. We hope when we start the new class in January that the current class will come and support the new dancers as Angels and reinforce what they have learned to date.

Thank you to the members who have contributed refreshments for our Monday night workshops. Please keep the food coming and please remember that coffee is not free, the money is used to buy the coffee, cream and other supplies that is not donated. If you do not drink coffee, we would still appreciate a small donation to help pay for water cups, ice, candy, etc.

We just can’t get enough of caller Dan Guin!! Guin helped make this raid on the Firesiders on November 4^th, a lively one! The Firesiders, who take their food table very seriously, stocked a never-ending food table. There did seem to be some confusion about the level of this dance. Some dancers must have thought it was a mainstream dance. We originally had it listed as a mainstream/plus dance. Thanks to Della Crawford and Wayne Griffin, our club was not caught off guard. The 15 dancers from Border City did their part to energize the floor. The vigorous group on hand from BCS were Tammy Dorris, Lorri & Steve Wurtzler, Della Crawford, Margery Shank, Chris Howard, Debbie Coit, Viv & Bill Thompson, Roberta Blais, Hal Kelley, Bob and Bette Williams, Bob Baker, and Cheryl Pecor.

On Saturday, November 11^th, our club had one "Last Summer Fling," at Infant Jesus Church. Four clubs descended on the hall to give us over 9 squares. The three retrieving clubs were Concord Coach (17), Single Squares (12), and Firesiders (9). The lone raiding club was the Square Riggers (10). Twenty-six BCS members and supporters breezed in, continuing a trend of about 3 squares per club dance! Thanks guys! Our clubs’ success depends on you!

Our next club dance is on Saturday, December 9^th. Cindy Hawley from East Longmeadow, MA will be calling this Plus level dance. Barbara Nutting will be cueing. The four raiding clubs will be Square Wheelers, Firesiders, Heel & Toe, and Pelham Partners.

Fifteen devoted Border City members or supporters fled down to Belmont, MA to retrieve our banner from Minutemen Squares. Caller Dennis Marsh really mixed up his calls and in some cases really mixed up the floor. The Minutemen honor guard was on hand to welcome (or maybe frighten) all raiding and retrieving clubs. In on the retrieval for BCS were Chris & Norma Howard, Margery Shank, Steve & Lorri Wurtzler, Penny & Skip Guild, Roberta Blais, Hal Kelley, Della Crawford, Jonas Green & Tammy Dorris, Priscilla & Wayne Griffin, and Joe Maheu. Since this was the last dance before the Thanksgiving break, these folks really deserve a week off. At least until . . . our next road trip!!!

ROAD TRIP - Are you ready for an exciting road trip? How about an entertaining Sunday afternoon dance in York, Maine on December 3^rd? Last month Lorri and I had a delightful time dancing at the Nubble Lighthouse Keepers. This club absolutely takes "the food table" to another level. You’ll have to see it to believe it!

Date	Club	Their Members	Retrieval Date
10/14/00	Nubble Lighthouse Keepers*	12	12/3/00
11/11/00	Square Riggers	10	01/19/01

Date	Club	Location	Caller	Cuer
Dec 1 Friday	Acton Square Wheelers	Acton, MA	Matt Auger	Sandi Simmons
Dec 2 Saturday	Firesiders	Atkinson, NH	Johnny Wedge	(no rounds)
Dec 8 Friday	Cloudbusters	Peterborough NH	Charlie McLeod	Bernie Porter
Dec 9 Saturday	Concord Coach	Concord, NH	Ted Lizotte	Hope Belanger
Dec 16 Saturday	Happy Time Squares	Rochester, NH	Happy Harry Trott	Lila Heath
Jan 5 Friday	Litchfield Swingers	Litchfield, NH	Ted Lizotte	Sandi Simmons
Jan 13 Saturday	Border City Squares	Nashua, NH	Ed Renauld	Corinne Renauld

Date	Club	Level	We Are	Location	Caller	Cuer
12/02/00	Skirts ‘N’ Flirts	Plus w/A1	Raiding	Wilmington, MA	Everett Mackin	Norma Silva
12/03/00 2-5 PM	Nubble Lighthouse Keepers	MS & Plus	Retrieving	York, ME	Ray Hilton	Sally Lennox
12/16/00	Heel & Toe	MS	Retrieving	Manchester, NH	John Courtois	Lorraine Courtois
01/06/01	Firesiders	Plus	Retrieving	Atkinson, NH	Ed Renauld	Corinne Renauld

Date	Club	BCS Members	Retrieval Date
3/31/00	Cloudbusters (1^st)	25	Not Scheduled
9/16/00	Bradford Country Squares	21	Not Scheduled
9/22/00	Cloudbusters (2^nd)	15	Not Scheduled
10/28/00	Turkey Town Trotters	17	2/10/01

Date	Club	They Were	BCS Members	Their Members
11/11/00	Concord Coach	Retrieving	26	17
11/11/00	Single Squares	Retrieving	11	12
11/11/00	Firesiders	Retrieving	15	9
11/11/00	Square Riggers	Raiding	Scheduled 01/19/01	10