Save The Last Dance For Me
Nikki D. Paulsen
Local square dance caller Fred "Doc" Brooks will call his final square dance before his retirement as club caller for the Minot Magic Squares on Friday, May 22, 2015 at 7:30 PM at the Minot Moose Lodge.
Square dancing is the official state dance of North Dakota, and it has been an active part of the Minot area social scene from the time this prairie was first settled until well into the 1980s. In the 1990s it seemed to slowly die out in the area. In 2010, local callers Fred "Doc" Brooks and Don Siebert decided it was time to revive square dancing in the area.
As a long time educator, Brooks was excited to teach square dancing to a new generation of dancers. Brooks was a professor of Psychology at Minot State College until his retirement in the early 1990s, so he was experienced in teaching students of all ages. Brooks has been the club caller for the Minot Magic Squares since it was reestablished in 2010.
Brooks has been calling for many years. He took square dance lessons in the late 1970s, and his wife Betty said he that by his third square dance lesson he already knew that he wanted to be a caller.
In the 1980s, there were many square dance clubs in the area, including one plus club and two mainstream clubs in Minot, one at the Minot Air Force Base, one in Velva, Kenmare, Ray, Tioga, Harvey, Mohall, Garrison, Dunseith, Dickinson. "There were 16 clubs the first year we were the presidents," said long time square dancer Cherie Mergel. Mergel and her husband Lloyd started square dancing in 1980, graduating from a square dance class taught through the Minot Merry Mixers.
In 1980, the square dance classes were wildly popular. "Our class had 50 in our graduating class," said Linda Siebert. She and her husband Don graduated from the Minot Magic Squares class that same year. When they started as club presidents in 1984, there were 200 active members in the Minot Magic Squares.
The Hustlers at the Minot Air Force Base were the biggest club in the area, but the club dissolved when they lost the dance floor they were using at the base. As many of the local dancers got older or moved away, the clubs were getting smaller. November 16, 1997, the Minot Merry Mixers, the Minot Magic Squares and the Velva square dance club all combined to form the Souris Valley Dancers. The Souris Valley Dancers folded in September of 2010, leading to the rebirth of the Minot Magic Squares. The Minot Magic Squares are now, once again, a growing square dance club, ready to support and encourage a new generation of dancers.
Come on out and Swing Your Partner!
Nikki D. Paulsen
Local square dance caller Fred "Doc" Brooks will call his final square dance before his retirement as club caller for the Minot Magic Squares on Friday, May 22, 2015 at 7:30 PM at the Minot Moose Lodge.
Square dancing is the official state dance of North Dakota, and it has been an active part of the Minot area social scene from the time this prairie was first settled until well into the 1980s. In the 1990s it seemed to slowly die out in the area. In 2010, local callers Fred "Doc" Brooks and Don Siebert decided it was time to revive square dancing in the area.
As a long time educator, Brooks was excited to teach square dancing to a new generation of dancers. Brooks was a professor of Psychology at Minot State College until his retirement in the early 1990s, so he was experienced in teaching students of all ages. Brooks has been the club caller for the Minot Magic Squares since it was reestablished in 2010.
Brooks has been calling for many years. He took square dance lessons in the late 1970s, and his wife Betty said he that by his third square dance lesson he already knew that he wanted to be a caller.
In the 1980s, there were many square dance clubs in the area, including one plus club and two mainstream clubs in Minot, one at the Minot Air Force Base, one in Velva, Kenmare, Ray, Tioga, Harvey, Mohall, Garrison, Dunseith, Dickinson. "There were 16 clubs the first year we were the presidents," said long time square dancer Cherie Mergel. Mergel and her husband Lloyd started square dancing in 1980, graduating from a square dance class taught through the Minot Merry Mixers.
In 1980, the square dance classes were wildly popular. "Our class had 50 in our graduating class," said Linda Siebert. She and her husband Don graduated from the Minot Magic Squares class that same year. When they started as club presidents in 1984, there were 200 active members in the Minot Magic Squares.
The Hustlers at the Minot Air Force Base were the biggest club in the area, but the club dissolved when they lost the dance floor they were using at the base. As many of the local dancers got older or moved away, the clubs were getting smaller. November 16, 1997, the Minot Merry Mixers, the Minot Magic Squares and the Velva square dance club all combined to form the Souris Valley Dancers. The Souris Valley Dancers folded in September of 2010, leading to the rebirth of the Minot Magic Squares. The Minot Magic Squares are now, once again, a growing square dance club, ready to support and encourage a new generation of dancers.
Come on out and Swing Your Partner!