Arlene Ankenman |
Arlene Ankenman has taught Community Education classes for several years. She is a floral designer by trade and enjoys line dancing as a great form of stress release.
Arlene has taught Country and Western couples dance and Line Dancing for over 30 years, at some of Seattle's hottest night clubs and military bases. She also served as a dance competition judge on the Northwest circuit for several years.
Line dancing has become a great source of cardio exercise and is not just done to country music; it can be performed to rock and roll, top 40 or just fun kids music.
INSTRUCTOR SPOTLIGHT
Arlene Ankenman's enthusiasm is contagious! "It started 5,6,7,8 and to the right -- that was 33 years ago and I was hooked," Arlene recalls. She started teaching country and western dances (couples and lines) at some of Tacoma's hottest country night clubs. From there, she moved to the Officer's Club at McCord Air Force Base and the Madigan Club at Fort Lewis. She also taught classes for Parks & Recreation in Lacey and Olympia, WA.
Arlene is a floral designer by trade, and discovered that dancing is a great way to stay in shape and an effective way to alleviate stress. She believes that line dance is not only a great physical workout, but also exercises the mind.
Arlene now enjoys her role as a volunteer instructor with Boise School District's Community Education Program. Arlene fondly recalls the wise advice from her former boss, who often said, "Donate your time to your community and they will help take care of your business." She has had the pleasure of meeting many great people in her classes over the years.
Arlene remembers how challenging it was when she first began dancing and she shares that story with her students, while reminding them that she has years of training. Having judged in many country and western dance competitions, she understands that dancing is not as easy as it looks - it takes practice! Arlene chooses different music for each weekly lesson so that students have an opportunity to find a song they enjoy, as motivation to practice their favorite steps.
On occasion, Arlene teaches a line dance from another part of the world, like Europe, where line dancing is also popular.
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