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Hosting dances for New Mexicans since 2006!
USA Dance of North Central New Mexico (Chapter #5047) has been giving New Mexico ballroom and Latin dancers a place to dance since 2006. Below, you can learn all you need to know about us. See you on the dance floor!
We host dances on the first and third Sundays from 1 – 3 p.m., with a free lesson at 2:15 p.m. Beginning in 2023, all dances are at the Albuquerque Square Dance Center, 4915 Hawkins St. NE.
We also sponsor occasional special events such as dinner dances and Santa Fe satellite dances. Visit our calendar page to see our schedule of upcoming dances.
Dances are usually two hours and are preceded by a free 45-minute lesson. We sometimes feature special performances by local professional and amateur dancers.
Our DJs play a mix of music for ballroom (waltz, foxtrot, quickstep, … ), Latin (cha cha, rumba, samba, … ), swing, Argentine tango, and club (salsa, Country-Western, Night Club Two-Step, hustle, …).
Admission is $5 for USA Dance members and $10 for everyone else. Members also get free admission to one specified dance per quarter. Visit our Members page to learn more about how a USA Dance membership can save you money and make you a better dancer!
Our chapter is run entirely by volunteers, from an elected board of directors to the folks who help us check people in, set up for a dance, DJ our music, and do everything else required to put on a dance.
Our USA Dance chapter is overseen by an all-volunteer board of directors who are elected by chapter members. This is the board as of January 2022.
DeAnn Eaton
President
DeAnn began dancing later in life with a performance for a NM Alzheimer’s Association fundraiser. She waltzed in front of about 700 attendees and became hooked. DeAnn now competes, and while smooth is her favorite style, she also appreciates rhythm.
DeAnn is CEO of a nonprofit, multi-state senior living and healthcare organization. She is a licensed CPA and serves on other nonprofit boards — but says USA Dance is definitely the most fun.
Annie Irizari
Vice President
Vice president of the board since 2018 and a chapter member since 2015, Annie has competed at Dance Fiesta and the Rio Grande Classic. She is an entrepreneur, works on social causes, and volunteers for Sagebrush Community Church and other community programs. She’s also a past or current board member for the Albuquerque Tango Club and the Rio Grande and Chicago chapters of the Project Management Institute. Now semi-retired, Annie pursues personally gratifying projects.
Gwen Sun
Secretary
Gwen is a retired doctor who earned her medical degree and a Master of Public Health degree from the UNM School of Medicine. She focused on toxicology and occupational health.
Before discovering dance, Gwen was an “over-the-top athletic jock” who juggled basketball, volleyball, and track and field through school. She later took up water sports, skiing and rollerblading.
“My world transcended when I discovered the enchanting world of dance and music,” she said. Gwen is also interested in functional medicine, mushroom foraging, and gardening.
John Cilke
Treasurer
John discovered — or rediscovered — dancing in the summer of 2016, when he took a Country-Western class from the ADC’s Gary and Susan Kellogg. He was hooked by the sensation of “flying” across the floor in two-step, night club, and swing. He then made a foray into West Coast Swing. An invite to USA Dance changed everything; John discovered ballroom dancing with all of its peculiarities, challenges, and intricacies. Next time you see him at a USA dance, ask him to dance.
Zann Jones
Director at Large
Zann, a retired engineer, discovered dancing 25 years ago with free lessons at Midnight Rodeo and Boot Scoots. It was so much fun that he kept taking lessons — and joining USA Dance introduced him to even more dances to learn. Zann also enjoys hiking and creating art. “I originally started with welding and have expanded to include fused glass, ceramic, polymer clay and painting,” Zann said..
Rosie Harper
Director at Large
A lifelong dancer, Rosie is a retired elementary school teacher. She started studying tap, jazz, ballet and ballroom at the age of 4 and has performed in New York on the Ted Mack Amateur Hour, in Atlantic City, N.J., on the Chief Halftown Show, and in Albuquerque with the Sandia Mountain Cloggers, HIgh Desert Dancers, and Sugartime.
Anna Watkins
Director at Large for Membership
Anna is the original chapter coordinator for USA Dance of North Central New Mexico and has been president or a board member for most of the chapter’s history. A training and development specialist, Anna recently retired from Presbyterian Healthcare Services, where she was an internal career coach.
Debra Williams
Director at Large
Debra, a Wyoming native, spent her childhood on horseback (her parents raised horses) and later became a sheep rancher with her late husband. Debra started learning dance more than 20 years ago, and taught dance to beginners at North Domingo Baca for nearly six years.
Jewel Paur
Director at Large
“I feel that, for many of us, dancing is both our passion and our sanity and I would like to give back,” Jewel says. “I have already served two terms on the board, and if you will have me, I would like to serve a third.”
USA Dance of North Central New Mexico was founded in October 2005, when our chapter pioneers founded the original steering committee: Ben Porter, Shawna Hollen, Ed Jonas-Morrison, Sally Semm, Caren Waters, and Anna Watkins (chapter coordinator). Our first membership roster included all of eight names.
Our official birthday is Feb. 28, 2006, the day we were certified as USA Dance Chapter #5047. We have grown from the original eight members and one dance per month.
Now we host parties twice a month, have an email list of some 800 people, and attract dancers from Albuquerque, Socorro, Santa Fe, Los Alamos, and beyond. We hope you’ll be one of them.
USA Dance of North Central New Mexico (Chapter #5047) is one of more than 150 local chapters of USA Dance, Inc., a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to increase the quality and quantity of ballroom dancing in the United States.
We encourage our local dancers to become USA Dance members.
USA Dance has chapters across the United States, and is a great resource for finding places to dance when traveling. USA Dance also sponsors competitions for amateur and pro/am dancers. The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee recognizes USA Dance as the Recognized Sport Organization for DanceSport in the United States.
Want to stay on top of chapter events? Subscribe to our email list! We send reminders before every dance and keep you up to date with other news about the chapter and about USA Dance.
Looking to improve your dancing by taking classes or dance lessons? On our Dance Resources page, you can learn more about local dance studios and teachers. Northern New Mexico has several accomplished teachers in all dance styles. (Note that while USA Dance works with many dance studios, we cannot endorse any particular studio or dance teacher.)
Have a question or a suggestion for our USA Dance chapter? Please send an email to us info@usadancenm.org — or fill out the contact form below.
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