From the Social Connections Committee:
In March, we saw our activity and the world completely change. Our normal routine of dancing and calling multiple times during the week quickly became no dancing and calling at all.
Realizing the importance to stay socially connected, many callers and club leaders stepped into action with phone trees to reach out to club members and others exploring ideas of trying audio/video platforms (i.e., Zoom) to connect. More importantly, there was a need to dance!
Mike Dusoe was one of the first in the U.S. to leverage Zoom, YouTube, and Facebook live platforms to provide dancers an avenue to dance by calling virtual “2 couple dancing”. Soon other callers started joining in at different levels. This allowed dancers from around the world to get up, start moving, and to socially connect with each other doing the activity they love. Although there are virtual dances multiple times a day and every day of the week, there are still so many callers and dancers that have not ventured into this format. Maybe it is just not knowing how to set up the equipment or use the platforms available to them, but we do know there are some subject matter experts out there who can help.
Call to Action.
The Social Connections Committee is looking for callers and dancers who are “virtual dance” audio/video platform leaders experienced with Zoom, Google, etc. We are looking for people who would be willing to help teach, share experiences, and mentor others in proper ways to organize and use this platform for dancing and socializing. We would like to build a list of VPMs (Video Platform Mentors) and allocate a centralized location for both callers/leaders (how to broadcast the dance) and dancers (to help identify the best experience on the receiving end).
The VPMs would be available for questions and maybe even online or phone training sessions. Most of those doing virtual dances had mentors and advisors. Because of their willingness to help, many of us are keeping our new dancers and club members actively dancing and safely socializing. More VPMs would be an invaluable asset to our activity.
If you are interested in being a Virtual Dance Mentor (VPM) or know a dancer who would be willing to help on the receiving end, please submit to the Home Office by phone (800) 331-2577, by fax (785) 783-3665, or by e-mail callerlab@aol.com. In addition, if you are interested in being a member of the Social Connections Committee, please contact the Home Office.
Remember, YOU are CALLERLAB and your suggestions and ideas are vital to reviving the activity we all love so much! We need YOUR help and leadership!