About Us
Meri Squares is a modern square dance club in Ottawa, Canada. We offer dancing at the introductory (Social Square Dancing-SSD) and Plus levels. Meri Squares welcomes single dancers so no worries if you do not have a dance partner. See our Dance Program for what we offer, and Why Dance for why we think you are going to want to try it out.
Our Executive
President: David Shackleton
Vice-President Couple: Pat McLachlan and Jacques Chesnais
Treasurer: Gerry Lelievre
Membership Coordinator: Colleen McEwan
Secretary: Michelle Gravelle
Social Coordinators: (SSD and Plus) Joyce Fleury, Sandy Rosen, and Susan Vail
Our Callers
I started dancing when I was 5 years old. My uncle was a musician in an old time square dance band and he would let me into the dance if I carried his equipment for him. That was just the beginning of a love of dance and I’ve been doing some kind of dancing ever since.
In 1967, I came over to Canada and joined a Modern Square Dance club the same year. By 1969, I decided to start calling. Over the years, I’ve called in the Peterborough area, Toronto, Cobourg and, since 1985, the Ottawa area. I called from Basic through Challenge, and at one time was calling 5 nights a week. I currently call three times a week:
Teaching/Calling Basic and Mainstream for the Harbour Lites
Calling Plus for the Meri Squares
Calling Advanced (A1) for the Crazy A’s
I’ve called for many special dances in Ottawa and Montreal; I’ve called for special weekend Festivals; and I’ve enjoyed calling at international Festivals in both Canada and the US.
I started dancing in the fall of 1983 after meeting John Charman at work and finding out that he was a Square Dance Caller. At the time, I had never heard of square dancing, so when John invited me to a demo he was doing with his Club that summer, I went to check it out. Well, I had so much fun just trying it once, that I started dancing that fall in Cobourg, Ontario, and I’ve been dancing ever since.
In 1985, we moved to Ottawa, and within 3 years, we were dancing and calling 5 nights a week, from teaching Basics with the Meri Squares, to calling Challenge for the Challengers.
In the summer of 2000, after having been dancing for 17 years, I decided to sit in as a student in a New-Callers’ Clinic John and I put on for some local dancers interested in learning to call. For the previous 2 or 3 years, John and I had been doing a singing call together called “I Love You Honey” (Patsy Cline tune) – John would do the calls and I would do the singing. People kept telling me I should try calling because I had a nice singing voice. Well, I was not at all interested at first, but eventually I thought I might as well give it a try. The rest, as they say, is history.
And I’ve managed to keep busy calling since then, too. My current schedule is:
Monday nights: Ottawa Date Squares (calling/teaching the Plus program)
Tuesday nights: Meri Squares (teaching new dancers the Social Square Dance (SSD) program)
Wednesday nights: Ottawa Date Squares (teaching the Advanced1 program)
Starting November 3 – Friday nights: Russell Squares (teaching new dancers the Social Square Dance (SSD) Program)
I have a once-a-month dances for ANYONE to drop in and check it out. It is 2 hours of fun to introduce people to modern square dancing:
Square Dance Ottawa – on the 4th Sunday of the month, 2:30 – 4:30 PM
Occassional Sunday afternoons: Glengarry Tartans (calling/teaching the first half of the SSD program)
I am also hired throughout the year for private events; for example, wedding parties, retirement parties, birthday parties, family gatherings, school physEd, office parties……
I am also a “recording artist” for square dance music! Please check my Music page for more details and to hear my music.
I am a member of CALLERLAB, the International Association of Square Dance Callers. In April of 2022, I was elected to the Board of Governors – a high honour, indeed! I also serve on the Women in Calling Committee, Mainstream Committee, Plus Committee, and Application Review Committee. I am also a member of the Ottawa Area Callers’ Association (OACA) and the New England Caller/Teacher Association (NECTA).
I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t love it!