About Us

SwingOutDayton is a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering a community of swing dancers in Dayton. We provide lessons, practice sessions, and dances to build and support the dance community in coordination with other swing dance organizations in Dayton.

This is us. We're clickable!

Katie LaRue-Martin
Board Member & Instructor
Katie LaRue-Martin actually learned to dance right here in Dayton. Her first ever swing dance experience took place in September of 2004 at Elegance in Dance. She became a member of the Board of Directors in 2007 and started teaching and DJing around the same time. Katie's favorite part of dancing is being innovative and trying new things. During the day (and also on many evenings and weekends), Katie is an athletic trainer and can tape ankles and diagnose injuries at the speed of light. She also has a green thumb and would like to move to Hawai'i.
Jean Holton
Board Member & Instructor
Jean Holton is a founding member of SwingOutDayton and started dancing Lindy Hop in 2000 at El Diablo Lounge in downtown Dayton. Since then, she has studied extensively with national instructors over the years. Jean has been teaching and DJing for SwingOutDayton since its founding and serves as SwingOutDayton's President. She also works as a Materials Engineer by day and loves animals, gardening, TV, and video games.
Lisa Macharoni
Board Member
After years of studying ballet, Lisa started swing dancing in 1998 in Chapel Hill, NC, but became serious about swing in 2002 when she moved to Dayton. Lisa started teaching for SOD in 2004 and has since become a respected regional instructor. Lisa joined the SOD board in 2006 as Secretary. She has also served on the boards of Lindy Hop organizations in other cities and plans regional swing events. Lisa currently lives in Detroit where she is finishing her doctorate in pediatric psychology.
Andy Boggs
Board Member & Instructor
Andy began dancing in 2005 and hasn’t stopped since. Described by many as “smooth,” he primarily focuses on musicality, technique, and connection; Andy has taught at several regional workshops, and he consistently places in competitions. Andy’s primary interests include Balboa, Lindy Hop, Charleston, and music from the 20’s 30’s and 40’s. Outside of dancing, Andy enjoys tennis, reading, and learning guitar.
John Holton
Board Member & Instructor
I'm going to tell you two truths and a lie. 1) I once ran a swing dance in Baghdad. 2) I have six siblings whose names all start with "K". 3) Jean and I just use the same last name for performance purposes.
Rick Martin
Board Member & Instructor
Rick Martin has been swing dancing since January 2003. He learned to dance in Ithaca, NY, initially from Andy Reid, Sarah Spence, Skye Humphries, and Lucy Dunne. Rick prefers to focus his teaching on technique rather than style, probably because style just comes so naturally to him. Off the dance floor, he is a professor of electrical engineering, but that doesn't mean that he knows how to fix your computer. That's really something you should ask John about.

Our History

SwingOutDayton started as a group of friends trying to keep a good thing going when bars stopped holding swing dance nights in 2002.

Since then we have...

Organized as a non-profit in Ohio
Held numerous workshops featuring national instructors
Participated and/or organized local competitions
Participated in national competitions
Held numerous special events featuring live music by our favorite bands
Held a continuous ongoing neverending Wednesday night dance (except on national holidays) since 2002

Our 100% volunteer staff has accumulated over a decade's worth of experience planning, organizing, and running swing dance events. Our goal is to foster a local community of all levels of social dancers, from national competitor to beginner, working together to achieve a greater shared understanding and appreciation of this dance.

If you are interested in volunteering, collaborating with us, or just learning more please contact us.

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