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NGI Recipient: Margaret Mackenzie

Session Attended: Royal Scottish Country Dance Society - Scottish Session I (2017)

Thank you for the opportunity to finally attend a session at Pinewoods. I have been involved in Scottish country dancing for several years, and have been asked many times if I would be going to Pinewoods. In the past my schedule and finances have been against me, so I was thrilled that I could arrange the time this year, and greatly appreciate the scholarship to attend. It is always wonderful to be exposed to the larger Scottish country dance community. I have only been to a handful of events outside of New York and New Jersey, so it was a pleasure to meet a whole new group of dancers.

Because Scottish Session I has a wonderfully full schedule of classes and other activities, and as I didn’t have to pace myself as I would if attending a longer session, I tried to attend as many classes as I was able in that condensed time frame. Fred DeMarse and Jean Martin were new teachers to me, and it is always interesting to experience different teachers’ styles. It was also a great opportunity to explore a different dance form with Kate Nealley, and yoga with Roberta Lasnik was a relaxing way to restore the muscles in preparation for the evenings’ dances.

Thank you again for the scholarship to attend Scottish Session I. I look forward to coming back to Pinewoods in the future, and in the meantime I will miss waking up to bagpipes – the best way to start the day!