Damon Collin

I started Scottish County Dancing as a fifteen-year-old and am convinced that my fitness and flexibility owes much to that early involvement. My whole family began dancing when we arrived in NZ from England in 1968, and I still meet up with my brother frequently on the dance floor.

I gained my Teacher’s Certificate for Scottish Country Dancing in 1982 after having attended several New Zealand Summer Schools and enjoyed three Advanced Classes and a couple of Teacher Training Classes - before getting into the serious business of gaining this qualification.   

I have enjoyed enormously teaching at day schools, weekend schools, JAM Camps, Winter Schools in Australia, and many Summer Schools in New Zealand. I have also had the pleasure of being club tutor many times at the Lower Hutt Club, taught the (now closed) Wainuiomata Club and many years ago when I was a student at the Victoria University, I started a club there too.  

Over the past 15 years my wife, Gaye, and I have extended our knowledge and appreciation of the “family” of Scottish Country Dancers by dancing in England, Scotland, France, Italy & Germany.  Gaye and I have also been a “tag-team” teaching at the Lower Hutt club, at classes in Gosford (NSW), Ashhurst and Winter School (Oz) and have run advanced evening events together for over twenty years.   

My passion for dancing has not waned over all these years and I always look forward to my next teaching assignment.