RONALD "Ron" FISHER
WRITTEN BY MARCIA DIANE FOSTER
    I met with Ronald "Ron" Fisher on Wednesday, June 16, 2010, at the Starbucks in Forestville, Maryland.  We were suppose to meet at 11 am, however, Ron was there first and I thought I was very late.  So I came in trying to make up that lost time, which made me appear nervous.  We took a larger table and I fumbled with the tape recorder and had a big purse I was trying to put neatly in the chair.  Ron suggested that I stop and get a cup of coffee which was on my mind.  I fumbled a little bit more with the tape recorder and decided that he was right.  I went to get my coffee and I had a chance to exhale a little.  By the time, I got back to the table--I was ready.
     I had never been that close to Ron but I noticed that his mannerisms were very masculine.  His posture, the way he held his hands, his face were all masculine.  When we first started out, we were both cautious and careful not to invade other people's space at Starbucks.  However, half way through the interview, we acted like we were the only two people in the store.  He is fun, fun, and more fun!  He has a beautiful smile and a deep manly voice.  He keeps his hair corned rolled because he works in a hospital.  He has a very nice grain of thick black hair.  He looked preppy wearing a pair of jeans, a white shirt, and polished brown shoes.  Overall, to me, he is an ebullient (expresses feelings and ideas in a enthusiastic, lively way) type person.  He is also extremely knowledgeable about many factors in life.
    He was born on January 15 (Capricorn) in Washington, D.C.  He went to Ballou High School and the University of the District of Columbia.  The environment he grew up in was unique.  I presume that some of his learning was from the streets.  He has two sons.  As a matter of fact, he was very excited about meeting his twin sisters and having breakfast with his family.  According to Ron, getting together with his family was the best thing that ever happened to him.  He plays golf.  Personally, I think that people who play golf are "cool".  Their concentration has to be "tight" because that's the only way you can get that little ball to go a far distance into that little hole.   I took golf lessons myself and played the nine holes course the majority of the time.  It is a "cool" sport to me.  Ron played golf in school but picked it up again about 10 years ago--during the Tiger Woods era.  I could tell that golf was something that Ron enjoyed.
    I asked Ron how he got involved with hand dance?  He had an entirely different facial expression and I believe that was one his proudest times.  He said that about 1990, he would go to cabarets and they would have dance contests.  His only dance experience was a little hand dancing in the 60's when he was 15 or 16 years old.  This particular cabaret was held at the Blackburn Center at Howard University.  Those participating in the dance contest would dance and the judges would touch you on your shoulder when it was time for you to sit down.  Ron said, "that he sat down many times, very early".  He paused then he said, "he remembers having an argument with the lady that touched him on the shoulder regarding the requirements".  So he found out that the Solar Eclipse was giving hand dance lessons under the leadership and ownership of the late Larry Beasley.   Lawrence "Brad" Bradford was the lead instructor.  In November 1991 and after some hand dance lessons under his belt, Ron went back to the annual cabaret held at the Blackburn Center and --- won the dance competition.  Ron was in the first graduating class at the Eclipse, which later became the Smooth & Ez Dance Institute.  Ron danced with them for about five years.
    A few of the students started breaking out on their own, Ron included, to keep the dance alive and to teach the techniques that they had learned.  Ron ventured out and taught hand dance at a few clubs until he started teaching at Club Elite.  Ron and the late Aronzey (Bunny) Elan made hand dance history.  They taught the dance, danced the dance in competitions, choreographed teams and couples, coordinated graduating ceremonies, and enjoyed what they were doing.  Ron has a room full of trophies that Bunny and him won.  Bunny organized Ron's ideas and she had good people around her.  Then the grand finale.  With the help and encouragement of some good people, they organized, directed, sponsored, produced and hosted three very successful dance competitions.  Budweiser helped sponsor their first competition.  Bunny and Ron wore beautiful creative costumes while competing.  They set the tone and style for their own competition's dress style--which was dressy.  I attended two of the three competitions.  The atmosphere was dressy and they served their guest free fruit.  Very nice.
     Ron needed to take a break so he moved to the Dominican Republic for a year.  He speaks Spanish.  They do the Salsa and other dances in that country.  He met someone from there and brought her home with him and they got married.  He also taught her how to hand dance.
     Ron is now concentrating on the West Coast Swing dance.  Ron thinks that Robert Jackson (whom he taught to hand dance) is one of the best West Coast Swing dancers in the country.  This is where I injected that I enjoyed watching him dance on his tippy-toes without ever missing a count.  He wants to reach the "all star" in West Coast Swing.  He is obsessed about learning this West Coast Swing dance while keeping hand dance close.
    Ron doesn't drink alcohol.  I never stopped watching his facial expressions of which explains  how he is feeling.
    It's about 11:40 am and I could tell it was time for us to wrap up the interview.  All in all, the interview was very positive, fun, enjoyable, and informative.  However, I bet you Ron Fisher could describe every woman that came into Starbucks during the time we were there.  (LOL)
    Ron and I were kind of messing around with the idea of creating a Hand Dance Hall of Fame.  He and Bunny will sure be in it.
    If Ron Fisher is your friend, best believe, he is your friend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

 
THANK YOU RON!!!!!
WHEN HE HAS HIS MATCH WITH TIGER WOODS, I WANT TO BE THERE.....AIM FOR THE MOON AND YOU WILL LAND ON A STAR!
Mr. Ronald "Ron" Fisher