Mary Trankel & Don Gilder

Dance Instructors

About the Dance Instructors

Mary Trankel and Don Gilder began round dancing in Missoula, Montana with Bud and Irene Hornstein in 1985. They started cueing and teaching in 1986 under the sponsorship of Dean and Vi Skogen.

In January of 1988 Don and Mary began teaching and cueing for the Carrousel Round Dance Club in Missoula. Concurrently they taught a round dance club in Helena for five years, from 1991 through 1995. Since 1994 they have been teaching Beginning Intermediate and Advanced Round Dancing in Missoula for the Top Hat and Tails Club and the Western Montana Workshop. The also teach at special weekend dance events. They are members of Roundalab, the professional Round Dance Teachers organization, as well as the Universal Round Dance Council (URDC), the Dixie Round Dance Council, and the National Carousel Clubs.

Each year Trankel and Gilder attend advanced dance training camps in order to improve their ballroom dancing techniques. In addition, they attend special weekend dance training events such as: Cactus Capers in Mesa, Arizona; Rounds of April in Kennewick, Washington, Montana Round-a-Vous in Missoula, Montana, and August of Rounds in Spokane, Washington. These special events feature national dance teachers with extensive training and certifications in ballroom dance techniques. Trankel and Gilder take private lessons from Jack & Judy DeChenne, who are nationally renowned teachers based in Spokane, Washington.

Trankel and Gilder were featured cuers and teachers at the State Square and Round Dance Festival during Memorial Day weekend, May of 2004, in Hamilton, Montana; and two Butterfly Ball Round Dance weekends in Spokane, Washington in June of 2002 and 2003. They will be teaching and cueing at the Provincial Round Dance Festival in Powell River, BC, Canada during September 6-9, 2007.

Don and Mary are currently members of the Roundalab professional round dance teachers organization, the Universal Round Dance Council (URDC), and the Dixie Round Dance Council.

Don Gilder is a Records Clerk with the US Postal Service, where he has been employed since 1968. Mary Trankel has a Ph.D. in Sociology and Criminal Justice. She has taught college-level courses in sociology, social psychology, research methods, and criminal justice. She was a self-employed research consultant and licensed private investigator for over 15 years. More recently she spent five years working as a full-time Webmaster for the USDA Forest Service. She now works as an independent consultant doing research, writing, web development, and graphic arts layout and design.