Rosalee Rainbolt, left, and Frank Alexander, both of Lawrence, meet Saturday during a Happy Time Squares square dance at the First United Methodist Church West Campus, 867 U.S. Highway 40.

Laura and Wade Morrow started square dance lessons a year ago. Now, they are hooked.

“It’s a blast,” Wade Morrow said. “It doesn’t have a steep learning curve where you think you have to learn a lot before you can dance. You go to the first lesson, and they teach you three or four moves and you can dance.”

The couple, wearing matching red tops with yellow accents, stood near the dance floor Saturday night at First United Methodist Church West Campus. They watched as the more advanced dancers lit up the floor with skirts flaring and hands clapping.

“It puts a smile on your face,” said Lloyd Northrop, founding president of the Happy Time Squares Dance Club. “We have a lot of fun. We enjoy each other. We enjoy the fellowship of it.”

More than 70 dancers gathered for the club’s monthly get-together Saturday. The event drew members of the Lawrence club and dancers from across the region.

The club is gearing up for the latest season of classes open to new dancers.

The first class is set for 7 p.m. Sept. 15 at Centenary United Methodist Church.

Seasoned dancers say their pastime is good exercise, and it’s economical. Dances in the area cost $3-$4 per person.

Laura Morrow said even men who at first are reluctant to get on the dance floor find themselves hooked.

“They become the biggest converts,” she said. “They become the champions and the advocates, the voices saying: ‘Hey, square dancing is fun.'”