Applied Arts and Technology teacher Christine Ferreira has always loved dancing and country music, and as a result, she found her passion for line dancing.

“I loved to dance all kinds of different ways and… I’ve always loved country music,” Ferreira said. “It started probably when I went to Nashville in like 2008.”

Ferreira discovered line dancing when she heard about a Worcester nightclub, Ray’s Dance Ranch, that offered lessons.

“There was a nightclub in Worcester called ‘The Dance Ranch’… so [my friend and I ] went one night and I was just so impressed [with the line dancing there],” Ferreira said. “Everybody was having so much fun that I just wanted to try it.”

Four years ago, she started taking lessons at Bay Path Vocational High School where she had a lot of fun and made many friends.

According to Ferreira, there’s a clear difference between line dancing and other types of dance.

“They teach you one step at a time and then once you continue to take lessons, you get to the point where they call out the step and you know what to do,” Ferreira said. “It’s not so much memory… it’s knowing the steps… [and] everybody’s doing the same thing at the same time.”

For Ferreira, line dancing is more than just steps. It’s an outlet from the real world. She began line dancing when her mother was very sick.

“I was under so much stress that this kind of music put me in a happy place for an hour a week and I could just forget about things,” Ferreira said.

Though Ferreira hasn’t had time to take lessons this year, she hopes to continue in the future.

“I don’t think I could ever say that I stopped [completely],” Ferreira said. “I can pick it up, and I will pick it up again.”

Ferreira has shared her love for line dancing by volunteering to have her own step class at Bay Path Vocational High School.

“I had two boys come and do it, and we had a blast,” Ferreira said. “It just made me want to go back.”

According to Ferreira, line dancing is a great way to connect with others.

“Knowing how to country line dance makes you a part of a whole new group of people,” Ferreira said.