6:00 a.m.
Daybreak on Oahu. A mystic orange glow rises on the line between a romantic sea and an exotic sky. Warm tropic breezes scamper over furling waves that collapse into thundering roars. Bronze-backed locals on surfboards ride the “first set” of the day. Among them, 16-year-old Hawaiian born Lenn Ambanta expertly performs his 45-minute daily surfing ritual.

6:45 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.
Lenn showers, dresses, and leaves for school.

8:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Time for high school. A nap during lunch helps Lenn maintain his energy.

2:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
A quick trip home gives Lenn time to finish his homework and change clothes for work.

4:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
In Oahu, like the other Bag Boys at The Food Pantry, Lenn must wear a tie.

9:30 p.m. - 4:00 a.m.
Magical Hawaiian nights are so powerful that they give Lenn fever - every night he has DANCE FEVER! Dancing consumes Lenn and his 23 and 24-year old friends who prefer dancing with the tourists rather than dating girlfriends. They dance so well that the restaurant owners give them complimentary meals and the entertainers have them train as their backup dancers.

4:00 a.m. - 6:00 a.m.
Sleep, blessed sleep. Even on school nights, Lenn’s schedule is the same - surfing, school, work, and his nightly “dance fever.”

At 17, Lenn became involved with a dancer who later became his girlfriend. An aspiring model, she enrolled at Arthur Murray Dance Studio to take dance lessons and encouraged “Lenny” to do the same. At her urging, he enrolled in lessons and the Studio offered him a teaching position. He promptly quit his job as a Bag Boy and accepted - only because he wanted to learn new moves to add to his own dancing repertoire. While working for this Studio, Lenn’s most memorable experience was the opportunity to teach a couple who lived in Hawaii how to dance the hustle. The couple was Kathryn and her husband, Arthur Murray.

While working at the Arthur Murray Studio, Lenn simultaneously attended college for two years studying Architectural Drafting and worked for the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel in convention services. At times, he even choreographed and hired his friends to dance for conventions at the Sheraton. As a result, he formed his own company, Locomotion, which choreographed and gave dance performances.

By the time he was 25, Lenn faced a painful loss. His beloved older sister suddenly died of cancer at age 28, only two months after becoming ill. His sister had admired him, danced with him, and gave him confidence. To cope with the pain of his loss, in 1983, Lenn moved to Atlanta.

After marrying, for about a year and a half, Lenn almost quit dancing entirely; but, once every four months or so, he “had to dance.” Dancing came back into Lenn’s life on a regular basis oddly enough, through a conversation with his mother-in-law around 1987. She had met and learned some ballroom dance steps from George White, who worked at a dance studio called Step That Step in Tucker. Lenn called the studio, attended their next dance party, and danced with the ladies there. A dancer told the owner that she wanted to take lessons from Lenn. Lenn was then offered the opportunity of teaching at Step That Step. When Step That Step became Atlanta Dance City Ballroom, he moved with the studio, and by 1998, he and his wife became the owners of what is now known as Dance City Ballroom, while both of them continue to work full-time at other jobs.

Dance City Ballroom presently offers dance parties and lessons in American and International Style dancing from such world renown coaches as Kathryn Schaffer, Rosendo Fumero, David Hamilton, Patrick Johnson, Rufus Dustin, and Shirley Johnson. The Studio also has expert instructors including Eddie Ares, John King, Ana Llorente, and Julie Reid among others. In addition, Dance City Ballroom sells dancewear designs by Lyn Wallender, and hosts the Salsa Socials every second Friday of the month. The Studio’s co-owner, Lenn’s wife, Cindy, sells Mary Key cosmetics along with all of the Super Braun Tanning Products. Lenn’s daughter, Ashlenn, also plays an important part in helping dancers feel welcome, answering the telephone as well as the students’ questions.

What is Lenn’s schedule now?
Lenn wakes up for family devotional and prayer time at 5:30 a.m., goes to his full-time job at Pitney Bowes, then goes to Dance City Ballroom until around 11:00 p.m. Lenn still stays up until 2:00 a.m. (usually watching television). “I don’t require much sleep,” Lenn explains. “Just as I took a nap at lunch time in high school, during work, I take a 10 minute nap in my car in between service appointments.”

Does he still get “dance fever?”
“Yes, I do still get “dance fever.” Cindy is wonderful about letting me dance on my own. Since we first met each other, she has known about my love of dancing, understands it, and gives me freedom to go to clubs or studios when I need to get dancing out of my system.”

What is Lenn’s philosophy as a studio owner?
“I want everyone to know that our Studio is consistent with how my family and I live our lives. I want people to know we’re honest, have ethics, and have a passion for dancing. I love to see people enjoy themselves and to give them the opportunity to experience the joy of dancing like I had in Hawaii. I want our studio to be a combination of Southern hospitality and the “Aloha Spirit” - welcoming people with open hands and hearts like they’re one of the family.”

From a teenager, to an adult, Lenn is absolutely consistent. While family prayer takes the place of surfing and a job takes the place of school, Lenn’s passion for dancing, boundless energy, and love of people remain the same. His wife’s politeness and his daughter’s helpfulness exemplify the Ambanta family’s commitment to ethical values. The popularity of Lenn’s Studio proves that students are enjoying the opportunities that Dance City Ballroom offers them.

Whenever Lenn was dealing with a problem, he would share the problem with Cindy. She would always suggest, “Let’s pray about it.” Lenn knew he wanted to be with Cindy - she put religion back in his life and gave him a sense of direction.

Lenn and Cindy married in 1985, and by 1986, Cindy gave birth to their daughter, Ashlenn, who reminds Lenn of his sister. When he married, Lenn converted from Catholicism to the Baptist denomination. At the time, his job consisted of selling drinks as a hospitality host for conventions at the Hyatt Regency and the sale of drinks conflicted with his values. He didn’t want his daughter around liquor. Through a friend in Sunday School, he learned of a job at Pitney Bowes, where he currently works today. Although he started as an apprentice, 16 years later, his hard work earned him a position he now enjoys as a technician repairing copiers, servers, and computers.

Ashlenn is Lenn’s “most precious thing.” When she was six or seven, he attended a father/daughter banquet where she wore her “Sunday

Best,” and he wore a tuxedo. He was her first “date.” Afterwards, Lenn decided to start teaching Ashlenn to dance. He expected much of her and she tried hard to learn, but both felt frustrated. Then, Lenn took her ice-skating. Ashlenn could skate - and daddy couldn’t.

Ashlenn began taking ice skating lessons and she excelled. Her teacher, who also owned the Atlanta Ice Forum, asked Lenn to teach her dancing. As her teacher learned to dance, Ashlenn decided she was ready to learn as well. She began taking lessons from George Velazquez whom Lenn credits with originally teaching Ashlenn to dance. Ashlenn quickly gave up ice-skating. Later, Lenn started teaching Ashlenn American Style Smooth and Rhythm dancing, competing with her, and winning at their competitions. Ashlenn has also been learning International Standard and Latin. Watching Ashlenn gave “daddy” incentive to improve his own International dancing as well as have the Studio offer lessons in International dancing.

Ashlenn Ambanta