MEET YOUR MERCHANT: Dancing through life

Adam and Tiffany Hopkins met as instructors in Reno.

They've been dancing in the years since while raising their young children and now sharing a business that is their passion.

"Through a conversation, you can get to know somebody. But when you're dancing, you have a whole other level of connection that, well, you just got to experience it," Adam Hopkins said

The Hopkinses have been running Yaple's Ballroom Dance since February, and have seen progress with their students - three who'd never danced before will be in a competition this month - and the facility, which recently updated its studio with high-quality sprung floors that Adam Hopkins says are a savior for joints and can keep you dancing all night.

Adam Hopkins describes their business as still more of a hobby than a profession, as much as he and his wife would like that to change. They also described dancing as something they just want to share with people.

"One of the things people get into dancing for is it's one of the few times people can really feel beautiful," Adam Hopkins said.

His wife said one of her students describes dancing well with a partner as being "a way to be in a relationship without being in a relationship."

Another student, Mitchell Tufts, said learning to dance has changed almost everything in his life: He looks people in the eye more often, he learned how to listen to the music - to the point where he can play music by composer Pachalbel. He even learned golf from a dancer.

Miming a golf swing, Tufts counted off the movements, "one, two, three, one, two, three. That's a waltz."

He also raved about Tiffany Hopkins as a dance instructor.

"She makes me feel comfortable with it, where others just didn't," he said.