North American Irish Dance Federation, LLC (NAIDF)

Our Mission

First and foremost, we promote the love of the Irish Dance form.

We strive to create strong teachers, strong competitors, and strong performers, as well as strong individuals and citizens, creating all-around dancers. We encourage confidence and the pursuit of excellence in performance that can be shared with the outside community. We value dancers and teachers, and believe in fostering the growth of the organization as a whole.

We wish to be a well-rounded organization built on the values of fairness, honesty, achievement, camaraderie, and leadership.

Download our official Press Release (PDF, 124 KB)

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Sharon Stidham, NAIDF Co-Founder & Chairperson (CCT, CPT, MIDT3, CPIDA, SIDA3)

Sharon’s experience in Irish Dance began long, long ago, in 1969, when her father, the first president of the Tara Association in New Brunswick, NJ, asked the now legendary Joan McNiff Cass (TCRG/ADCRG) to provide dancers for one of the club’s early meetings. As the father of several daughters, he realized that this dance form would be something they would all enjoy. Sharon (and her sisters) began Irish Dance shortly thereafter. Eventually, Joan gave up her New Jersey school, and her brother, the late, great, Cyril McNiff (TCRG/ADCRG), took over. Cyril was one of the founding members of the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America (IDTANA), and the teacher of many of the finest Irish dancers in the history of US Irish dance. Sharon blossomed under his tutelage.

With the McNiff school, and with her sisters, she performed at venues as small as the annual dinner dances hosted by the Tara Association, to venues as grand as Carnegie Hall. As an individual competitor, Sharon won numerous local, regional and national awards, and qualified regularly for the Worlds competition, then held annually in Ireland.

College, career and life intervened, and she put her dreams of teaching Irish Dance on the back burner for many years. Then, in 2005, she discovered Kay Brown LaGreca’s Shandon School of Irish Dance in Plano, TX. Again, Sharon trained, and easily won the adult competitions she entered. However, she knew that teaching was in her blood, and decided upon moving to Springfield, IL, that it was time to open her own school.

She has since been actively involved with other Irish Dance organizations, and in 2009, was part of a team creating a new, strictly open platform group focused on the love and perpetuation of Irish Dance.

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Patricia-Ann Silver DeFiccio, NAIDF Co-Founder & Feis Chair (CCT, CPT, MIDT1, CPIDA, SIDA1)

Pat is an award-wining Irish Dancer and choreographer, despite beginning her career at the age of 26. She attended the Mahoney School of Irish Dance in New York under Maureen Mahoney (TCRG), an award-winning Irish Dance teacher and performer.

Pat is a former member of the Thunderstep Irish Dance Company. While there she had the opportunity to perform her own choreography throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania in the PA Renaissance Faire’s Celtic Fling, The Fringe Festival, The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, and Resorts Casino. She attended the Delaware Community College, Irish Dance Certification Program. She formed Mist of Ireland in 2001. Many of her dancers have received local, regional, and National titles.

In April 2009, she became a Certified Ceili Teacher (CCT) and Certified Performance Teacher (CPT) through NAIDF.

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Kate O’Brien Marshall, NAIDF Co-Founder & Membership Chair (CCT, CPT, MIDT1, CPIDA)

Kate O’Brien Marshall started Irish dancing in 2002. After learning her beginner skills, she quickly progressed and continued her dance career through self-study. Kate also competed and studied under the open platform organization Cumann Rince Náisiúnta. She has attended many workshops in various states, including New York, Texas, New Jersey, Illinois, and Pennsylvania, as well as classes with Colin Dunne, former star of Riverdance. Kate has danced at many local and public venues and became a principal dancer who was featured at The Pennsylvania Renassiance Faire, the Penn’s Landing Welcome America Festival, and Bally’s Resort.

Kate has earned many awards as well as several regional and national titles. She earned further certification through the Delaware County Community College three-semester Irish Dance course. Kate has received recognition from her peers and the community for her creative choreography, and currently enjoys choreographing for recitals, parades, and competitions. In 2009, Kate co-founded the North American Irish Dance Federation (NAIDF) with four of her peers from the Irish dance community and now serves as the organization’s treasurer. She has obtained her Master Irish Dance Teacher Grade 1 (MIDT1) certification with NAIDF as well as her Certified Ceili Teacher (CCT) and her Certified Performance Teacher (CPT). Kate has also become a licensed Ceili and Performance Judge with NAIDF and is currently studying for her Solo Irish Dance Adjudication certification with NAIDF while spreading her love of Irish dance to her students in Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.  

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Susan Daly-Stanek, Public Relations (CCT, CPT)

Susan Daly-Stanek was born in Dublin, where she began dancing at the age of 3. Susan enjoyed a flourishing dance career and traveled the world as a member of an international touring group. She also joined the John Players Theater Company "Tops of the Town."

Susan moved to the United States in 1986. While living in Manhattan, Susan continued to dance taking lessons at the Martha Grahman School. In 1995 Susan and her husband moved to Ridgewood to raise their growing family. In 2000, Susan was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. During her recuperation, she started teaching local children about Irish legends and folklore through music and dance. In 2006, Susan opened Ridgewood Irish Dance Studio. In 2007 Susan was honored to recieve the "Top 40 Under 40 " award from the Irish Echo. Ridgewood Irish Dance offers classes from toddler to adult, in instructional traditional Irish Dance, progressive Irish Dance and Dance Drama.

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Dawn Parker, NAIDF Co-Founder

Dawn is the co-founder of Irish Stars Parker School of Irish dance, which was established in June 2007. She is the founder and one of the instructors of the Moravian Star Irish Dance Troupe/Club, founded in 2005 at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. She graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor Degree in Elementary Education and English from Moravian College. Previously she graduated with an Associate Degree in Education from Northampton Community College.

Dawn studied Irish dance with a her local IDTANA TCRGs for ten years and taught with them for seven years where she established skills in performance, creating shows, costumes, choreography and set design. Over her decade of dancing, she performed with and for many events and organizations. She competed in local and regional feiseanna and performed for countless venues during her dancing career.

She is the founder and a co-instructor of the Irish Dance Club after-school program held at St. Theresa School in Hellertown, Pennsylvania, which was established in 2007.

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Jacque Parker, NAIDF Co-Founder

Jacque is a co-founder of the Irish Stars Parker School of Irish dance with locations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. She grew up performing and competing at local and regional competitions, in which she competed in championship level. She studied with a her local IDTANA TCRGs for ten years and taught with them for seven years where she established skills in performance, creating shows, costumes, choreography and set design. Over her decade of dancing, she performed with and for many events and organizations.

In 2005 and 2007, she co-instructed the Moravian Star Irish Dance Troupe/Club at Moravian College, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. She also assists with the St. Theresa School after school Irish dance program in Hellertown, Pennsylvania.

Jacque received her Associate’s Degree in Education from Northampton Community College in 2007. She graduated from DeSales University with her Bachelor’s Degree in Communication with a professional application in technical theater in 2009.

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