John Leon "Johnny" Creel, Sr. began square dancing in 1955. Within a few years he had organized a new club Dip N Dive, and began teaching new dancers in 1959. Over the course of his career he recorded 62 singing calls on the Lore and Blue Star labels, many of which were engineered by New Orleans famed Cosimo Matassa at his J&M Music Shop. Johnny was also featured on 3 LPs on the Blue Star label. He called in most of the contiguous states. He served on the staff of square dance camps at the Gulf Hills Dude Ranch in Mississippi, Jekyll Island Resort in Georgia, Rainbow Lake Lodge and the Rebel Roundup Festival at Fontana Village Resort both in North Carolina. He was the featured caller for the Hawaii State convention in 1980 and called in Canada and Mexico. In 1957 as President of Dip N Dive, Johnny helped to organize the Metropolitan New Orleans Area Square and Round Dance Association. This began his many years of service to this organization. As the representative of the New Orleans Callers Association, he and his wife served two terms as MNOASRDA president. During this time he initiated the association's newsletter Hoedown Hotline, added a fashion show to its annual festival, and served as liaison for the association with city officials, the Arts Council, and Bicentennial Committee. Most importantly he organized a Past Presidents Club. This group proved invaluable when, in 1980, the MNOASRDA sponsored the Louisiana State Square Dance Convention in New Orleans at the Rivergate Convention Center. Johnny and his wife served as its general Chairman, and members of the Past Presidents Club served as the committee chairs. It was the largest state square dance convention held to date. As Historian of the association, Johnny arranged for all of its records to be donated to the Tulane University Manuscripts Library in order to preserve them for future generations. He also donated his personal library of American Square Dance and Square Dancing magazines. In 1969, Johnny was one of seventeen members of the MNOASRDA who formed the Deep Dixie Square Dance Association for the sole purpose of bringing the National Square Dance Convention to New Orleans. As a board member Johnny traveled to Omaha, Nebraska and helped win the bid for the convention. He served as Vice Chairman for Contra Dancing for the 1971 convention also held at the Rivergate. In 1959 Johnny became a charter member of the New Orleans Callers Association and served four terms as its president. He continued to serve as its representative to both the local and state square dance associations until his death. In 1974 Johnny joined Callerlab, the international organization for professional square dance callers, and served on several of its committees. As a professional caller he was a member of both ASCAP and BMI. He was also a member of Zig & Zag and Saddle-ites square dance clubs. For the ten year period 1974-1984 he was the club caller for the Covington Square C's. Johnny had a passion for promoting square dancing as a fun, wholesome family activity as well as using his calling talent for the good of his community. He called exhibitions at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival for 7 years, in the infield at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, on a local half hour television program Square Dance Time on WVUE Channel 13 in the early 1960's, at the 1980 World's Fair, the United Cerebral Palsy telethon, the Lions Club, and local nursing homes. For the New Orleans Bicentennial Celebration he organized and presented a pageant depicting the history of square dancing in America. He did volunteer teaching for the YMCA, People Program Recreation, and The Lighthouse for the Blind, which he considered one of his most rewarding experiences. He served on caller-dancer education panels at many state and national square dance conventions. Johnny has been featured several times in both American Square Dance and Square Dancing magazines including as the caller of the month in February 1971. He has been chronicled in a San Antonio square dance magazine, Florida's Bow and Swing, and New Orleans' The Times Picayune. He has been featured on the front page of the Houston Chronicle, Square 'Em Up (published by the Louisiana Square Dance Association), and Listen to the Caller (published by The Greater Memphis Square and Round Dance Association, Inc). Johnny's selfless devotion to square dancing has brought him an abundance of awards. For his contributions he received not only a Certificate of Appreciation from the Bicentennial commission but also a Certificate of Merit for his contributions to square dancing in New Orleans for Mayor Moon Landrieu. In 1988 he received MNOASRDA's first ever award "in appreciation for dedicated service in promoting square and round dancing." In 1974 he received Callerlab's Quarter Century Award. In 1999 Callerlab presented him with The Special Appreciation Award for Outstanding Contributions to Square Dancing. This award is presented to members who, in the opinion of the selection committee, have "distinguished themselves with unselfish personal contributions far exceeding the norm during their square dancing career." In 1984 he and his wife were inducted into the Fontana Hall of Fame. He received numerous keys to the cities in which he called. Johnny died October 25, 2006 at the age of 79 at his home in Metairie, LA after a lengthy battle with Parkinson's disease.