Dear Friends,
Thank you for dancing for a great cause!
This past Friday, more than 60 families joined together at Mary Silveira Elementary School for a glow-in-the-dark Stop Drop and Dance fundraiser for Can Do! Education Foundation, raising over $2000!
Can Do! supports enrichment programs for the Miller Creek School District (Lucas Valley Elementary, Mary Silveira Elementary, Vallecito Elementary and Miller Creek Middle).
Every grade had an opportunity to come up on stage to dance, and there was even a song for teachers/staff, moms, and dads in the house!!! So much fun celebrating our Miller Creek School District community in a safe, non-judgmental, silly way!
Click on the image below to watch a short one-minute video of highlights from our Can Do! fundraiser class!
We are stronger together!
One of the beautiful outcomes from belonging to a community is to realize you are not alone. Someone will understand your struggles and someone will be able to help you in ways you can’t yourself. Almost everything is actually better and more rewarding when you overcome or accomplish something, together.
Thank you to our hosts...
Heather DiGiorgio, Susanah Gasper, Jennifer Ishii, and Kristi Leach who handled getting all the decorations, refreshments, donuts, and glow-in-the-dark items for our party, and a special thank you to Susanah and Heather for coming early to set up and stay late to clean up! Thank you also to Leah Curran, who is the Operations Coordinator at Can Do! and helped check in everyone at the door!
Thank you also to my regular students and backup dancers...
Alison Endemann, Amy Poirier, Arlene Medina, Gina Daly,Hillary Barber, Lisa Butcher, and Sarah Lafferfor helping to lead the dances on stage! Lisa even helped pick up my kids before class because I had to set up for the fundraiser! One final thank you goes to Susanah Gasper and Sara Gooch for capturing videos of the night!
We are so much better together!
Happy Birthday Jen Liao!
Here’s a spotlight on one of our dedicated online members, Jen, who lives too far to come in-person, but she has been consistently dancing with us since the pandemic started!
Every year around her birthday on January 26th, Jen says YES to doing a birthday zoom class and she picks all of our songs for that special class! In addition, Jen has all our tanks and our hat, and wears them on zoom whenever she dances! She’s the cutest!
Happiest birthday Jen and we’re so grateful you are part of our virtual community!
Next step: can’t wait for you to join our next retreat 😉
Post-Belize Retreat HIGH!
It's an understatement that those of us who went to Belize a week ago are still riding high from our sunny getaway (even through the crazy winds and power outages happening at home!).
Last week, we finished the final song of all our Stop Drop and Dance classes Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday featuring the dancers who went on the retreat. Many don't come up on camera EVER, however, with their new friendships and new connections from the retreat, they did.
Say YES to dance with us!Every class is different.
Sometimes we’re laughing hysterically.
Sometimes we’re crying.
Sometimes we’re tripping and falling.
Sometimes we’re forgetting the moves.
Sometimes we’re celebrating.
Sometimes we’re barely able to get through class.
Sometimes we’re sharing stories.
Sometimes we’re hugging.
Sometimes we’re eating mid-dancing.
And sometimes, we’re inviting strangers to join us, like last Thursday!
What happened Thursday...
Occasionally, someone will walk by our classes and pause to watch. In those moments, we like to reach out and invite that person to join our class, but almost always, those people say no.
Two years ago, someone said yes, and that was Karin Conn. Karin happened to stop by our church venue because before the pandemic, there used to be Al-Anon meetings there. However, since the pandemic, Al-Anon moved online to Zoom and therefore she found us instead. Karin was already dressed in workout clothing and sneakers, and was standing at the doorway when we saw her and asked her to join us, and she decided to take our invitation to dance!
Afterwards, she said, "This is so much better than Al-Anon!" Since that day in September 2021, Karin has been a regular member with us and even went on both of our last retreats!
Last Thursday was the second time someone stopped to watch our class, and then actually said yes to our invitation to dance right then and there! Her name was Toni, and she joined our last five songs with a huge smile on her face.
The crazy thing is... after class we found out Toni had come to the church because she was also originally looking for an Al-Anon meeting, and coincidence or not, Toni said the exact same thing as Karin, "This is so much better than Al-Anon!" WOW!!!
Welcome to our community Toni!
If something feels like it will bring you a little bit of joy, say YES and let that feeling lead the way.
You deserve to be happy!
February Important Dates
Please save the date for two special birthday classes, a community gathering, and class cancellations this month:
Tuesday, February 13th 9:30am-10:45am @UUMarin
75 Minute Stop Drop and Dance Class (No Core Work)
Happy Birthdays Debby Strenkofsky and Eliza Desch!
THEME: Wear Valentine's theme (hearts, red, pink)
Tuesday, February 13th 10:45am-11:30am @UUMarin
Post-Class Finger Food Potluck Valentine's Celebration!
Everyone is welcome to join us "up on the hill" right outside the church after class Tuesday for a casual gathering! Get to know others in the community just a little bit better and bring something simple to share!
Wednesday, February 14th: HIIT & YOGA CANCELLED
Unfortunately, my 3rd grade daughter's teacher just sent an email inviting parents and families to join a Valentine's Day presentation where each student will share their biography project. My daughter's biography will be on Anne Frank! Sorry for the inconvenience!
Thursday, February 15th 9:30am-10:45am @UUMarin
75 Minute Strong Women Playlist Stop Drop and Dance Class (No Core Work)
Happy Birthdays Allison Hagey and Kim Stuart!
THEME: Wear All-Black or Black "Shine Your Light" tank!
Live classes will be cancelled February 17th-28th for a family ski trip!
When there are no live classes, members have unlimited access to all the previously-live recorded classes on-demand, or non-members can purchase classes a-la-carte. Thank you for your understanding!
Classes will resume on Thursday, February 29th!
A Place Free From Judgment
Our hope is that when you come to class, you feel loved.
It’s not about how fantastic of a dancer you are.
It’s not about how “cool” you look.
It’s not about what you’re wearing.
It’s not about needing to show off.
It’s not about standing out.
It is about showing up imperfect.
It is about being real and authentic.
It is about accepting yourself and others.
It is about finding joy and freedom in your movements.
It is about feeling alive and seen.
All you need to be a part of this community is to try to see people’s hearts while they dance instead of seeing people’s movements.
Love,
Grace
