Our 38th Season of Dance

With our 38th season drawing to a close I can’t help but pause to reflect on the highlights of this year. The growth and development of all of our dancers has been truly remarkable.

…Remembering the 3 year olds in September coming in wide eyed and sometimes timid. Now, bursting into the building SO ready to dance and coming to tell me that they leaped, twirled, and galloped and “did a good job”!

…Remembering all of the dancers in September, going in to class, not knowing anyone and now, seeing them together not just in the studio but hanging out in the lounge and chatting about their weekends, their families, about school…just relaxed and comfortable in the environment.

…Remembering wayyy back when some of our seniors, our 19 year olds, performed their first solos at age 6 …and now watching them compete with their group for the last time.

…Bringing tears to my eyes

…Feeling so blessed.

I often get told that the environment at Kids Etc Youth Movement Company is warm, loving, and very accepting. This isn’t by chance, it’s by choice…it’s by practice.

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Will Durant

At KEYMC we set out to create a space that is more than just a place where kids go to learn “how to dance”. The friendships that grow in this dance studio are filled with kindness and compassion. Between the dancers and between the dance families. We want our dancers, whether they are on our competitive team or part of our recreational classes, to embody our philosophy of encouraging each other to achieve their own personal best. Our dancers repeatedly do this. At every competition, we attend our competitive team either wins the Studio Spirit Award or the kids get an acknowledgement for their excellent sportsmanlike behaviour. This means that not only are they encouraging their team members, but they are encouraging all the dancers from other schools. I lost track of the number of times I heard our dancers say, “Good Job!”

I love this.

Having raised 2 daughters myself I can see the importance of having the unconditional love and support of your dance family…Especially through those teen years! On that note, I recently overheard some of the older girls talking about their dance friends and about how they wouldn’t let each other get away with doing anything bad… they would be the first ones to say, “that’s just stupid…don’t even!” Our dance fam truly has one another’s backs.

I really love this!

As a parent, I want my kids to be nice, I want my kids to be empathetic, I want my kids to love and respect themselves and others. I know that these basic traits will help them succeed in whatever they do.

As the studio director, I want the same thing for all of my ‘Kids’.

Wishing you all much joy as we watch our kids on stage for the final time this year,

Stay remarkable Winnipeg,

xo

Rheesa