Latest / Making The Impact - A Dance Competition Podcast / Dancing with Disabilities & Special Needs - Creating Inclusivity in Dance

Transcript

Dancing with Disabilities & Special Needs - Creating Inclusivity in Dance · Making The Impact - A Dance Competition Podcast

• 0:07
  SPEAKER_01: Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the table at a dance competition?
• 0:10
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly what are the judges looking for anyway?
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_01: This is Making the Impact, a dance competition podcast.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_01: Each week we'll cover a different topic related to the world of competitive dance from the perspective of the judges behind the table.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_01: The dance world can sometimes feel like an exclusive club, accepting only those who make the cut.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_01: But thanks to Trailblazers like our guests today, competitive and professional dance are opening the doors to dancers with disabilities and special needs.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_01: Joining us on this episode of Making the Impact are Chelsea Hill, CEO of the Rolex, a wheelchair dance team out of LA, and Kim Smith, founder and teacher of Chance to Dance, a special needs dance program in Charlotte, North Carolina.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_03: Hey everyone, welcome to this week's episode of Making the Impact.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_03: I'm your host, Courtney Ortiz, and I'm here with my co-host, Leslie Mueller.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_01: Hey Courtney, how are you doing today?
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_03: I am so good.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_01: How are you?
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_01: So good.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_01: We are on episode 101.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_01: Woo! We just celebrated 100 episodes last episode.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, we did.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_01: If you're new, you know, go back 100 episodes and listen from the beginning.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_01: There's so many.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_03: There's so many to listen to.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_03: You gotta catch up, y'all.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_03: But I'm excited to be here for 101, and we are talking about a very important topic today, and that is dancers with disabilities and special needs.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_03: We have two very, very, very special guests, new guests joining us on the podcast for this episode, and I can't wait to learn more about them and what they're doing for our dance world.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_03: But before we jump in, like always, we want to tell you a little bit more about our sponsors right away.
• 1:46
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• 1:50
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• 2:01
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• 2:09
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• 2:14
  SPEAKER_01: So check them out at dancecostumesbyerzua.com.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm excited to introduce you all to a new sponsor to Making an Impact.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_03: Have you ever noticed that dancers are a very specific type of athlete?
• 2:27
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• 2:29
  SPEAKER_03: Introducing DancerFitness, the most comprehensive resource for safe and effective strength training for competitive dancers.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_03: You can find hundreds of exercises and training plans designed exclusively for dancers from beginner to advanced.
• 2:43
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• 2:52
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• 3:00
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• 3:06
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• 3:09
  SPEAKER_03: Be sure to follow them on Instagram for some great training tips and tricks and start cross-training your dancers today at dancer-fitness.com.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_01: And coming up next, we want to share with you some of our recent award winners for the Making the Impact Awards.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: New This Season in IDA Land is the Making the Impact Award, which is given to a dance routine solo through production at every dance competition that's affiliated with IDA with one IDA judge on the panel.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_01: That dance is chosen from all the dances over the weekend and can be given to any dance that stands out to the judges for making the impact via choreography, production value, entertainment, anything goes.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_01: So we've got from Divine Dance Center in Roanoke, Virginia, HERT is a small group that won this award at Star Talent in Wilkesboro, North Carolina back in March.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_01: So congratulations to that routine.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_03: And giving a shout out to Dancin on Edge Dance Studios from Hornell, New York, with their small group, Dance Till You Feel Better.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_03: And this was awarded at Spirit of Dance Awards in Albany, New York.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_03: And I was at that event and they were so much fun.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: That was an adult dance.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_01: So it's always fun to see adults getting out there and making the impact.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_03: Oh yes, I love that.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_03: That's so great.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_03: All right, everybody.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_03: It is time to jump on into our episode and meet our very special guests today.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_03: I cannot wait for you all to get to know them even more during this podcast.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_03: And first up, I would love to welcome someone who I have admired for the past few years who was introduced to us through IDA's virtual competition.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_03: That was the first time that I learned about their studio and was so inspired by their dancers.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_03: I'm super excited to welcome Kim Smith to the podcast.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_03: Welcome, Kim.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: Hi, so nice to meet you.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_03: We're super excited to have you.
• 5:01
  SPEAKER_03: And Kim, can you tell the world out there a little bit more about your studio?
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: Of course.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: A chance to dance is what I like to refer to as like a big melting pot.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: We welcome children's teens and young adults, regardless of what their difference is, their special talent, their disability.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: Everybody likes to call it something different.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: And we just take these dancers and create magic.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: We're super proud of what we do because it's very different than what a lot of programs do.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_00: And I am just, you know, people ask a lot of times, do you have a college degree in special education, all these things?
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm like, nope, I'm just a special needs mom.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: Grew up in the dance world with a passion for dance, and that's why we do what we do.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I I love that.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_03: And I was super excited to see your dancers in our virtual competition, which was what was so cool about our virtual comp was we were able to connect with dancers worldwide.
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_03: But um, watching your dancers on our live stream and just seeing them come back for multiple events and then following you on Facebook and seeing how they are going to so many competitions and competing every single weekend and just killing it out there.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_03: It's just so inspiring.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_03: And I have really enjoyed following your journey.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm really glad we got connected.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_03: And I can't wait to learn even more about what you're doing at A Chance for Dance.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: And I just want to say one of the things that really stood out to me about you guys was when we received the feedback, it was just so honest, you know, like that, and that's what we're looking for.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: We don't want to be looked at any differently than anybody else.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: Whatever improvements or, you know, recommendations you can give.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: And you guys were just you just embraced us, and we just we love everything about it, and that's why we've been such big supporters.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_01: Aw, thank you so much.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's really nice to hear.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_01: And that was, you know, for our listeners who may be new, IDA produced how many did we end up doing?
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_01: Eight.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_01: Eight virtual competitions uh starting in March of 2020 when real competitions shut down.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_01: So that was the reason we really were able to connect with so many people around the country and around the world.
• 7:10
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, was just like you said, Kim, you know, we we live to do this and we want to do it well.
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_01: And we're so happy to hear that you thought we did it well.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_03: Awesome.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_03: Well, thank you so much for being here on this episode.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for having me.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_03: And our next special guest is an compet was a competitive dancer in her youth, which I cannot wait to hear more about.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_03: And she is also the CEO and and founder of the Rollets in California.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_03: I'm very excited to welcome Chelsea Hill to our podcast.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_03: Welcome, Chelsea.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_03: Hi, thank you guys so much for having me.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, of course.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_03: I've been watching you on Instagram, and you are just such an influence and inspiring so many dancers out there.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm just cannot wait to hear about your journey and being a businesswoman as well.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_03: Uh, so inspiring.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_03: So if you wouldn't mind telling all of our listeners a little bit more about you, anything that you'd like to share as far as your journey with competitive dance and dance.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_03: And I know we'll get more into this as we start the episode, but a little bit of background on Chelsea.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so I um was put into dance classes at the age of three, and I started competing nationally and regionally when I was five years old.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_02: I fell in love with dance at a very young age, very similar to a lot of a lot of people that start dancing young.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_02: And it was, I feel like the one thing that I was really good at.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_02: I always went home with a trophy.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_02: Not that that matters, but to me, that was my way of knowing, like, okay, I'm really I'm good at this, you know.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_02: School, to be honest, wasn't like really my thing.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I knew I wanted to be like a professional dancer in my life.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_02: So, you know, when I was a senior in high school, my entire world was flipped upside down.
• 8:53
  SPEAKER_02: And um, I ended up becoming paralyzed due to a drunk driver.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_02: And my world flipped upside down.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_02: But, you know, I've learned a lot.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_02: I now run an all-women's wheelchair dance team based in LA and one of the largest women's empowerment weekends for women uh and children with disabilities.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm excited to chat about it and all the endeavors that I've been through and and all the things and places I want to go to with it.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, thanks for having me.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_03: Absolutely.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_03: I cannot wait to hear more about uh what you've achieved and accomplished in your adult life uh because I think that's just so important and overcoming struggles and battles is things that many people have to deal with, but you especially for sure.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm very interested to hear your story.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm so grateful to have you both.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_03: Thanks for all that y'all are doing to our dance world.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_03: Let's jump on into the episode.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_01: Yay! So we've got kind of two very different stories, two different guests on this episode.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_01: So we're kind of gonna jump back and forth a little bit, but also live in the world of you know, how how the dance world generally, but also maybe the competitive world, can embrace all kinds of dancers with different abilities and different needs.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_01: Because I think one of the things that over the past couple years, pandemic, you know, aside, but also pandemic included, that we have realized uh here at IDA is that the dance world is just so small.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_01: We have to include everyone, we have to encompass everyone because everyone has something to offer.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_01: And there's just so much to be gained from being a big family in in this dance world.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_01: So Kimberly, I want to start with you.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_01: You mentioned a little bit about your studio, but I want to know kind of the very beginning, what inspired you to create this program and and how long have you guys been around?
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_00: My daughter Regan, um, she'll be 13 this September, but when she and she's on the autism spectrum.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_00: So when she was around the age of five or six, I was really looking to enroll her in a class, some kind of activity outside of at the time she was in physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, ABA therapy.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_00: Like her whole life was therapy.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_00: So there were no opportunities for friendships or peers or any of those things.
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_00: And um, so I was really looking for something for her.
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, at the time it could have been anything, but there was just nothing.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um, there are so many programs out there for for kids with different abilities, but autism is very unique and probably one of the most misunderstood disabilities.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_00: And everything I would sign her up for, even though there were classes intended for special needs, it was heartbreaking because she never really fit in in the classes that were supposed to be for kids who are different, which she was.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_00: So it was always standing on the sidelines, you know, we don't have a volunteer for her, or we don't feel like this is a good fit for her.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_00: And as a person who grew up a dancer myself and my oldest daughter is a dance teacher, I just I went home one day and I was really, really, really upset.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_00: And I made a Facebook post.
• 11:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm like, you know, I'm not an expert in special needs, but I'm a mom.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_00: I have a huge dance background.
• 12:05
  SPEAKER_00: You know, if somebody would just give us space, I'll just start a class myself and then I don't have to worry about her fitting in because she's my kid.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: Um, made a Facebook post, and not even five minutes later, Miss Donna called and she's like, What do you need?
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_00: Let's do this.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: And and literally two weeks later that summer, we started a program with seven kids, and we're in our seventh year now, and we have about 70 kids in the program with a huge wait list because we're in our explorer in space and we don't have enough space.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_01: So my god to have though, you know.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_00: It is it is a great, it is a great problem to have.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_00: I just hate telling people no, but we just we're growing faster than we thought we would, which yeah, we'll see.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_01: Well, that just goes to show the need that's there.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, you know, people want this, people want that program and are willing to be on a wait list for it.
• 12:55
  unknown: Right, right.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_03: But um the studio that reached out to you after your Facebook post, you said it was Miss Donna's, and I I don't think we mentioned in your intro, but you're based in North Carolina, correct?
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_00: We're in Charlotte, North Carolina, yes.
• 13:09
  SPEAKER_03: Charlotte, yes.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_03: Was that the studio that your daughter was teaching at, or was this a completely separate studio?
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_03: Like, did you have a connection with Miss Donna's?
• 13:17
  SPEAKER_00: Cameron teaches at a completely different studio.
• 13:19
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but my but my daughter Cameron actually grew up a competitive dancer in Miss Donna's.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_00: Um you've had a connection with Miss Donna since basically, honestly, and I'm really old now, but I actually took dance at Miss Donna's original studio when I was like two almost yeah, yeah.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_00: But I mean I was not you know, that's a big ask of someone to donate studio space because it costs a lot of money, you know, to run the studio, and I was not expecting that at all.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_00: But she's an angel.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, that's awesome.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_03: Wow, it's really exciting to s to hear how much success it and how much it's grown over the past seven years.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's it's huge.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, when we started, I wasn't really sure what it was gonna look like, but now we're truly, you know, before initially we were just borrowing studio space, but now we have a recreational program and we have a competitive program and we are truly part of her studio.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_00: When we go to competition, we wear the same jackets as her typically developing competition kids do.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_00: So it's the coolest thing in the whole world.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_01: I love it.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_01: And when you so when did you start when did you sort of branch out into competitive level and rec level?
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_00: Summer of 2015 is when we started.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_00: And by 2016, we had a pretty large recreational program.
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_00: It just took off really quick.
• 14:36
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, after my kids performed in their first recital, I just kind of saw something in them.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_00: And again, I called Miss Donna.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, what do you think about making you these?
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_00: It was 10 kids in particular this time that worked really well together.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_00: I said, What do you think about maybe taking these 10 kids to competition?
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_00: She's like, Let's do it.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_00: And like two days later, we were ordering jackets and we went to our first competition, I believe, at Legacy in 2016.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then we were, I believe, at a star power and we got a golden ticket to worlds, and we went to a world dance championships in 2016, we went in 2017.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: And it's just, you know, the minute they let us get out of that box, I've just run with it as far as I can.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_01: So and how have you found, you know, when you approach dance competitions to attend?
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I I feel like you you mentioned legacy and star power.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_01: Did they have a particular category for dancers with needs like yours, or are you entering them in just sort of your standard run-of-the-mill regular level, I guess?
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_00: When we first started competing, um, there were not very many competitions that offered different categories.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but I'm okay with that.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a firm believer and advocate for not being put in a box.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I'm so glad you asked that question.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: I've had about six or seven different competition companies reach out to me this year to say that we've inspired them to start offering special needs categories.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_00: And there's part of me that's like, oh, because that's exactly the opposite of what I was trying to do.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I mean, I guess it's a step in the, it's a step, you know, and not everybody's where I'm at yet.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_00: So it's a step, but my kids have never entered special needs categories.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_00: We always enter, you know, and I and I tell them up front when they ask, we always enter against typically developing peers, you know, because we we challenge them.
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_00: And I mean, Courtney, you've seen some of the dances and we work really hard to, you know, so that they can take the stage alongside others.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_00: Because that's exactly what we want to do.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_00: We want to show the world that they're capable.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's just like typical kids, whatever you pour into them is what you're gonna get out of them, you know, and that's that's where we're very proud of that.
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_00: We work very hard so so we don't enter special needs categories.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_03: Okay.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_03: Cool.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_03: I'm I'm glad that you mentioned that.
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_03: And I feel like I've seen some of your posts on Facebook that you that you even discuss that topic as well, which I I'm I'm all for, girl.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_03: I love it.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_00: It's a sensitive subject for me.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_03: So yeah, yeah.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_03: I totally understand.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_03: Well, I'm really I I love what you're doing, and I'm so glad that you created this.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_03: And I feel like that it hopefully this podcast might inspire others to maybe create something similar at their studio.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_03: Or I even think you can go, you could take this like on the road, and I mean, you could even like franchise this as I mean, not as in like a business way, you know, it's not about that, but just to be able to give this opportunity to more dance studios, you have it figured out.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_03: You know what I mean?
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_03: As far as this is what I need to have, hey, you can have a recreational program.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_03: Hey, you can even have a competition program, you know, there if you already have sev 70 dancers plus a wait list in Charlotte, think about all the other dancers around the country that are might not have the same opportunities, you know, that you are lucky enough to give to the Charlotte area.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, we've been very blessed.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: We have a couple of kids that drive as far as an hour and a half away because there's just nothing really are.
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_03: Oh my gosh.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_03: And I mean, let's be real, there's a dance studio in every corner of around the country.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_03: Everywhere.
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_03: You know, like why are why aren't there more programs like this?
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_03: Well, thank you so much.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_03: That's so inspiring.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I love it.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_01: Um, let's shift lanes over to Chelsea.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_01: We'll get back to some of Kimberly's.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_01: I want to hear a little bit more about some of maybe your students and their journeys.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_01: But Chelsea, I would love to hear about your days as a competitive dancer.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: Did you grow up in California and was that where you were dancing?
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so I actually um was part of the Monterey Stars.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_02: So the Stars program.
• 18:40
  SPEAKER_02: They had like Salt Lake City Stars, um, Florida Stars, all I was part of that organization and uh grew up doing that from the age of three when I started with classes, competing at five, and then I stopped when I was like 13, 14, and then um I auditioned for the high school dance team, and then we went to like UDA up in Northern California, and then uh 2009 I won Central California State Champ and I was eligible to go on to regionals, so that's when my accident happened um right after that, about two months after.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_02: So so yeah, I grew up in the competitive dance world and I I miss it.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_02: I love it.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_02: I love going to conventions and taking hours of dance class and and everything.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_01: And what was what was kind of your specialty?
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_02: Were you on the jazz track of things or lyrical or I definitely loved hip hop, that was always my thing.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_02: Hip hop and jazz.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_02: I was never really a ballet girl.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_02: I like couldn't I couldn't slow myself down enough, but definitely more like hip-hop, jazz, that kind of um style.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_03: Well, that makes sense, especially.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_03: Like, I feel like just the West Coast is just so jazz, jazz and hip-hop.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_03: Like it just screams those genres and and the West Coast does it so well.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_03: And then also over here on the East Coast, I feel like we're like really sh like ballet, lyrical, classic, and then California's just like bringing the heat and being just you know it's just I mean, I love going out to the West Coast and working with dancers out there, but judge also judging dancers out there because it truly feels like a whole different world than what I'm used to.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_03: Which is so what's so cool and special about our dance world is the different regions, and and I feel like that I see that hip hop influence now in your social media and what you're doing in with the roulettes and everything.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, it's so there.
• 20:35
  SPEAKER_03: You have such a good like groove and understanding of like hip hop dance, and it's it's shining.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm so glad that you're able to use all of your training from your youth to work with you now.
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_01: And I was gonna say too, like, you have hairography like down.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh, thank you.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_02: I feel like I can't at all.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_02: Literally, I was dancing today, and I was like, I can't see anything.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_02: Some of these girls out here, I'm like, literally, teach me your ways.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_02: I can't, I don't have the balance to do it like that, but I try.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_02: I do try.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_01: No, I I was literally watching some videos the other day.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_01: I was like, man, I wish like my hair's always in my way too, but like somehow you make it look normal.
• 21:13
  SPEAKER_01: So Thank you.
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_01: You're welcome.
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_01: Appreciate that.
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so I'm curious.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_01: Tell us about starting the rollettes.
• 21:20
  SPEAKER_01: Did you how what was your sort of decision making for that?
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_01: And what has it morphed into?
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_01: And my personal biggest question is is there going to be like a rollets mini team at some point?
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_02: Oh my god.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so I actually uh, you know, when I was paralyzed in 2010, um, I didn't know anybody with a disability.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_02: And so I was on this reality show.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_02: It was the first reality show about women in wheelchairs, how we lived our lives.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_02: And that kind of gave me a little bit of a platform to reach out to other girls.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_02: And I would send them messages and be like, Hey, do you want to come to my hometown and dance?
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I want to throw a fundraiser and you know, show my my Community that I'm not the only person, you know, paralyzed.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_02: And I wanted to meet other friends, honestly.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_02: I wanted to meet other girls that also became paralyzed due to whatever this circumstance was.
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_02: And so I did that.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_02: I invited six girls to my hometown.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_02: And long story short, we just had like a big girls' weekend and we got to know each other.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_02: And we had a fundraiser at the end of the weekend, and we learned dance routines and stuff like that.
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_02: And we put some videos out on social media.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_02: And then all of a sudden we were the phone was ringing, and people were like, Can you come perform at our fair?
• 22:31
  SPEAKER_02: Can you perform at our church, our our gala, all these things?
• 22:34
  SPEAKER_02: And and I was like, uh, okay, I'll I don't know, sure.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_02: So it just kind of started like that, and just by getting the word out and the the powerful side of social media, honestly.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_02: And every year we would get together and we kind of would call it like dance camp, and then we'd have walk and roll camp and then boot camp and all these different things.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_02: And then um, you know, I moved to LA and wanted to kind of branch out and meet other people, and I invited a few more people.
• 23:02
  SPEAKER_02: So the yearly camp began to just be this reunion that I would just start to invite other people to.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_02: And long story short, it went from like six girls to 30 to 115 to 175, and then we went virtual with over 300 people watching, and now we're at like 200 and we're still like four months out for this year.
• 23:24
  SPEAKER_02: So that's yeah, that's kind of a little bit of how it all started.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_03: That's so cool.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_03: Oh my gosh.
• 23:31
  SPEAKER_03: I love it.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm so curious.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_03: The so the six girls that you reached out to that kind of like started it all with you, were they also dancers or were they like not dancers?
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_03: So like you were kind of teaching them the ways, like you, you know, it was like a basic dance class, essentially.
• 23:48
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_02: So like one of the girls used to be a cheerleader and she was only like three months injured at the time, and then everyone else never really danced before.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_02: So actually, my high school coach, who was like one of my best friends, um, she was coaching us the last two years of my high school when I was in high school.
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_02: And then I was like, hey, I want to like have some girls come in and you know, we need to rent a studio.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_02: I need to like figure out where they're gonna sleep.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_02: They were sleeping literally on my floor.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_02: Um, like we were doing like car wash, like free car wash, donate what you can to try and like raise money and stuff.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_02: And yeah, none of them danced before.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_02: And so my high school dance teacher helped me kind of just like figure out how to do things and she would choreograph a lot of things for us and stuff like that.
• 24:29
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 24:30
  SPEAKER_03: Cause I'm sure like if you had the accident happened when you said you were a senior in high school, so we you didn't even have, I'm sure, like have a chance to even start teaching if that like teaching dance if that was something that you wanted to do.
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_03: So having to transition to not only learning how to use a wheelchair and dance in a wheelchair, but now you're inspiring others and then helping them learn how to dance in a wheelchair.
• 24:56
  SPEAKER_03: I'm sure that was probably challenging to navigate as like kind of the leader of the pack at first.
• 25:02
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you know, in the beginning, I was really just really I was just wanting to find friends.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_02: I just wanted to feel a sense of normal.
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_02: I didn't know what it was like to live with a disability.
• 25:12
  SPEAKER_02: And so surrounding myself around other people that had the same disability as me gave me a sense of like, okay, well, if there, if people are gonna stare, they're gonna stare at both of us, you know, or they're gonna stare, they're gonna stare at all of us.
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_02: Instead of me feeling like, oh, I'm so different in a room full of able bodies that, you know, I want to go and dance.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_02: And then it just gave me the courage to be like, okay, well, then I want to go to an able body class now because I started to figure it out, you know, and and being so newly injured, I I didn't really know what I was doing at the time.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_02: I I had, you know, people say, Well, what do you want?
• 25:42
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm like, I want a ballroom full of women dancing in wheelchairs.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_02: Like that's what I would always just say.
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_02: Like any news article I would do or any interview I'd do, I'd just say, I want a ballroom full of women dancing.
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_02: That's what I want.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_02: And I had no idea what that meant at the time of being like 17, 18, 19 years old.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_02: And, you know, so it it was definitely like a big learning process.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_02: And then now being an actual business owner and like running this big camp and being in charge of it, it's a lot of work.
• 26:10
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_02: I never knew what it was gonna be like, but you know, you you you learn as you go.
• 26:16
  unknown: Yeah.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_01: Well, and you never know till you try.
• 26:18
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, very similarly to Kim, she was like, I don't know what this is gonna be, but it's gotta be something.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: Like there's something here.
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_01: So Yeah.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_01: That is really, really cool.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_01: But wait, my question about the mini roulettes, like, is there a is there a children's version eventually?
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_02: So, um, so what we have right now is we have what we call little sis program.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_02: So basically we bring on like X amount of girls each year to train them, get them ready for like performances, get them ready for just to be a roulette one day.
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_02: And we just actually had one of our little siss, she moved to LA, she's now a roulette, and then we're bringing on a few more girls for 2022.
• 26:55
  SPEAKER_02: So we don't have like a minis kind of thing going on, uh, to be honest.
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_02: It's probably a it's a lot of work just to run adults and then let alone to like bring on kids and parents.
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, I I love the idea.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like all for it, but I think maybe one day when I'm a mom, maybe that's when I'll do that.
• 27:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so well you pass it on to somebody, you know, delegate, find find a secondary person.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, exactly.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_03: I love that.
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_03: Oh my gosh, so sweet.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_03: That is awesome.
• 27:24
  SPEAKER_03: I just wanted to give a shout out to all the boss babes on this podcast right now because it's um like you said, Leslie, like to Kim, just you know, I'm just gonna wing it and we're gonna make it happen.
• 27:35
  SPEAKER_03: And like Chelsea, it sounds like that that's where your life guided you as well.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_03: Because you said, like, I want to be a pro dancer, and you are still you are a pro dancer girl, because you are making a living doing what you love.
• 27:49
  SPEAKER_03: And that is what's so special about this.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_03: So yeah, I just want to give a shout-out to all the boss babes, because I'm also a boss babe that had no clue what I was doing.
• 27:58
  SPEAKER_03: I didn't go to school for business.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_03: I was like, there's a need for this service in the industry, and I ran with it.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_03: And now look at us.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_03: We have a podcast, we have a business that has judges all over the place.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, we make we make things happen over here.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_03: So it's in it's inspiring to meet other boss babes.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_03: Killing it in the dance world.
• 28:20
  SPEAKER_01: Killing it.
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_01: So, Kimberly, let's shift back to you.
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_01: We so I was part of the back end of the virtual competitions.
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so I did everybody's score sheets, I did all the screenshots, I did all kinds of stuff.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_01: So I got the pleasure of watching some of your dancers as well.
• 28:34
  SPEAKER_01: So you guys have been working as a chance to dance for about seven years now.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_01: Do you have like are are a lot of your students from day one still with you?
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_01: Do you have any sort of long-term students that are just going to be with you for a very long time, you think?
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_00: Actually, my original team, which we refer to them as the junior team, which they're not really the junior team anymore, but you know, with these kids, we don't change what we call them because they just are who they are.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yep.
• 29:02
  SPEAKER_00: But six of those 10 kids that were my first competition team are very much still with the program.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_01: Very cool.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_00: And and the coolest thing is a couple of them are not only students now, but they're like mentors to some of our younger children with differences.
• 29:18
  SPEAKER_00: And some of them are even doing a little bit of choreography.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_00: You know, our goal with the program every year is to find new ways to be more inclusive and create more opportunities.
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_00: So, in addition to teaching kids, we have a volunteer program.
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_00: All of our students have a one-on-one volunteer.
• 29:36
  SPEAKER_00: They're all typically developing super talented, you know, competitive dancers from art within our studio.
• 29:42
  SPEAKER_00: We have a mentorship program where they're a little more involved, meaning not only are they volunteers, but they help pick out maybe costumes down to the color of the rhinestones we're going to use, um, helping with choreography.
• 29:53
  SPEAKER_00: Um we just hired a young adult on the autism spectrum this past year, and we're teaching her how to help, you know, bling the costumes in.
• 30:03
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so we're always trying to find ways to to bring more people in and to grow the program in different ways.
• 30:09
  SPEAKER_00: That's awesome.
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_03: Because a lot goes into not just training dancers, but now that you've added this whole competition aspect to the program, there's a lot that needs to go on.
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_03: Like you said, the bling of the costumes.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, if they want bling, give them bling.
• 30:24
  SPEAKER_03: If that's what they want.
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_03: Get ordering costumes, measuring the dancers for costumes, having them coordinate and match.
• 30:32
  SPEAKER_03: Then there's all the choreography, and then the cleaning rehearsals, and then the judge.
• 30:35
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, there's registering the dancers.
• 30:37
  SPEAKER_03: There's so much administrative work on the back end to just go to a dance competition that it's great that you are bringing on, like you are able to, you've grown this to a point where you're like, we need more hands on deck.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and it's um, and there's so much work that goes on beh behind the scenes for our kids, both in the recreational program and the competition program, that people, the only people that truly get it are the people who are hands-on in the classroom.
• 31:02
  SPEAKER_00: Our senior team, for example, 75% of that team is non-verbal.
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_00: So everything from music choice, like you said, to choreography to which student are we gonna put beside which student?
• 31:15
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you know, their um spatial awareness is hard for these kids.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_00: You know, having the lack of ability to communicate verbally um makes things a little more challenging.
• 31:24
  SPEAKER_00: So there's so much thought that goes into every piece of what we do.
• 31:29
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, for the past two years it was the issue of COVID.
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_00: And then this year we've had lots of injuries.
• 31:34
  SPEAKER_00: We've had kids out with injuries, we've had kids out with surgeries, but with the community of children we work with, that's just something we know that we're up against.
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_00: And it can be challenging at times, but that's why we do put so much thought into who's next to who and who which volunteer is working with who.
• 31:50
  SPEAKER_00: And somehow these kids always manage to pull it off.
• 31:53
  SPEAKER_00: This past weekend we had three kids who couldn't attend for various medical reasons.
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_00: So three of their volunteers, without hesitation, jumped in their place.
• 32:02
  SPEAKER_00: We put them all in solid black so they wouldn't take away from the shine.
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_00: And they got up there and it was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.
• 32:09
  SPEAKER_00: But that's honestly what I want.
• 32:10
  SPEAKER_00: I'm still chipping away at that wall of, you know, let's put these kids on the stage alongside their volunteers because it's beautiful to watch them dance.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_00: It's even more beautiful to watch them dance alongside their peers.
• 32:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um that's a little bit of a wall we're still up against.
• 32:28
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not sure why, because it's 2022, but yeah.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_00: Just gonna keep working at it.
• 32:33
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, absolutely.
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm it's it's so lovely to hear that the team comes together in those moments and make it work because that's really what it's all about for any dance studio.
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, totally, yeah, uh, is that teamwork aspect of who's jumping in?
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_03: We where's the understudy?
• 32:50
  SPEAKER_03: We need who knows the dance, who can fill in for this dancer?
• 32:53
  SPEAKER_03: They can't be here for whatever the reason is.
• 32:56
  SPEAKER_03: And that's really awesome to see.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm glad that that it went well this weekend.
• 33:00
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, well, that's I mean, that's honestly that's one of my favorite parts of the program is, you know, initially when we started it, it was all about the kids, but now it is as much about the volunteers as it is the kids, because I didn't know, you know, how life-changing it was going to be for them.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_00: You know, these are kids who, you know, never it's it's it's very similar to what Chelsea mentioned earlier, you know, when that happened with her and she, you know, just wanted people to see her and meet other people like her and people to see the world from her perspective.
• 33:28
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, the volunteers had not been around, you know, they didn't really know what they were signing up for when they signed up for this.
• 33:35
  SPEAKER_00: But a lot of them have been with the program so long.
• 33:37
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, these kids are not only, you know, their students as well as my students, they're their friends, you know.
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_00: They've developed strong bonds and that what they've learned through the platform of dance is that, you know, these kids are really not all that different.
• 33:51
  SPEAKER_00: They just want what everybody else wants.
• 33:53
  SPEAKER_00: They want to be seen, they want to be heard, they want to be included.
• 33:56
  SPEAKER_00: And a lot of our volunteers, you know, they graduate, go off to college, and a lot of them have gone on now, you know, wanting to be special education teachers or wanting to be physical therapists or want to because of, you know, the inspiration they got from these kids.
• 34:08
  SPEAKER_00: And that's not a me thing.
• 34:09
  SPEAKER_00: I did none of that.
• 34:10
  SPEAKER_00: That's what the kids, you know, made that impression on them.
• 34:13
  SPEAKER_00: So that's like one of my favorite parts of the program.
• 34:20
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• 34:28
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• 34:40
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• 34:48
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• 34:56
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• 35:02
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• 35:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that is that's awesome to hear.
• 35:25
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, so n we've heard a little bit about how your students have been impacted by dance and you obviously as as a dancer yourself.
• 35:32
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Chelsea, how has how has your life just uh sort of the big picture been impacted by dance?
• 35:38
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, for me, I I really don't know who I would be without dance.
• 35:42
  SPEAKER_02: I feel like dance has definitely saved me.
• 35:45
  SPEAKER_02: I feel like ever since I was a kid, dance has been the one thing that I turned to when I had so many different kinds of emotions but didn't know how to verbally explain it.
• 35:54
  SPEAKER_02: And I think that's the one thing that has like saved me in my my recovery mentally with this injury is just going from being an able body, being able to do anything I want physically, to then being not having that choice with my body and knowing I can what knowing what I'm capable of, but not being able to actually physically do it or look at my leg and say, okay, kick my left leg and it won't work.
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_02: You know, so I think now dance has given me back tenfold what I've put into it, and I've been able to create a beautiful life through dance now, and I was able to fall back in love with it, you know?
• 36:35
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, because you you did say that, you know, as a s when you were a senior before your accident, that you did have dreams of being a dancer, but was there anything else like were you applying for colleges?
• 36:46
  SPEAKER_03: Was that what your plan was to go to school for dance or be on the dance team at your college, or were you gonna major in anything else?
• 36:53
  SPEAKER_03: And did you still go to college?
• 36:54
  SPEAKER_03: What was that journey after the accident?
• 36:57
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so I actually went to um the community college after I graduated, and then that's when I started with this reality show.
• 37:07
  SPEAKER_02: So I during that time I was doing a lot of speaking and I my heart was really pulled towards, you know, speaking about drunk and distracted driving.
• 37:15
  SPEAKER_02: So I ended up like getting booked a lot and like just driving all over California with different speaking engagements, sharing my story about being a passenger in a drunk driving accident.
• 37:25
  SPEAKER_02: And then I was on a reality show, so I ended up having to drop out of college and I just pursued speaking on like another level.
• 37:34
  SPEAKER_02: But my goal was to go to college, do a few years at our community college, and then move down to LA and then just see where dance took me.
• 37:42
  SPEAKER_02: I I didn't really have any specific like it was gonna be X, Y, and Z, but I knew that I I wanted to create something uh for my life when it came to dance, as maybe it was a backup dancer and going on tour or try out for like Dallas Cowgirl cheerleaders, like stuff like that.
• 37:58
  SPEAKER_02: Like I just knew that I wanted to, my mind was open and I just wanted to do something with dance.
• 38:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 38:04
  SPEAKER_01: Well, and I mean I I feel like that's such sort of great, a great story and great advice for for all dancers that you know, keep your mind open.
• 38:12
  SPEAKER_01: Because I feel like if you had had that sort of I must be a roquette mindset, like you might not be where you are now.
• 38:18
  SPEAKER_01: But because you did already have that, you know what?
• 38:20
  SPEAKER_01: I want to be, I want to dance, and whatever that means is what I'm gonna do.
• 38:24
  SPEAKER_01: And here you are.
• 38:26
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah.
• 38:27
  SPEAKER_03: And you're now you're in LA and you are like I absolutely, you are a professional dancer.
• 38:35
  SPEAKER_03: Like, absolutely you are a known dancer in this industry, and that you should be so proud that you are able to achieve your goal, which you know, not everybody it not everybody's gonna be a pro.
• 38:49
  SPEAKER_03: And we talk about that a lot on our podcast.
• 38:52
  SPEAKER_03: There's a lot of dancers out there, and we all love it, and we grow up doing it, and a lot of dancers have the heart and might have the drive and the passion to really try to make it in the biz.
• 39:04
  SPEAKER_03: And sometimes you don't make it, and that's just the reality of it.
• 39:08
  SPEAKER_03: But I think that you were meant to make it, and so many dancers are are meant to make it in the industry if you just keep pushing for it and keep putting yourself out there and showing the world what you do and how you are special and you are unique, and you're definitely making an impact in our world for sure.
• 39:27
  SPEAKER_03: Which is why I'm so happy you're here.
• 39:29
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 39:30
  SPEAKER_02: It's really crazy because you know, when I when I was I moved out on my own in Monterey and I was like, I want to figure out how I can, how am I gonna get dressed on my own?
• 39:39
  SPEAKER_02: How am I gonna do my own laundry?
• 39:40
  SPEAKER_02: How am I gonna cook for myself?
• 39:41
  SPEAKER_02: You know, and then when, you know, uh we had our second season with Push Girls on the show, and then I was like, man, I want to move to LA.
• 39:49
  SPEAKER_02: Like we have the show, blah, blah.
• 39:50
  SPEAKER_02: And then we didn't get our third season.
• 39:52
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, well, I still want to move to LA because that's what I would have done if I was walking.
• 39:56
  SPEAKER_02: And I promised myself that I would go to dance classes out here in LA and I would push myself.
• 40:02
  SPEAKER_02: And I'll be honest, like when I showed up to those dance classes at the top dance studios here in LA with some of the best dancers, like best well-known dancers, I was terrified.
• 40:13
  SPEAKER_02: I was the only wheelchair user in a room full of able bodies staring at me like, what are you doing here?
• 40:19
  SPEAKER_02: And it was, it was nerve-wracking.
• 40:22
  SPEAKER_02: I cried a lot.
• 40:23
  SPEAKER_02: I left like so unhappy.
• 40:26
  SPEAKER_02: But I remembered the moments of actually dancing and learning choreography, and I felt like my chair just vanished.
• 40:32
  SPEAKER_02: It felt like I wasn't different.
• 40:33
  SPEAKER_02: And that's why I kept going back.
• 40:35
  SPEAKER_02: And to me, like, there's not a lot of people that will do that.
• 40:38
  SPEAKER_02: I'll just say that blank, like bluntly.
• 40:41
  SPEAKER_02: There's not a lot of people who will still put themselves over and over into uncomfortable positions.
• 40:46
  SPEAKER_02: But I'll tell you, I'm so glad I did because it got me in front of great choreographers that saw my passion and didn't see my disability.
• 40:53
  SPEAKER_02: They didn't say, oh, well, she's just disabled.
• 40:55
  SPEAKER_02: A lot of them did.
• 40:56
  SPEAKER_02: A lot of them didn't call me out into small groups, a lot of them pushed me to the side, a lot of them ignored me.
• 41:02
  SPEAKER_02: But the ones that didn't, and the ones that like actually talked to me as a person and not like, oh, so what happened to you?
• 41:08
  SPEAKER_02: It it really changed my entire outlook and honestly helped me get to where I am today.
• 41:12
  SPEAKER_02: So if anyone's out there listening to this and they're scared to do something or scared to step out their comfort zone, I mean, Kim and I are very like great examples of stepping outside your comfort zone and like really making a name for yourself.
• 41:25
  SPEAKER_02: So Yeah.
• 41:26
  SPEAKER_01: And and you know, inspiring other other people who are able-bodied, not in the same situation, maybe don't have any insight into what life is like with a child with a disability or, you know, a child with a different, differently abled body.
• 41:40
  SPEAKER_01: Here, here it is.
• 41:41
  SPEAKER_01: Kim says they are they are ready to do exactly what everybody else wants to do, you know?
• 41:46
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that that might be the wall everybody's against, I feel like, is just the fear of I the unknown, you know, and everybody has fear of unknown for all kinds of things, but you know, these types of situations I think people do kind of try to tread lightly because they're just not sure and they don't want to offend, and you know, but like you're hearing it right here from these two amazing women.
• 42:07
  SPEAKER_01: Like, go for it, do the thing and put yourself in those uncomfortable situations because you know, you're gonna come out on top and you're gonna come out learning something.
• 42:16
  SPEAKER_03: Absolutely.
• 42:17
  SPEAKER_03: Now I know I know how dance has impacted you both personally, but and I'm I'm sure you both have some stories that you can share as to how has since the creation of the rollettes, since the creation of A Chance for Dance, do you have any stories that you can share from people on the company or people at the studio that have praised what you're doing and saying, like, thank you for introducing me to dance, or I didn't know what dance could do for me.
• 42:47
  SPEAKER_03: How has it in how has dance impacted their lives since what you both have started?
• 42:52
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, I mean, I right away, I I remember 2018, it was the first year that we went from 30 people attending to 115 from 12 countries.
• 43:04
  SPEAKER_02: And I remember it was my first time sitting up on that stage with the microphone in my hand, staring at 115 women and children from all around the world.
• 43:14
  SPEAKER_02: And I remember like starting to tear up and I was like, oh my God, like this this isn't about me anymore.
• 43:20
  SPEAKER_02: And I taught to over 100 women that that year in person.
• 43:25
  SPEAKER_02: And this girl came up to me and she was from Canada, and she said, she came to me and she started crying.
• 43:30
  SPEAKER_02: She goes, Chelsea, I finally found friends.
• 43:33
  SPEAKER_02: And she's like, It's because of you and this event that I'm gonna go on my first vacation with another person in a chair.
• 43:41
  SPEAKER_02: And I just like get chills thinking about it.
• 43:43
  SPEAKER_02: And her and I just sat there and we cried, and she was like, Thank you for doing this.
• 43:46
  SPEAKER_02: Like, if if you weren't if you weren't doing this, I wouldn't have friends in a chair.
• 43:51
  SPEAKER_02: I I wouldn't be able to find a passion for dance.
• 43:54
  SPEAKER_02: Like you've opened up so many doors.
• 43:55
  SPEAKER_02: And I just like the conversation was so beautiful.
• 43:58
  SPEAKER_02: Her and I started like sobbing and And I feel like that was the one moment where I was like, wow, this is real.
• 44:04
  SPEAKER_02: Like, this isn't for me anymore.
• 44:06
  SPEAKER_02: And I started it because I wanted something.
• 44:08
  SPEAKER_02: And it's gonna keep going because there is this void that needed to be filled.
• 44:12
  SPEAKER_02: And there is this niche for people with disabilities that wasn't there before.
• 44:17
  SPEAKER_02: There like, and it's just a really crazy feeling.
• 44:19
  SPEAKER_02: So a lot of different stories, which I'm sure Kim can say a bunch too.
• 44:23
  SPEAKER_02: And it it changes your life when you hear it from people, you know?
• 44:27
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it is, it has definitely been a a life-changing thing.
• 44:31
  SPEAKER_00: Um for me, I think the most impactful thing for a chance to dance, and I tell people all this time, is it's about so much more to dance.
• 44:38
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, yes, we teach the kids to dance and we do recitals and we do competitions, but at the end of the day, for me, the most important, the most important part is the social the social piece because these are kids who don't, you know, come home with birthday imitations in their backpacks from school.
• 44:54
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you don't don't get invited to sleepovers or to go to the movie.
• 44:58
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, this program has given these kids a family.
• 45:02
  SPEAKER_00: Like we are, you know, we are 70 families strong.
• 45:06
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I didn't even realize when I created it, because I created it on behalf of my daughter, but it really gave me exactly what I needed.
• 45:13
  SPEAKER_00: Because when Reagan was diagnosed, it's not that my friends like disappeared, but I suddenly was isolated and I wasn't getting invited out to dinner, and I wasn't getting invited to do things because it it is a fear thing.
• 45:25
  SPEAKER_00: People don't understand it, you know.
• 45:27
  SPEAKER_00: And so it truly gave me the only friends I have.
• 45:32
  SPEAKER_00: My dance family is my family, and it gave the same thing, you know, to these kids.
• 45:37
  SPEAKER_00: So it's it's very much the social piece is the most important part and the most rewarding part.
• 45:43
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, we've been blessed to do some really super cool things, and I had no idea any of those things, you know, were gonna happen.
• 45:50
  SPEAKER_00: So the fact that we've had the ability to impact others and do things with other studios and other nonprofits is it's just so cool.
• 45:59
  SPEAKER_00: I hope it continues to happen.
• 46:01
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 46:02
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, you got a wait list, so I think you're good.
• 46:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 46:06
  SPEAKER_00: But I I do want to say to Chelsea though, for me as a parent of a child who is different, I have so much mad respect for you and what you do.
• 46:16
  SPEAKER_00: We have quite a few wheelchair dancers in our program.
• 46:20
  SPEAKER_00: And I would be lying if I didn't say I kind of watch your videos all the time because I know how to choreograph all kinds of dances for my kids, but it gets a little different, you know, it is a little difficult with the kids in the chairs because I'm not in a wheelchair and I don't have that perspective.
• 46:36
  SPEAKER_00: So I've watched quite a few of your videos and it helps.
• 46:41
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's it's taught me, and I've been able to learn from you and watching your dancers, you know, how to how to better help my kids, and you know, and all the different things you can do with your arms.
• 46:50
  SPEAKER_00: Because when we started adding kids in with wheelchairs, you know, we have about 10 of them now, and quite a few of them are on our comp are on our competitive teams.
• 46:57
  SPEAKER_00: And I have I have one little girl who does a solo this year, and it's it is just incredibly beautiful.
• 47:03
  SPEAKER_00: So, so thank you.
• 47:05
  SPEAKER_00: Because even though I had no idea I was gonna get to meet you, you've been a huge inspiration to me.
• 47:09
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 47:10
  SPEAKER_00: I was super excited to get into this.
• 47:12
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 47:12
  SPEAKER_02: I appreciate that.
• 47:13
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, like you just never know who's watching your videos.
• 47:17
  SPEAKER_02: Same for you, you know, like it's amazing what you're doing, and like we're we're changing people's lives, and and really we did it because we both did it for ourselves, right?
• 47:26
  SPEAKER_02: Like we did it because we're like, well, we need something.
• 47:28
  SPEAKER_02: And so sometimes when you see something, you know, you need something out there, no matter what it is, and people start creating that's how that's how people's minds and that's how the world changes.
• 47:39
  SPEAKER_02: So thank you so much.
• 47:40
  SPEAKER_02: That was so sweet.
• 47:41
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 47:42
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, I love all these beautiful connections we get to establish over here.
• 47:47
  SPEAKER_01: It's just such a small world, and I mean we literally say it all the time, and sometimes I think people are like, it's a what?
• 47:52
  SPEAKER_01: And you're like, no, it's a small world because the smallest.
• 47:56
  SPEAKER_01: The smallest.
• 47:58
  SPEAKER_03: But like, you know, social media, we love it, we hate it, but like loving it right now.
• 48:02
  SPEAKER_03: I it's just really, it's really uh raising and spreading awareness for different types of dancers, you know, it's at least speaking in our dance industry, but even beyond that and and showing the world what what everyone is capable of, because like you both have said um at a point, you you know, Chelsea, you said I didn't know anybody else that was in a wheelchair like myself and until you started what you started.
• 48:29
  SPEAKER_03: And I, you know, social media does allow us to have a little bit of a glimpse into other people's lives that might be like us or that we can look up to and be inspired by.
• 48:41
  SPEAKER_03: So yay for social media for for that.
• 48:44
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 48:45
  SPEAKER_02: I think it's really awesome too.
• 48:46
  SPEAKER_02: A lot of people are like really nervous about social media, or a lot of people have a little a lot of negative things to say, and like I mean, I live my life on social media purely because I want to break down that stereotype of what a person, like, people are like, oh well, they'll say the weirdest comments to me, like, you're too pretty to be in a chair, or like, how do you get dressed?
• 49:08
  SPEAKER_02: How do you drive?
• 49:09
  SPEAKER_02: Like, and I'm like, what does this mean?
• 49:11
  SPEAKER_02: Like, there it's the weirdest thing.
• 49:14
  SPEAKER_02: And so to me, I think the the power of social media, like you are in control of what you you show yourself every single day, like the good, the bad, the ugly, whatever.
• 49:23
  SPEAKER_02: And so I think if we can just like focus on like showing, like, this is how I get in the car, this is how I drive, like, same with Kim.
• 49:31
  SPEAKER_02: Like, how does your daughter live a life?
• 49:33
  SPEAKER_02: Like, how do how does she dance?
• 49:35
  SPEAKER_02: Like, how do all these other dancers with different types of disabilities dance?
• 49:38
  SPEAKER_02: Like, this is the way that people are gonna start breaking down what's normal and seeing that there really is no normal, you know?
• 49:45
  SPEAKER_02: Like, so yeah, I I appreciate you saying that because it I just feel so passionate about like show being open on social media and showing things because that's the only way that real like change too is gonna be made, you know?
• 49:56
  SPEAKER_02: It's just showing.
• 49:58
  unknown: Yeah.
• 49:58
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's probably why, you know, Kim, your program has probably exploded over the past seven years because you know, you have had access to social media and people word of mouth is now word of Instagram, and people have seen it.
• 50:10
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, even with our virtual people from around the world saw your kids because your kids were in our top 20 multiple times, you know, and that's what we broadcast during the world.
• 50:21
  SPEAKER_01: To the world, and people saw it.
• 50:22
  SPEAKER_01: So now there's, you know, even more folks out there who are gonna say, Hey, oh, my daughter has this condition, or my kid just got in, you know, in a car accident, and we have to navigate life now as you know, using a wheelchair.
• 50:34
  SPEAKER_01: How do we do that?
• 50:34
  SPEAKER_01: Boom.
• 50:35
  SPEAKER_01: Ways to do that right here on social media and via this podcast now, you know, we have we have a ton of listeners.
• 50:42
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 50:42
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm so glad it's all out there now.
• 50:44
  SPEAKER_00: Me too.
• 50:45
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, so social media is an amazing thing.
• 50:48
  SPEAKER_00: That the biggest, the biggest thing that's been said to me over and over again by multiple people has always been, you know, well, special needs needs to stay with special needs, and these dancers need to stay over here because judges don't know how to judge them.
• 51:02
  SPEAKER_00: And I just, you know, I at first I get really upset and then I'm like, I'm just gonna let it go in and go out and just keep doing what I do because I know that's not true.
• 51:11
  SPEAKER_00: And I, you know, I just keep, you know, much like Chelsea, you just keep, you just keep working at whatever your goals are and whatever your vision is, and you just don't take no for an answer.
• 51:21
  SPEAKER_00: Because if if you're not your best advocate, if I'm not my best advocate for these kids, then nothing's gonna change.
• 51:27
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I can't change the whole world.
• 51:29
  SPEAKER_00: Chelsea can't change the whole world.
• 51:31
  SPEAKER_00: But, you know, I I've always thought that, you know, if you shift perspective for one person, then you've done your job.
• 51:37
  SPEAKER_00: And hopefully that'll domino effect and somebody else will change, somebody else will change somebody else.
• 51:42
  SPEAKER_00: Because in in 2022, neither of us should still be having to advocate and fight so hard for not even inclusion so much as acceptance.
• 51:51
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's it's all about trying to shift perspective.
• 51:54
  SPEAKER_00: So that's just what I keep chipping away at.
• 51:56
  SPEAKER_00: And I feel like that's exactly the same thing she's doing.
• 51:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I, and you know, and for me, it's never been about winning trophies.
• 52:02
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and quite honestly, the main reason we do competitions at a chance to dance is because these kids love to perform.
• 52:09
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 52:09
  SPEAKER_00: And there's there's no other stage, you know, for us to perform on.
• 52:13
  SPEAKER_00: There's no other audience for us to perform for.
• 52:16
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I've I've reached out multiple times locally to, you know, to get our foot in the door with somebody and nobody ever responds.
• 52:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's like they won't give you the time of the day, you know, like seeing is believing, and it's and it's funny because we have this huge following in the competition world because everybody knows where we are now.
• 52:31
  SPEAKER_00: But when you try to do other things with other people, even locally, it's like you know, they just they don't get it.
• 52:37
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't know.
• 52:39
  SPEAKER_03: That's sad.
• 52:40
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 52:41
  SPEAKER_03: Makes me sad.
• 52:42
  SPEAKER_03: Oh gotta get y'all out there.
• 52:44
  SPEAKER_01: Come on, Charlotte.
• 52:46
  SPEAKER_00: Come on.
• 52:48
  SPEAKER_01: City of Shorty.
• 52:49
  SPEAKER_00: That's a cool thing for some people in other locations, but yeah.
• 52:54
  SPEAKER_03: So to kind of wrap up our lovely episode and chat with you both, what are your goals for the future with both of your businesses at this time?
• 53:06
  SPEAKER_03: Is there anything that you are really looking forward to?
• 53:09
  SPEAKER_03: Is there anything that's coming soon that you want to share?
• 53:13
  SPEAKER_03: Do you have like a 10-year goal?
• 53:15
  SPEAKER_03: Do you have a 20-year goal?
• 53:17
  SPEAKER_03: I'm so curious to hear.
• 53:19
  SPEAKER_03: Have you even thought that far ahead?
• 53:21
  SPEAKER_03: What's the future look like?
• 53:24
  SPEAKER_00: For me, I just keep trying to create opportunities.
• 53:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, because like I said, we don't get a whole lot of response when I reach out, so we just try to create what create opportunities.
• 53:34
  SPEAKER_00: So right now we're working on two inclusive pieces alongside some of our volunteers.
• 53:40
  SPEAKER_00: So there's a competition company that's going to let us perform, not to compete, but like open their competition with a performance with an inclusive piece in October.
• 53:51
  SPEAKER_00: And then another local studio has invited us to do something with them at their big Christmas thing.
• 53:58
  SPEAKER_00: So we're doing another inclusive piece there.
• 54:00
  SPEAKER_00: Cool.
• 54:00
  SPEAKER_00: We're working on an improv collaboration, which my kids have never done improv, so I'm super excited about it, with another studio locally.
• 54:08
  SPEAKER_00: So it's, you know, the the local studios are are really like opening up and embracing us.
• 54:13
  SPEAKER_00: So we have a couple of things that we're working on that I'm super excited about.
• 54:16
  SPEAKER_00: But that's my goal is to keep getting opportunities like that.
• 54:20
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 54:20
  SPEAKER_03: And also um that amazing uh was it just like a a special video or the that movie that that beautiful that was filmed?
• 54:32
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah.
• 54:32
  SPEAKER_00: What was that?
• 54:33
  SPEAKER_03: What was that opportunity?
• 54:35
  SPEAKER_00: It it's not out to the public yet.
• 54:37
  SPEAKER_00: Hopefully it will be, but I don't know how long that's gonna take.
• 54:40
  SPEAKER_00: But we were very blessed to film a documentary piece back this past summer.
• 54:47
  SPEAKER_00: We worked with an Emmy Award-winning editor by the name of Richard Hemingway, who is incredibly talented.
• 54:54
  SPEAKER_00: And it was a documentary documentary piece that we filmed alongside an incredible nonprofit out of Chicago called Dance on Chicago.
• 55:02
  SPEAKER_00: And again, power social media.
• 55:04
  SPEAKER_00: We I was following them, they started following us.
• 55:08
  SPEAKER_00: And Greg Long, who was their founder, reached out and it was supposed to be just like a video, like a dance piece.
• 55:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um, Katie Truitz is an incredible choreographer.
• 55:19
  SPEAKER_00: She choreographed this piece and she sent us all these videos, and it was crazy.
• 55:25
  SPEAKER_00: It was crazy.
• 55:25
  SPEAKER_00: Like we had to learn everything virtually with wow, differently able kids.
• 55:29
  SPEAKER_00: It was it was interesting.
• 55:30
  SPEAKER_00: There was like 17 different motifs, and we had nine hours to learn the whole thing.
• 55:35
  SPEAKER_00: And so it was literally just supposed to be a collaboration of like a dance video, like an inclusive piece.
• 55:40
  SPEAKER_00: But it ended up because it was so magical and everything that went into it, it ended up being a full-fledged documentary.
• 55:48
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 55:48
  SPEAKER_00: So we had a red carpet premiere here in Charlotte that sold out.
• 55:52
  SPEAKER_00: They did two red carpet premieres in Chicago that sold out.
• 55:55
  SPEAKER_00: And now there's talks about you know submitting it to film festivals.
• 56:00
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, I don't, I don't know what's gonna be, but it was it was the most incredible experience I've ever had in my entire, entire life.
• 56:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I remember Rich asking me, um, they did a lot of personal interviews, and the the last thing he asked me, and of course I was crying like a baby, was you know, what after this?
• 56:20
  SPEAKER_00: And I was like, Well, what's after this is you know, this is gonna end, and I wish it wasn't because then we're gonna go back home and like nobody takes the time to see us.
• 56:29
  SPEAKER_00: Like, but that experience is what life should be like for these kids for Chelsea for her dancers, like every single day.
• 56:37
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm hoping that it gets to be shared with the world.
• 56:41
  SPEAKER_00: Totally.
• 56:41
  SPEAKER_00: Well, keep us updated because I want to know now.
• 56:44
  SPEAKER_00: It was really, really cool and lots and lots of fun.
• 56:47
  SPEAKER_00: That's awesome.
• 56:48
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, well, congrats on that.
• 56:50
  SPEAKER_03: That is so great.
• 56:51
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 56:52
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, coming soon in your future.
• 56:53
  SPEAKER_03: It will be broadcast to the world, I hope.
• 56:57
  SPEAKER_03: Chelsea, tell us what's next for you.
• 57:00
  SPEAKER_03: What's coming?
• 57:01
  SPEAKER_02: Well, first of all, Kim, congratulations.
• 57:03
  SPEAKER_02: That's so exciting.
• 57:04
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, I can't wait.
• 57:06
  SPEAKER_02: I want to watch it.
• 57:07
  SPEAKER_02: So please definitely keep us in the loop.
• 57:09
  SPEAKER_02: Well, this summer we're celebrating our 10-year anniversary of roulette's experience.
• 57:13
  SPEAKER_02: So it's a big double digits.
• 57:16
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, it's really crazy to think that I've been doing this for 10 years.
• 57:19
  SPEAKER_02: I really want to open it up to all disabilities.
• 57:22
  SPEAKER_02: So that's something that is on my like one of my goals.
• 57:26
  SPEAKER_02: And then it's so funny that we were talking about competitions and um like not really a lot of conventions, don't really have a space for people with disabilities.
• 57:35
  SPEAKER_02: And a lot of like comp dance companies that do have people with disabilities don't ever go out and audition or like compete ever.
• 57:43
  SPEAKER_02: And so we actually in 2019 started the Boundless Talent Showcase, which is our talent showcase.
• 57:50
  SPEAKER_02: And so we have a bunch of girls that they did like singing, monologues, stuff like that, dance.
• 57:55
  SPEAKER_02: And so we created a talent showcase that I actually want to open it up to all disabilities and have like a competition and have people win different levels, stuff like that, because I learned when Rolett's actually represented the United States in quote unquote para cheer hip hop at ICU World Championship.
• 58:16
  SPEAKER_02: We went against England and technically we won, but we didn't.
• 58:20
  SPEAKER_02: And they had, yeah, so we had more wheelchair users or people with disabilities than they did.
• 58:25
  SPEAKER_02: And it was very interesting.
• 58:27
  SPEAKER_02: So it gave me that like passion to be like, well, there is no there, there's not a lot of competitions that hold space for people with disabilities.
• 58:34
  SPEAKER_02: So why not create it?
• 58:35
  SPEAKER_02: So this is gonna be our second year doing it, and it's I'm really excited.
• 58:39
  SPEAKER_02: And maybe a chance to dance can come and and uh showcase or compete.
• 58:43
  SPEAKER_02: I'm excited.
• 58:45
  SPEAKER_02: That's awesome.
• 58:45
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, I like that.
• 58:46
  SPEAKER_03: I like this.
• 58:48
  SPEAKER_02: But lots of lots of really cool things coming up.
• 58:51
  SPEAKER_02: And like Kim, I think both of us are just like open for what's to come.
• 58:55
  SPEAKER_02: And just I think saying yes a lot is just a really cool it's just really cool.
• 59:01
  SPEAKER_02: You just have to say yes because you're gonna learn a lot from things.
• 59:03
  SPEAKER_02: You're gonna learn what you want to do and learn what you're not gonna want to do.
• 59:06
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm really up for whatever life throws me.
• 59:09
  SPEAKER_03: I love that.
• 59:10
  SPEAKER_03: I love that way of thinking, and I feel the same way.
• 59:13
  SPEAKER_03: It's so hard to predict what's next, and you know, you just gotta take it one day at a time, and we can always set our goals and and hope for that.
• 59:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 59:21
  SPEAKER_01: And then modify when you have to.
• 59:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 59:23
  SPEAKER_01: Oh yeah.
• 59:23
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, I think there's sort of the sort of saying in the in the dance world of, or at least in the theater world kind of is, you know, if nobody's gonna invite you to the table, you have to create your own table.
• 59:35
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, that's just what you guys have also done, you know, is just create what you need because it doesn't, it's not available already.
• 59:41
  SPEAKER_01: So keep on creating those tables.
• 59:44
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 59:45
  SPEAKER_03: Well, y'all, this was so lovely to chat with you both and so inspiring.
• 59:50
  SPEAKER_03: And I love, I absolutely love what you're doing for our dance world.
• 59:54
  SPEAKER_03: So thank you for joining us on the pod.
• 59:56
  SPEAKER_03: I'm so glad we were able to connect you guys together.
• 59:59
  SPEAKER_03: And uh, I hope all of our listeners out there, I hope you enjoyed hearing from our very special guests and learning more about them and their journey.
• 1:00:07
  SPEAKER_03: So, how we usually have our guests lead us out of the pod is by sharing one final thought, one final word of encouragement or wisdom or guidance or anything you'd like to share to our listeners out there.
• 1:00:20
  SPEAKER_03: Whoever wants to go first, take it away.
• 1:00:22
  SPEAKER_00: For me, as a parent of a child with different needs, and this is not so much related to dance as it is just to life, is you know, when you see somebody that maybe looks a little different or acts a little different, ask questions.
• 1:00:39
  SPEAKER_00: Like I feel like a lot of the problem and a lot of the walls and the barriers, it is fear.
• 1:00:45
  SPEAKER_00: But you know, children, very young children, so many times my child gets stared at because she's different and she stems and she has quirks.
• 1:00:54
  SPEAKER_00: And I always hear people say, Oh, don't stare at her or don't look at her.
• 1:00:58
  SPEAKER_00: I wish people wouldn't say that.
• 1:01:00
  SPEAKER_00: You know, just ask questions because children are asking from a place of innocence and wanting to learn.
• 1:01:05
  SPEAKER_00: And for me as a parent, I would love for you to ask questions because my life is an open book on social media.
• 1:01:12
  SPEAKER_00: My life is an ocean open book when I'm out in public, and that's the way we learn is to ask and not try to hide our differences from the world.
• 1:01:21
  SPEAKER_00: So for me, that's it.
• 1:01:23
  SPEAKER_02: I love that.
• 1:01:23
  SPEAKER_02: That's so beautiful.
• 1:01:24
  SPEAKER_02: It's so true.
• 1:01:25
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, a lot of people are so scared to ask questions.
• 1:01:28
  SPEAKER_02: And I think like if people just ask questions, then I feel like they would they wouldn't be so scared.
• 1:01:34
  SPEAKER_02: And they would realize that, like, oh, everyone just lives their life the way that they need to, you know, the way that I do things is different than the way your daughter does things.
• 1:01:43
  SPEAKER_02: But neither one is, it's not like that it's different.
• 1:01:46
  SPEAKER_02: It's just the way we we learn how to do things, you know?
• 1:01:49
  SPEAKER_02: And I think if people just had that like chance to be like, okay, I don't need to be scared, you know.
• 1:01:55
  SPEAKER_02: I love that, Kim.
• 1:01:56
  SPEAKER_02: That's so true.
• 1:01:56
  SPEAKER_02: I get I get stared at too, girl.
• 1:01:59
  SPEAKER_02: I get stared at all the time.
• 1:02:00
  SPEAKER_02: When I'm going grocery shopping or going, you know, trying to get my wheelchair in my car, like people are like, what's going on?
• 1:02:06
  SPEAKER_02: So I think my I think my biggest thing is I just want people to obviously see that dance is dance, whether you're walking or you're rolling, period.
• 1:02:15
  SPEAKER_02: Like that's my biggest thing.
• 1:02:17
  SPEAKER_02: But I also want people to realize that there's life after injury and what you do with it is what is the most important with it.
• 1:02:24
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, your life doesn't have to stop when, you know, if you break a bone or if your life just alters.
• 1:02:32
  SPEAKER_02: There's always a way to still go after your dreams in some capacity.
• 1:02:36
  SPEAKER_02: And I know every situation's different, but for me, I just like I just want people to see me and see like, okay, if she can create this out of literally nothing, then so can I, you know, and there's no excuse, you know.
• 1:02:50
  SPEAKER_02: You we can all go after our dreams.
• 1:02:52
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, that's what I would leave everyone with, too.
• 1:02:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and what a beautiful world it would be is if, you know, like what happened with you, you turned it into something beautiful.
• 1:03:04
  SPEAKER_00: You could have been, you know, angry about it and sad about it.
• 1:03:07
  SPEAKER_00: And obviously you have all those emotions.
• 1:03:09
  SPEAKER_00: I had all those emotions with Reagan's diagnosis, but with what you've done and with what I've done, holy cow, what an even more beautiful world it would be if everybody that had something like that would, you know, take that and and dig deep and try to do something positive, make something positive about it.
• 1:03:25
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 1:03:26
  SPEAKER_02: And it's not easy, you know.
• 1:03:27
  SPEAKER_02: Like a lot of people look to see like what we've created and they're like, oh wow, well, they must have had it easy or they must have had like the right connections.
• 1:03:35
  SPEAKER_02: And and we didn't, you know, we really didn't.
• 1:03:37
  SPEAKER_02: And and that's that's what like trips me up sometimes is people go, oh, well, well, she did it, or or they they probably had connections, but it hasn't been easy.
• 1:03:46
  SPEAKER_02: Creating your dream and and going after your dreams is not easy.
• 1:03:50
  SPEAKER_02: There's a lot of late nights where I'm sure Kim, you're like, what is going on?
• 1:03:54
  SPEAKER_02: Why can't we perform?
• 1:03:55
  SPEAKER_02: Or like, why isn't anyone calling us?
• 1:03:57
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I feel the same way, but you know what?
• 1:03:59
  SPEAKER_02: It's it's that time where you you chug through it and you keep going through those hard doors because the ones that the doors that open on the other side is that much more worth it.
• 1:04:09
  SPEAKER_02: You know, like that's that's what makes it so much worth it when when we're, you know, when we're up competing and it's like all this, these problems before, and then you win, or you know, you have a great performance, or that phone call for the documentary calls are like everything I worked for matters, you know, all the the yes and the no.
• 1:04:28
  SPEAKER_02: So I completely agree.
• 1:04:31
  SPEAKER_03: We hope you enjoyed this week's episode all about dancing with disabilities and special needs.
• 1:04:36
  SPEAKER_03: Be sure to follow our very special guests on social media.
• 1:04:39
  SPEAKER_03: You can find Kim at a chance to dance underscore TLT and Chelsea at Chelsea Hill.
• 1:04:46
  SPEAKER_03: To learn more about Kim's organization, A Chance to Dance, visit their website to donate now and support their mission at achance to dance charlotte.com.
• 1:04:55
  SPEAKER_03: And Chelsea's Rolette Experience will be having their 10th anniversary celebration this July in Los Angeles.
• 1:05:01
  SPEAKER_03: To learn more, visit Rolettexperience.com.
• 1:05:05
  SPEAKER_01: Don't forget to follow Making the Impact on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and pretty much everywhere you listen to podcasts.
• 1:05:14
  SPEAKER_03: Be sure to check out IDA affiliated competition, Diva Dance Competition.
• 1:05:19
  SPEAKER_03: Diva Dance Competition is America's live judging competition.
• 1:05:24
  SPEAKER_03: Their live judging format is extremely unique in the industry.
• 1:05:28
  SPEAKER_03: Dancers are asked to stay on stage following their routine.
• 1:05:31
  SPEAKER_03: Each of the judges, provided exclusively by Impact Dance Adjudicators, will provide immediate feedback live over the microphone.
• 1:05:38
  SPEAKER_03: Something else that makes D.Va different is that they are a competition with the calls.
• 1:05:43
  SPEAKER_03: Diva was born as a way to raise awareness for the CDLS Foundation, a rare genetic syndrome that Jack, one of the owner's sons, was born with.
• 1:05:51
  SPEAKER_03: Jack was the inspiration for Diva, and you may be lucky enough to meet him at one of their upcoming events.
• 1:05:57
  SPEAKER_03: And last but not least, Diva provides all routine photos and videos absolutely free.
• 1:06:04
  SPEAKER_03: For more information on Diva Dance Competition, head to their website now to register for an upcoming event in their 2022 season at divaComp.com.
• 1:06:14
  SPEAKER_01: We are on a roll in season three with some excellent episodes coming your way.
• 1:06:18
  SPEAKER_01: Stay tuned for our special Mother's Day episode, the final studio spotlight of season three, featuring club dance, and our summer intensive episode.