Teachers
| Sheila
Dollas: Founder
and Executive Director |
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I
never thought the darkest time in my life would turn out to be
the beginning of one of the greatest journeys in my life, layered
with countless blessings.
In my sophomore year
at college, I sustained a traumatic back injury that literally
brought aspirations of a career in dance to a halt. Over the next
eight months, a series of visits to eight specialists consumed
my life (not to mention my family’s life). Results revealed
a herniated disc and a degenerative disc in my lower back, a broken
collarbone and a degenerative disc in my neck. I adorned a neck
brace, a sling to immobilize my arm, a corset with metal sties
around my torso and a two-inch lift in my left shoe.
Surgery was recommended
for my lower back, however,
surgery on my
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my neck
and collarbone was not medically feasible. My path to healing
would be arduous, to say the least. After a year of lying paralyzed
on our living room floor, in complete shock and disbelief, the
muscle spasms began to subside. I began finding myself waking
from dreams in which I danced to new choreography. I also found
myself needing not only to listen, but also to feel the music
again. Lying on my back under the sound system I could feel the
music resonate throughout my entire body. Visualization and imagery,
allowed me to send or hold the music anywhere from my head to
my toes. The power of pure authentic rhythm and visualization
of my body moving was the most important part of my recovery.
Shortly thereafter, my dance teacher asked me to coach students
in preparation for an upcoming competition. It was a bittersweet
experience leaving me empty.
I faced the inevitable
need to begin a new direction of college studies. As fate would
have it, I found myself in the library mesmerized with books illustrating
the dance world. It was then that I became spellbound with one
small section of books dedicated to dance therapy and dance with
special populations. I was alive again!
Along with my studies
in Psychology, I added a dual degree of course work in the Social
Sciences. All of my electives and internships surrounded synthesizing
the dance world and work with individuals who were at risk and/or
exceptionally challenged. Graduate studies at three different
schools allowed me to explore dance and movement with a strong
emphasis on the holistic virtue and philosophy of recovery and
harmonization of the mind and body.
In 1998, I was blessed
with an opportunity to take all that I had learned and put it
to use, opening a grass-roots dance program for children, adolescents
and adults who were exceptionally challenged mentally, physically
and/or emotionally. With my three-year-old daughter at my side,
we began working with four students to develop a dance program
designed and tailored to creatively meet the unique needs of each
individual. Over the next year, each student bestowed beautiful
gifts and many shared portfolios of medical miracles. We were
honored to share the same time, space and energy force and continually
amazed at the “dance” we had created together. These
were truly Moving Miracles.
It was immediately
obvious to us that in order to be successful in meeting individual
needs we needed to lay blue prints for an ambulatory and non-ambulatory
curriculum. Today, our dance curriculums present a non-traditional
therapeutic approach to learning; concentrating on a kinesthetic
and multi-sensory level. Each class emulates that of a traditional
dance class, referencing developmental milestones. We focus on
enhancing the quality of each individual’s life by providing
tools and empowering each person to gain mastery and control over
their body and environment.
Now, in our eighth
season, my daughter and I take our humble place at the community
table along with a highly trained teaching staff of 10 and more
than 40 volunteer “dance partners,” all working together
with more than 400 children, adolescents and adults to help each
and every one reach their full potential.
Who would have thought
during those dark days of diagnosis and therapy that we would
come through…following a new path to experience some of
the greatest miracles life has to offer.
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Jean Widlicka:
Artistic Director |
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Artistic Director, Jean
Widlicka waltzed into our dance studios just five short years ago
as a volunteer “dance partner”. Upon quick introduction
it was immediately obvious to all that “Miss Jean” was
a highly regarded Ballet Mistress and quite accomplished in the
performing arts world. She began formal dance training at a very
young age culminating in studies at the School of American Ballet
under the direction of George Balanchine. Miss Jean began performing
at the age of three with her mother and sister on the USO battleships
in World War II. Her performance resume stands in a class of it
own, including a tour as a Rockette at Radio City Music Hall and
appearances on The Ed Sullivan TV show. Miss Jean’s humble
and generous heart took her to orphanages where she orchestrated
improvisational groups empowering all of the children and adolescents
through the universal language of music and dance. She was the founder
of Ballet Theater Workshop in NYC, and has numerous professional
faculty appointments including C.W. Post College in NY, Virginia
Conservatory of Ballet and Lake Placid Olympic Training Center among
others. |
| After one
year as a volunteer, Miss Jean graciously accepted a position as
Artistic Director at Moving Miracles. As a dance historian her knowledge,
wisdom and theatrical flare brought a new life to our performances.
In the summer of 2004, under the direction of Miss Jean, Moving
Miracles formally established a touring dance company. “Without
Words Dance Ensemble” originated and was created to educate
society about the abilities, strengths, dreams and ambitions of
our gifted and talented dancers |
Jill Baker:
Managing Director |
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Jill
joined the Moving Miracles family as a volunteer in December 2004
and was promoted to the teaching staff in September 2005. She
became Managing Director in July 2007. Jill has studied all forms
of dance for over 24 years, beginning her training in 1983 at
Rhythmettes Dance Studio in North Tonawanda. In 1984, she moved to
Michele Merwin Dance Arts (now Tonawanda Dance Arts) where she
continued to study dance until June, 2003. Jill began teaching as
an assistant instructor at TDA in 1996, with a promotion to full
faculty coming in September, 2003. She has completed Levels 1-3 of
the Dance Masters of America Teacher Training School program and has
attended intensive programs in Musical Theatre and Hip Hop through
Dance Masters. In the summer of 2007, Jill spent six weeks
attending an intensive program in Modern dance with the Buffalo
Contemporary Dance Company and is currently attending continuing
education classes in Tap dance through Barb Denny’s School of Dance
Arts in Lancaster. She is a member of both the National Dance
Education Organization and the New York State Dance Education
Association. In addition to her dance credentials, Jill is a 2003
graduate of the State University of New York at Buffalo, where she
earned a B.A. in Political Science with a concentration in
International Relations.
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Bethann
Cournan: Dance Instructor |
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Bethann spent five years as a volunteer
with Moving Miracles before being added to our teaching staff in
2006. She has an Associate’s Degree in Human Resources and has also
been pursuing a degree in Occupational Therapy through Erie
Community College. Trained as a gymnast by the Kathy Gleason School
of Gymnastics in Wheatfield, Bethann spent two years coaching
cheerleading at the junior varsity and varsity levels for the
Holland Central School District. She also has twenty years of
experience working with the special education departments of various
Western New York school systems as a Braille translator.
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Autumn
Regan: Dance Instructor |
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Autumn joined the Moving Miracles team in
October, 2006. She has studied dance and theatre with various
schools along the East Coast, but was trained locally by David
DeMarie Dance Studios and the American Academy of Ballet. Autumn
specializes in tap, jazz, and ballet but has ventured into
studying other forms of dance such as African dance and says she
has been dancing for as long as she can remember. She feels as
though her job at Moving Miracles is one of the most fulfilling
gifts in her life because she has the pleasure of working with so
many wonderful people.
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Melody Semp:
Assistant Dance Instructor |
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Melody is the newest member of the Moving
Miracles teaching staff, having joined us in September, 2007.
Originally from Endicott, New York, she has been dancing for twelve
years, studying ballet, tap, jazz, modern, lyrical and hip hop. As
well as dancing, she also coached Pee-Wee cheerleading for the local
church Our Lady of Good Counsel. Melody is currently a student at
Buffalo State College majoring in Speech-Language Pathology with a
minor in Dance. She is thrilled to be joining the Moving Miracles
family.
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