Dear Friends,
Thank you to everyone who generously contributed to Suneela Jain and Tareya Palmer’s “Just Health Fund” Stop Drop and Dance class this past Saturday!
The Just Health Fund was established to resource the work of grassroots organizations across the country who are responding to the crisis in healthcare for marginalized communities.
Visit the Just Health Fund website for more information!
Thank you especially to those of you who made it live to our zoom or in-person class at “The Garage!"
We had so much fun with a mixture of regular dancers who come every week, as well as new dancers who were co-workers of Suneela and Tareya at Tides Foundation!
The morning concluded with post-workout coffee and snacks by Diane Lai and homemade carrot cake baked by Leslie Dinham!
Thank you for dancing for health equity!
Two more fundraiser classes in June!
Please join us as we dance and raise money for two more important causes this month:
Dance to Support Dotto's Family
Saturday, June 15th 9:30am-10:45am
@The Garage (1 Thorndale Drive, San Rafael)
Join Laura Williams and help support the family of Dotto Ngongoseke who was killed last October in a tragic car accident, and leaves behind his wife Ina and three sons, Nyanza (16), Lyuba (14) and Sonda (11).
THEME: Please wear one or all Tanzania flag colors: blue, green, black and/or yellow.
Believe Music Heals
Tuesday, June 18th 9:30am-10:45am
@UU Marin (240 Channing Way, San Rafael)
Join Karin Conn as we celebrate her birthday by dancing and raising money for Believe Music Heals, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing healing and hope through music to those who need it.
THEME: Please wear colorful hearts and butterflies.
All donors can join us in-person or on Zoom, and will receive an on-demand recording of class for the week after. Even if you are not interested in dancing, your donation is greatly appreciated!
Happy Birthday last Thursday to Karisa Stuart!
Happiest birthday to Karisa, who started dancing with us from almost the start of our Stop Drop and Dance classes ten years ago, but this year was the first time she said YES to letting us spotlight her very special birth day!
Last Thursday, we danced for 75 minutes to all of our original songs from 10 years ago, and so many dancers came up front too! Our classes are already sweaty, however with the summer heat arriving early and extra fun birthday energy, the sweat was REAL!
Thank you to Karisa’s new and old friends who joined to support her last week, including Kate Anderson, Kate Hobbs, Ann Morrison, Shel Saxon and Krista Propst! A special thank you also goes to Kim Trainor who brought a balloon for Karisa and cupcakes for everyone!
Save the Date for Tuesday, June 11th at 9:30am for our next double birthday celebration for Kristen Sperling and Laika Chow!
Dress as one of the Spice Girls (Sporty, Posh, Baby, Ginger, or Scary)!
Reminder: No class this Saturday, June 8th!
My family and I will be taking a short weekend trip to LA to celebrate my husband's birthday! As a look ahead into the summer, I will also be taking off 2 weeks from Saturday, June 29th to Saturday, July 13th to travel to China with my parents and my sister's family!
Don't forget all our class are recorded on-demand!
On our membership plan, you can take unlimited classes anytime that is convenient for you, even if I am not here or if you are traveling away this summer and need a workout on the go! If you are not a member, you can purchase on-demand classes a-la-carte on our website.
In addition, kids are always free to attend class with a parent!
Now that schools are ending and summer is here, remember that YOU should not sacrifice your workout routine or your mental health. If you need to move your body, feel free to bring your kids as long as they are old enough to participate and take class with you without being disruptive.
"If you do not make time for your wellness,
you will be forced to make time for your illness."
I saw this quote last week, and it made me pause.
Ouch, the truth hurts!
I shared it with my Strength & Stretch class last Wednesday, and I also shared how grateful I am that my parents are still strong and healthy. When I was younger, we went on family bike rides after dinner, my parents took recreational ballroom dancing classes together, my dad would walk the 18 hole golf course versus getting a golf cart, and my mom was always wearing a pedometer to get 10,000 steps daily.
Even now, they are definitely the "oldest" students in my class, but they dance with me 3x a week AND they take my Strength & Stretch class on Wednesdays! On days when there are no classes, they walk over an hour around the neighborhood in the hills, and if it's a rainy day, they'll be watching news in the evenings with my dad sitting on a stationary bike and my mom marching in place.
They are my role models and reminder that moving our body is an incredibly important, daily habit. It does NOT have to be intense, but it has to be intentional and consistent.
Let's be proactive with our physical, mental and emotional health and let's commit to moving our bodies, surrounding ourselves with positive people, and engaging in activities that give us purpose.
Love,
Grace
