Union County Weekly

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Health & Wellness Issue

Union County

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Seniors lead Maverick volleyball page 21

Serving Indian Trail, Marvin, Stallings, Waxhaw, Weddington and Wesley Chapel

Locally Owned & Operated www.unioncountyweekly.com Photo courtesy of www.giftofdanceschool.org

Volume 9, Number 40 • Oct. 2 to 8, 2014

Blessed with the Gift of Dance

by Ryan Pitkin ryan@unioncountyweekly.com

WAXHAW– A new dance studio, opened by Waxhaw resident Kathy Tousignant during the first week of 2014, has been steadily growing with the help of some innovative, faith-based programs. Tousignant emphasizes conwellness servative grace in dance attire and a non-competitive atmosphere at Gift of Dance studios, where she and her instructors offer God-centered exercise activity such as “Holy Yoga.” The idea came from Tousignant’s own lifetime of experience with dance, during which she said she often felt objectified. “I often felt the reason I was dancing was that I was just using my body to get to a goal, and I always wanted it to be more about the mind,” Tousignant said. “I want dance to be more about confidence in who we are and not just what we look like. I don’t want girls thinking they need the perfect body.” While the respectable dress code and spiritual music choices at Gift of Dance are inspired by Tousignant’s Christian values, she stresses that people of all faiths and backgrounds are welcome. “I want to be the light to people and love them. Christ teaches us to love, so I want to love every person who comes through that door,” she said,

health &

(see Gift of Dance on page 10)

School faculty, parents reflect on adapted P.E. program by Josh Whitener josh@unioncountyweekly.com

health & wellness

INDIAN TRAIL – If there’s one thing Christy Edwards could say about the adapted physical education program at Porter Ridge

Elementary School, it’s that the program has made a world of difference for her 7-year-old daughter, Kaitlyn. The Porter Ridge Elementary second-grader was born prematurely, at 23 weeks and six days gestation, and “has been a little fighter ever since,” Edwards said. Kaitlyn has cerebral palsy, is

nonverbal and has physical disabilities that require the use of a wheelchair. Porter Ridge physical education teacher Coach Jeffrey Pucek has worked with Kaitlyn one-onone and in a group setting since her kindergarten year, providing adapted activities to strengthen her body, keep her active and

allow her to have fun. “Even though (Kaitlyn) has such extreme disabilities, (Pucek) sets the bar high for her,” Edwards said. “He makes her work hard and doesn’t back down … and it gives her that ability to be able to participate at a greater level during P.E.” (see Porter Ridge on page 18)

INDEX: News Briefs, 6; Crime Blotter, 7; Education, 16; Faith, 19; Calendar, 20; Sports, 21; Classifieds, 27


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