NORTON

When we nd ourselves reminiscing, we sometimes drift o into the daydreams of happy times and incredible memories. at day we rst held hands, that rst kiss, our rst football championship, our rst beer together, and so many other rsts. Or we go down memory lane, reminded not just of our “ rsts” in life, but of many years of shared hardships, hurts, disappointments, wins and celebrations. Reminiscing brings back joyful moments of those we have lived our lives with and through, and just how special each moment was to us during those seasons of life. Do you have any of those memories? I sure do.

While reminiscing brings fond memories of years gone by, we sometimes visit that other side of our memories as we lament the missed opportunities in life, lost chances of love, and the mistakes we may have made along the way. We don’t often hear the word “lament” anymore. Merriam Webster’s Dictionary de nes “lament” as, to express sorrow, mourning, or regret often demonstratively, or, to regret strongly, or, to cry out in grief. ose are some very strong words that should emote some very deep feelings.

When given the choice, most of us would probably prefer to reminisce about the good old days, right? We can laugh with one another, embrace one another, and choose to only remember the best times of our lives. ere is nothing wrong with that and as a matter of fact I highly recommend it. ere is no greater cure for the blues than spending time with a family member or friend stirring up our greatest and most memorable escapades of our past.

In 1973, upon returning to Denver, Battock was part of the faculty at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Battock then decided open a solo practice while maintaining a part-time position at the university.

Originally called Aurora Community Hospital (later Humana), e Medical Center of Aurora opened in 1974.

“I decided I would like to put my feet down in Aurora,” said Battock.

Over the next few years, other doctors started to join Battock, including his boss from when he served in the military.

“At that time, there was no tertiary cardiology in Aurora and we were really getting tired of transferring patients to Rose and other downtown hospitals,” said Battock. “We really wanted to start a cardiac catheterization lab.”

Battock, along with several cardiologists and primary care physicians from e daughter who lost her mom before her wedding day laments that she couldn’t experience that special occasion with her mom. e same daughter reminisces each holiday about how special her mom made each and every holiday, bringing both tears of sorrow and tears of joy to her face. Do you see how they can both exist in the same moment? around the city opened the rst cardiac catheterization lab in Aurora in 1987. e new lab was called the Colorado Heart Institute.

Yet there is also something to be said of lamenting our past, our sorrows, our griefs, and the challenges we have faced in all our years here on earth. e struggles have been real, the hurts have been devastating, the challenges have brought us to tears, and the disappointments many and plentiful. Why would I say that there is something to be said about lamenting our past? Because sometimes even the pain brings back memories of something once cherished. Because sometimes it’s healthy to lament, and feel the pain so that we can maybe nally let it go. And sometimes, it’s OK to never let go of something or someone we cherished so deeply, that is now lost, because it keeps us connected forever.

How about you? Do you love and appreciate the moments where you get to reminisce about the best, happiest, and craziest times of life with your family and friends? Do you also lament those moments in life where you wish things could’ve been di erent? I would love to hear your story at gotonorton@gmail. com, and when we can remember all of the sweet, bitter and bittersweet moments of life that shape who we are, it really will be a better than good life.

Michael Norton is an author, a personal and professional coach, consultant, trainer, encourager and motivator of individuals and businesses, working with organizations and associations across multiple industries.

“What was one lab is now four labs and they’ve done well over 70,000 cases,” said Battock.

For 50 years, as the practice continues to grow and cardiology becomes more sophisticated, doctors and associates have kept up with the times.

In the past, they would put patients in the bed and possibly perform surgery on them, according to Battock. Now, with interventions with angioplasty, stents, and electrophysiology, doctors have more available to them and are able to provide more tests, services and procedures.

In 2001, an Aurora Denver cardiologist partnered with e Medical Center of Aurora and Emergency Medical Services to develop the Cardiac Alert program. is program is now the national standard of care for treating patients who are experiencing a severe heart attack.

Aurora Denver Cardiology Associates treats a multitude of conditions, such as palpitations, coronary artery disease, heart attacks, congestive heart failure and heart valve disease.

“Virtually, we do everything except for transplants at the medical center,” said Battock.

While caring for thousands of patients in Aurora, the Aurora Denver Cardiology Associates also has expanded with o ces in Denver, ornton, Castle Rock, Lone Tree and Centennial. Although Battock retired nearly 10 years ago, he is still involved and keeps in touch.

Looking back on the 50 years, Battock is proud of what has been accomplished, “I think what we have now is unique.”

March 22, 1935 - May 24, 2023

James L. Fritz, 88, formally of Castle Rock, Colorado, passed away on May 24, 2023 in Victoria, Texas. James was born in Castle Rock, Colorado to Rose Smith Fritz and Frank Fritz on March 22, 1935. He married Naoma Maynard on June 1, 1957 in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was a veteran of the Vietnam War and served in the Navy and Air Force.

James is preceded in death by his parents; wife, Naoma Maynard Fritz; brother, Donald e Studio is an all-inclusive space for people young and old to feel the music and express themselves. For dancers who want to break out of the traditional dance studio format, the international company based in Denver could be a dream come

Fritz; sisters, Genevieve Hanley and Darlene Pickens.

James is survived by his children, Ron Fritz (Jean) and Vivian Lovik; his grandchildren, Kevin Fritz (Jessica), Steven Fritz, Daniel Fritz, and Aimee Pasquarella (Brett); and great grandchild, Adam Fritz.

Family services are pending. Share memories and condolences with the family at www.colonialfuneralhomevictoria.com.

Striving to bring the magic of global movement to people in Colorado, Caitlin BroznaSmith founded the dance studio that brings a piece of global culture along with self-expression and con dence with each class.

“It was so important to include people from where these cultures are sourced,” said Brozna-Smith. “I found people from Polynesia to teach Polynesian dance… teachers from Iran. We really have this beautiful, electric group of dancers from all over the

Among a multitude of dance styles, students can learn the soft style of Hula ‘Auana, Tahitian dance, Bollywood, Belly Dancing, adult ballet and Ginga Vibe, which draws on styles from the African Diaspora including Funk, Afro-Caribe, Dance Hall, Soca, Lambada and Samba. e studio also o ers Taiji Fit, a halfhour mind and low-impact body workout that combines traditional T’ai Chi with mindfulness and modern Western tness. Inspired by the Bollywood style of dance, BollyX Fitness is a 50-minute cardio workout and GROOV3 Hip Hop Dance Fitness.

Within the Bella Diva studio, both the

Students learn worldwide dance styles at Bella Diva World Dance Studio

BY HALEY LENA HLENA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

teaching sta and students are multinational. e dance teachers come from ve di erent countries and teach a range of students from 29 di erent countries.

To bring as much authentic culture into Denver, many teachers have gone abroad to study di erent styles of dance.

“ e people (teachers) who are not native from the cultures that we’re teaching travel and learn from the source because it’s really important that we do cultural appreciation and cultural exchange,” Brozna-Smith said.

Samba teach countries. styles (teachers) the from source appreciation exchange,” Brozna-Smith abso-

Samba, the high energy and fast footwork style is not just a dance form, it is a lifestyle. ose who teach Samba at Bella Diva make sure they are staying true to the culture and teach the students the history of where the dance originated.

“I am very careful when I am teaching my students because I am not Brazilian, it is not my culture, but it is something that I am absolutely fascinated with and love,” said instructor Chelsi Vecchiavelli. “I spend a lot of time outside of class researching, asking experts, listening to podcasts, consulting my mentors who are Brazilian and who are my teachers.”

Born out of the slave trade when it was down in Brazil, Samba was a means of hope and joy and is a dance of resistance and raises up against oppression.

Samba schools have often been located in a favela, which is the poor neighborhoods within Rio De Janeiro. Vecchiavelli said there is a big connection between the people and the culture, which is something she wanted to bring back to her classes in the U.S. e class starts with a warm-up, which can di er each week, but tends to be drill focused. Students start to move their bodies by working on hip movements, endurance and strengthening the ankles. e students gather in a circle and with an energetic song playing, they dance with each other. e end of class time is not about technique or who has the best footwork, it’s about connecting with one another as that is what the culture is about. Western dancers are often trained to perform, but this style of dance is about looking each other in the eyes, singing and embracing the joy that comes along with Samba.

Since spending time in Brazil earlier this year, Vecchiavelli has implemented a sense of community within her classes.

After warming up, the class begins to stretch out every part of their body to help prevent injuries. e class then moves to work on technique, whether it is adding the ourishes of the arms during Samba no pé or gaining speed and endurance for the style.

In Brozna-Smith’s Samba class, her students warm up to the upbeat rhythm of the drums.

Just as Brozna-Smith has her students perform for one another during the class, Vecchiavelli has integrated improvisation at the end of her class.

“We need to recognize that we’re dancing it from a place of privilege,” said Vecchiavelli. “We’re not able to connect to it in the same way that people in Brazil can, and so I try to make sure that we at least know the context of it.”

Bella Bro World Dance

For an hour each week, men take part in a high-intensity, choreographybased workout. Led by Kyle Kastner, the group’s heart rate increases and sweat pours down as Kastner focuses on moving fast.

Having been the only consistent man who danced at Bella Diva for eight years, Kastner felt the need to bring more men into the fold, as male representation in dance in America is not as strong as in other cultures.

Kastner believes the American culture is dismissive and even undermining of male dancers.

“I actually think that it is incredibly masculine to dance, and when you look at other cultures around the world, dance is ingrained,” Kastner said. “It’s not gendered. ere may be gender norms within it, but gender is not important.”

With the goal of creating a space for men to feel free to use their bodies in a creative way, Kastner created Bella Bro World Dance. ere are about eight individuals who are regulars to the class. Kasnter gains inspiration for his class from Bollywood and Brazilian Samba no pé. It is not just the energy that those styles of dance bring but embracing the masculinity of the Indian culture and bridging the gap between di erent stylings that is being shown in Samba no pé.

Bella Bro World Dance recently worked on a piece inspired by a lm based on a true story. e character they are portraying was a great warrior and fought in battles. Although it appears that the dancers are not doing much, their moves are incredibly complex and take a lot of strength to complete. roughout the class, the students started to learn how to move their bodies in new and challenging ways and discover things about themselves, Kastner said. e class also helps rede ne what masculinity is and shift the focus from a toxic idea of masculinity to a much more embracing, accepting idea of what it could be.

In his class, he helps the students learn how to use their inherent male privilege as a superpower for good.

“ at’s something I’ve de nitely been working with the men on is understanding that just because we are men, we have privilege that others don’t,” said Kasnter. “And then especially if we are white men with privilege that others don’t (have), to use that in a bene cial positive way for society and community as a whole.” instructor of the Iranian Persian style of dance in Colorado, Delsie KhademGhaeini is honored to represent her community and to be a vessel for cultural outreach by sharing Iranian culture through dance.

In Iranian culture, there are a couple of di erent stylizations of dance as there are di erent minority groups and languages, all of the groups have their own folk dancing and style of dancing. e style Khadem-Ghaeini teaches is not a regional style of dance in Iran, it is shared across all of those cultures.

Iranian culture is deeply rooted in poetry, therefore, a lot of the music has poetry in it.

Khadem-Ghaeini said the style she teaches is more of a staged kind of style of dancing, a style that is closely related to what is seen in current pop styles of dance. She focuses on the quality of the movements. e movements are more structured and re ned compared to some of the more theatrical styles of dancing.

“Depending on what region they’re from, there might be dance movements that are associated to the kind of farming that they might have done or in the southern region, along the Persian Gulf, there may be dance movements that are related to shing,” Khadem-Ghaeini said.

Her classes focus on connecting with the music by using the uidity of the arms, hands and wrists, which can be very emotive. One form of movement that di erentiates the Iranian style of dance from other styles that also use arms and hands is the use and curving of the spine. e combination of the arm, hand and spinal curves is subtle to the eye.

According to Khadem-Ghaeini, the aesthetics of Iranian culture has a lot of curves and a lot of geometry. Many of the shapes in the body that dancers create are very curved, even mirroring the way Persian calligraphy curves and moves are showing up in dance.

Another important piece of Iranian Persian dancing is learning the history of Iranian culture and sending messages and making statements. With the current revolutions taking place in Iran, Khadem-Ghaeini and her students performed at the University of Denver, choosing songs that relate to the woman-led revolutions.

“When I’m dancing, it’s a much deeper connection to music,” said Khadem-Ghaeini. “It’s not just about trying to hit my body a certain way that that music hits… but the poetry and the music that has like thousands of years of history, that is part of Iranian culture, to me, every time I do a performance is deeply involved for me.”

Being a student at Bella Diva World Dance

Having studied dance since she was a little girl, Elizabeth Buckius has trained in di erent kinds of studios with strict teachers in traditional ballet. She said that Bella Diva is the most welcoming, supportive and caring studio.

Students at the Denver-based studio are of all ages, all orientations and all shapes and sizes. e people bring an electric energy into the studio and by embracing the cultural aspect of the di erent styles of dance, everyone — from sta to students to the costume designer — has created a strong community within the walls of the studio, according to Buckius and sta at the studio.

“What makes us unique is also what makes us stronger,” said Brozna-Smith. “We’re able to really learn empathy by putting ourselves in somebody else’s shoes or position and life.”

Along with the positive and supportive energy in each classroom, there is a lot of curiosity as well. e studio focuses on learning about different cultures and becoming a global citizen. Buckius said it’s a great way to learn about other parts of the world.

Bella Diva also focuses on being body positive and being a healthy place for dancers. And with such multicultural sta and students at the studio, the studio has become a strong and vibrant community in Denver and internationally.

“We really want to be rooted in the actual traditions that we’re studying,” said Buckius. “So even though we’re here in Colorado, we want to make sure we’re connecting with the actual traditions at the world dance studio.”

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