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Awards & recognition

Dance Awareness inclusion award

WE ARE SO VERY GRATEFUL FOR THIS RECOGNITION AND TO SUPPORT THIS CAUSE. MAY WE KEEP OUR CHILDREN SAFE. Please click read more to read more about this organization and the magical connection with the writers and producers of this music.

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Martie award 2019

The Arts Council of Martin County has been fueling passions and inspiring participation in the visual, literary and performing arts since 1980. Artists have a gift. We create for the passion of making a difference in the world while touching lives in our own hometown. Art inspires and enables us to connect to one another more deeply. Whatever the medium, art can open our eyes, make us question, or help us heal as individuals and in our family and social groups. I ask each of you to be courageous and to push past the boundaries of your self-imposed limitations. I believe everyone has the ability to create art in some form, so I invite YOU to share your creations. Share your truth

The Wings to Fly Dance Company is an integrated dance company that includes performers with and without disabilities. As the Executive Director, I am honored to accept a 2019 Marties award and join the cast of past recipients who have and continue to make an incredible impact on the Arts in Martin County and beyond.

Above you see my hand on my heart - I am truly honored to live in a community that gives such recognition and praise to the Arts. I am proud to call Martin County my home! Albert Einstein influences my thinking with “The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science”.

Many thanks to the Arts Council of Martin County, Kia Hamill and the Lyric Theater, my harness-creating sister Tara Anstensen, my supportive husband Paul Shirley, my inspirational daughter Rose, my rock of a mother Tena Patterson, and the incredible WTFDC talent that comes together and delivers a symphony of movement. Thank YOU for inspiring me to continue creating. The theme of our next performance will be “Emerge” featuring live music, dance, song, and art. This recognition is the very water I needed to water the seed for our next community event.

Tasha shirley

Employee of the year at Martin Memorial Hospital

where there is a will there is way.

Throughout Martin Health System, it is not difficult to find associates who go above and beyond for their patients. Individuals, like Tara Anstensen, consistently demonstrate commitment and dedication to the organization’s mission of providing exceptional health care, hope and compassion to every person, every time.

Five years ago, Anstensen, a physical therapy assistant at Martin Health Rehabilitation Center on Tiffany Avenue in Port St. Lucie, began working with Casey Cardinali. Cardinali, who has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair for mobility, was referred for physical therapy to develop core strength, flexibility, seated postural control and weight bearing balance activities.

Anstensen, who is also a dancer with the Wings to Fly Dance Company, invited Cardinali to dance with her last year as a graduation gift. After seeing Cardinali’s enthusiasm, Anstensen took her offer a step further and adapted a harness system that allows Cardinali to participate in dances without any other assistive device.

(courtesy of TC Palm)

Reviews

Life impacting performing arts work with children and adults of all performing abilities.

Please accept this letter of support for the Wings to Fly Dance Company on behalf of the children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities assisted and supported by the ARC of Martin County. The ARC of Martin County has had the pleasure and the direct benefit of being affiliated with the Wings to Fly Dance Company for the past eight years.

During this time the individuals within our after-school program, summer camp program and adult day program have participated in inspirational performing arts programs that culminated each year with the most passionate performances in front of live audiences. These performances were always integrated with students and adults without disabilities for a full inclusive cast of performers. This integration alone was significant in the Keith W. Muniz developmental learning process for the individuals with disabilities. But, the life changing experience for the students and adults without disabilities was just as significant a lesson. Wings to Fly Dance Company brings people of all abilities together with a common goal; to express the passion of music and dance through the abilities of the performers both individually and collectively as a cast. In my 35 years of experience working with people with disabilities, I have never seen anyone do it as well as the Wings to Fly Dance Company. The themes of the performances inspire and energize people with disabilities to achieve their fullest potential and the audiences leave at the end of the show feeling like they have gone through a portal that has removed all barriers they once perceived and ignited the possibilities of people to live, work and perform to their fullest expectations. It is our agency for persons with disabilities hope that you will provide the Wings to Fly Dance Company every consideration for their State of Florida grant request, so they may continue their life impacting performing arts work with children and adults of all performing abilities.

Sincerely,
President & CEO of The ARC
Keith Muniz

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We applaud her talent and commitment to WTFDC.

The Lyric Theatre is pleased to support your nomination of Tasha Patterson Shirley for the 2016 mARTies Awards Outstanding Volunteer in the Arts. Tasha has enjoyed a life-long passion for all forms of modern and contemporary dance and fortunately for the last ten years our community has enjoyed performances by Wings to Fly Dance Company (WTFDC). Tasha is the founding director o f W T F D C and volunteers all o f her time to work with and create shows for her talented performers.

Tasha has been a supporter of The Lyric Theatre as a donor, ticket buyer and show producer. We appreciate the quality of talent and artistic richness and diversity she brings to the stage for all to enjoy.

We applaud her talent, resourcefulness and commitment to WTFDC, our community and all of the incredible dancers who benefit from her experience, motivation and passion.

The Lyric Theatre
Truly an Inclusive event!

Beautiful, vibrant, touching, talented, awesome LIFE performance at the Sunrise. What I loved especially was that often you couldn't tell what performers had the challenges, and who didn't . Truly an inclusive beautiful event, showing that we all are more alike than different! I loved it! Bravo to you, Tara & Tena!!

Carolyn and John Mellaci
Amazing and Therapeutic event

Sabrina Ahmed, who is diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy, has been a patient at Martin Memorial Rehab center since she was 15 months of age, now she is 15 years old.

When she was 8 years old, she was invited to perform with Wings to Fly Company. Sabrina is wheelchair bound, therefore she has limited range of motion. Through Wings to Fly, Sabrina is able to gain a different kind of therapy, which she enjoys.

The impact of Wings to Fly dance performances are very positive for my daughter, she feels happy and enjoys being on stage, she is home schooled, so all the interaction she gets is either Doctor's visits or Rehabilitation therapy, but with Wings to Fly, she feels she can do so much more. She can "Fly" her arms reach out when she is on stage and after participating in 4 performances, the audience is left with tears of joy
Wings to Fly has been an amazing and therapeutic event for Sabrina, that actively gives her the freedom to enjoy, participate and just "fly" for a brief moment.

I highly recommend and support Wings to Fly Company to everyone.

Thankfully,
Naureen Haider

(Sabrina Ahmed's mother)
That experience paved the way to my being able to do what I thought I couldn't, and my becoming more than I, at that time, thought possible.

I'm guessing that I was part of the cast of Wings To Fly Dance Company at it's birth. I reside and dance primarily in Japan but one of the most heart wrenching and yet hope-filled and inspiring stages I have had the pleasure to be a part of was the "Quest" performance. It was a literal rollercoaster ride with my pieces because of the various injuries I was yet in the process of healing while I was dancing. However, I have no regrets. Every day I had the opportunity to engage with the choreography, production, dance and camera staff was time well spent. I was probably in the most pain I have ever been in while preparing for and performing for a stage, but it has become a badge of honor. That experience paved the way to my being able to do what I thought I couldn't, and my becoming more than I, at that time, thought possible.

"Wings To Fly" is an apt name because as is written in Isaiah, through my experience in that company, I have been given the ability to "mount up with wings as eagles. To run and not be weary. And, to walk and not faint."

Illya Renwick. Guest Artist

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News TV and Newspapers

Skys the Limit

Life. From the moment we are born, something in each and every one of us yearns for freedom. We learn to crawl, walk, run, dance, and if we’re really lucky - even if only for brief, beautiful moments - we learn to fly.

Local Dance Troupe Inspires, Entertains and Gives WIngs

Tonight, The Lyric Theatre will host Wings to Fly Dance Company's Journey, a performance that incorporates yoga, ballet, modern, jazz, and contemporary dance in one night. The WTF dance troupe integrates dancers with and without disability as they explore themes of the journey of life, from triumphs and tragedies to love and compassion. In their performance of Journey this April, the Wings to Fly Dance Company will dance to the music of many genres.

Dance of a lifetime.

Casey Cardinali (center), of Port St. Lucie, dances while harnessed to Tara Anstensen as they dance to "I Believe" alongside Kaileigh Ba of Stuart, and Lisa Mie, of Port St. Lucie, during the Wings to Fly Dance Company's dress rehearsal Thursday for their program "Jour Theatre in Stuart. Anstensen, who is also a physical therapy assistant at Martin Health Rehabilitation Center, uses a customized har enable Cardinali, who has cerebral palsy, to dance. "Oh my gosh, it's changed her life," Anstensen said. The performance is 7 p.m. To see more photos, go to TCPalm.com.

The Gift of Dance

Tara Anstensen, physical therapy assistant, and Casey Cardinali dance while harnessed together during rehearsal for a Wings to Fly Dance Company presentation. Anstensen designed a harness that allows Cardinali, who relies on a wheelchair for mobility, to stand and dance with other members of the company.

Dreams come true

Tara Anstensen, right, straps J.P. McGlone into the 'Freedom Har-ness. town Stuart on Saturday, March 30 at the Lyric Theatre Friday, March 29, 2019. Born with cerebral palsy, J.P. McGlone has watched as others dance with harnesses for the past five years. This year he will get his wish, to be on stage and participate, using the 'Freedom Harness' in Wings to Fly Dance Company's new show, 'HOPE', at Lyric Theater in downtown Stuart on Saturday, March 30 at 7pm. Jake Schoonmaker and Thomas Ciaramitaro, right, steady the hoist asJ.P. McGlone, center, dances with the 'Freedom Harness'.

Who needs Wings to

Wings to Fly Dance Company performed at the Treasure Coast Arts & Mindfulness Fest on Sunday, May 23 at the Mid Florida Event Center in Port St. Lucie. Here, Hannah Mae Dugmore performs a 'grand jete' in front of Casey Cardina-li, born with cerebral palsy, who dances harnessed to Tara Anstensen. Sevin Bullwinkle staff photographer