GIVING BACK
How the POD Family Gives Back to the Community
When Elizabeth Powers and Theresa Perenick opened the Power of Dance studio in 2007, their dream was to share their love of dance with ALL students and give dancers an opportunity to learn not only dance but teamwork, perseverance, sportsmanship and the gift of friendship and community. The Power of Dance family continues to find ways to share their kindness, encouragement, generosity and empathy within the studio and outside with our community. The following events are examples of how POD spreads joy amongst our dancers, families and community.
Parents Night Out
Every October, we give the parents a chance for “Date Night” and open our doors to the public to watch their children for the evening. Typically held around Halloween, the kids get a chance to dress up in their favorite costumes to play games, run obstacle courses, jump in the bouncy house, take pictures in a photo booth, make crafts, and many more exciting activities. “Trunk or Treat” is a huge hit, with a dozen or more decorated cars giving out candy. Come check it out in the fall and see what all the kids are raving about!
Feed My Starving Children
In October, 60 members of our Power of Dance family volunteered to pack meals for Feed My Starving Children at the Green Bay Community Church. The volunteers worked in an assembly line fashion to fill bags of nutritious food to be sent to Nicaragua and some African countries. Our POD crew ranged in age from 5 years old to 18 years old with several parents. The group packed enough meals to feed 440 children for an entire year. We watched a video of the communities that are served by FMSC. It was a profound experience that included the fun of working together to pack the meals and learning about the less fortunate children that FMSC helps feed for a year. We can’t wait to do it again next year!
Rake Up Green Bay
In November, a group of POD volunteers raked the lawns of several Green Bay residents in need of assistance. This was our first year working with the Rake Up Green Bay program and we look forward to expanding our involvement each year!
Color For A Cause
The POD lobby contains a dedicated coloring station to benefit the Meals on Wheels program and the Brown County ADRC (Aging & Disability Resource Center). Our students decorate meal bags for homebound seniors and adults with disabilities. The ADRC says “We serve over 500 meal recipients each day and have had an overwhelming response that the decorated meal bags brighten their day even more. Many customers even keep the bags to share with others or hang in their homes.”
Power of Dance Showcase Benefiting The Giving Tree
Our Showcase is a chance for our All-Star teams to show off their first routine to family and friends, but it is also a way for POD to give back to our community. The cost of admission for our fans is a donation of non-perishable food items or personal care items for The Giving Tree, the food pantry for the Howard Suamico area. In 2023, our audience of over 500 spectators donated 1674 pounds of food and 160 personal care items. The following week, dancers and parents worked at The Giving Tree to sort and shelve all of these donations and present them with a check on behalf of the studio.
Christmas Donation Tree
One of the Power of Dance special annual traditions is our in-house Christmas Donation Tree. The holidays can be a difficult time for some in our community. We like to help out by setting up a Christmas tree in our lobby where families can take an “ornament” off the tree that matches their capacity for giving during the holiday season. Each ornament has an item of need or a gift for a family/child within the community. Monetary donations are also accepted. In 2022, we supported Foster the Village, which gives emergency supplies to foster families who welcome children in need on very short notice. In 2023, we partnered with CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocates for Children), a volunteer-based nonprofit organization that provides a voice for abused and neglected children who are under the legal protection of the court system.