The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Having a grand time, at the ‘prom’

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The dancers came in all ages, sporting various styles.

Some did solo numbers, while others danced in pairs. Some formed a conga line and danced around the floor at the recreation center at Wesley Chapel District Park.

Participants at the Dance your Dream party seemed to be having a great time, as they snaked around the Wesley Chapel District Park gymnasium. (Fred Bellet)

All in all, about 100 people were there to move to the music, have some refreshments and simply enjoy themselves at  “Dance your Dream,” a free event on June 11. The gathering was sponsored by HOPE Services, a vocational service organization.

The two-hour event brought people living with disabilities together for a chance to look great and groove to the music. They came from as close as Wesley Chapel, Land O’ Lakes, Lutz and Tampa to as far away as Seffner and Brandon.

Those attending were encouraged to wear their “prom attire” and to get on the dance floor to show off their moves.

Besides dancing, there were refreshments provided by Chick-fil-A and a chance to meet the Chick-fil-A mascot.

In addition to providing the opportunity for a good time, the event doubled as a fundraiser for HOPE Services’ new Life Skills Center, which is expected to open this year.

Event-goers could bid on silent auction items and try their luck in some raffles.

The new Life Skills Center will assist people living with disabilities with everyday life skills and employable skills in food services, construction, hospitality, retail, and computer skills.

Published June 22, 2022

Cerebral palsy did not stop 36-year-old Jason Wenner, of Wesley Chapel, from rocking out in his wheelchair, as he delights to the music at the Dance your Dream party. Jason’s mother, Linda Wenner, left, said Jason was born premature and weighed just 12 ounces at birth. She described him as the family’s ‘miracle baby.’
If anyone was having a great time at the Dance your Dream party, it was clearly 39-year-old Josh Goldsmith, as he gets in on a group photo with 32-year-old Kim Gordon and 44-year-old Steven Moran, all of Tampa. About 100 people who live with disabilities attended a free prom attire dance party at the Wesley Chapel District Park gymnasium and activity rooms.
Early-arriver Brandon Wheeler, a 21-year-old from Seffner, got everything started at the party — showing off his dance moves on the floor, and concluding with a spectacular finish.
Thirty-six-year-old Keishawn Tolberg, left, is led on to the dance floor by her mother, Felicia McCardy, right, of Seffner. Keishawn’s smile lit up the dance floor at the Dance your Dream prom attire dance party.
Thirty-two-year-old Kim Gordon and 44-year-old Steven Moran dance the night away.
Twenty-two-year-old Joshua Tapia, of Wesley Chapel, shows off some fancy footwork, as he dances with his friend, Race Herron, of Lutz.
Dancing solo, Kimberly Watkins, 45, of Brandon, shows her dance technique, as she and others dance to the sounds of music from the DJs of Sandwich F.M.

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