The girls got to go behind the scenes at the Florida theme park.
ADAMS, Mass. — Nearly a dozen local girls had the chance to perform in front of thousands at Disney World last year.
Dancecapade owner Jaclyn Grabicki brought 11 of her dancers to the Florida theme park in mid-December to perform alongside 45 other studios.
"When I opened my studio that was something that I kind of prided myself on. I wanted to give the girls opportunities to get out of this area to see other venues," she said. "Watching them dance at Disney and watching them perform was the greatest thing for me to see because it is something that you don't think you are ever going to be able to do for them."
Grabicki said the trip was not a competition but rather an opportunity for her girls to perform on a world stage at Disney Springs and a parade through the Magic Kingdom.
Dancer Hayden Therrien, who is about to turn 16, said it was quite the experience performing in front of thousands of people from all over the world.
"We had the confidence and we believed in ourselves," she said. "It was hard at first but when we got together and moved around, we got it ... we are a smaller studio compared to some of the others that were there and we stuck out."
Fellow dancer Rylin Larabee, who is about to turn 11, agreed that it was a bit of a shock.
"I was so nervous," she said. "I thought, 'oh no.'"
Grabicki said this was a first for a lot of the girls who are used to competing and performing in front of smaller groups.
Rylin's mom, Caitlin, agreed.
"I thought it was an amazing opportunity for her to go and dance in front of such a crowd," she said. "She is only 10 years old and it was just amazing for her to be dancing in front of thousands of people. It took a lot of courage."
Mom Kathryn LeBlanc said she was proud of her daughter Macaela LeBlanc as well as the rest of the girls for their professionalism. She thought the experience has changed her daughter.
"I have noticed since Disney she has come out of her shell," she said. "She is going to be auditioning for the opening number for our recital, which is not something she would have done prior."
She added that this great performance did not just happen and lauded Grabicki's efforts prior to the trip to make sure the girls were prepared.
"Jackie worked hard with the girls for hours every week," she said. "She would come in on Saturday or Monday nights. Whenever she could to make sure they were ready."
The 11 students were in Florida from Dec. 12 to 16 and got to enjoy the sights when they weren't dancing.
"I went on a lot of roller coasters," Rylin said.
She added that they also were ferried across Disney Springs, which was only reserved for the performers.
Grabicki said they were given the backstage passes during the trip.
"We got to see behind the scenes things that normal people who go to Disney do not get to see," she said. "We kind of got treated like a cast member and were able to go places that were not available to the public ... some places the parents weren't even allowed to go."
Therrien said this was her favorite part.
"We got to see a lot of stuff that we haven't seen before and we got to work with different choreographers," she said. "We got to see like the floats for the parade before they were out in public."
Macaela's favorite part of the trip was all encompassing and she "liked everything" as did dancer Kelsey Brown, who was most excited about the parade.
Grabicki thanked the community for supporting the dance studio's fundraising effort for the trip. She noted it is no easy task raising funds to send 11 girls down to Disney World.
"We are from a small community and these parents did a lot of fundraising and the community was a very big help," she said. "They helped get the kids there and being from a small town sometimes you don't get offered that kind of stuff."
Instructor and parent Nicole Brown added it was amazing to see the banners in the parade that said "Adams, Massachusetts."
"Seeing the banner and seeing the kids coming down, I was just overwhelmed I started crying," she said. "I never thought in my wildest dreams that my daughter would be marching down Main Street in Disney."
Grabicki said it was a moment she will hold on to forever.
"You almost want to freeze it so you can keep it ... it went by so quickly," she said. "We spent all of this time rehearsing and went by in a blink of an eye."
Grabicki said it is important for young athletes to travel and perform in new places. She hopes to bring the trip back in a couple a years so her younger dancers will also have the opportunity to go.
The students who traveled to Disney World are: Kelsey Brown, Ainsley Dean, Kaeli Dean, Vanessa Harrington, Courtney Kanelos, Genevieve Lagess, Rylin Larabee, Macaela LeBlanc, Lillian Meehan, Rebecca Poulton, and Hayden Therrien.
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Hoosac Valley Preparing For District Vote on $23M Budget
By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
CHESHIRE, Mass. — The Hoosac Valley Regional School Committee on Monday night unanimously approved a document "strongly" endorsing the school district's fiscal 2025 budget.
"This budget is a fiscally responsible plan that keeps the increases well below inflation and focuses on maintaining the district's financial health without drastic cuts or tax hikes," the position paper reads. "Much of the increase is driven by unavoidable costs, including state mandates and necessary contractual costs, ensuring the district remains competitive as an employer and service provider."
The endorsement comes a week before a districtwide meeting that will vote the $23 million spending plan up or down.
Cheshire rejected a Proposition 2 1/2 override last month that would have fully funded its portion of the budget and instead passed a motion that would level fund the town's fiscal 2025 school assessment. Adams had approved the budget in June.
All registered voters from Cheshire and Adams, the two towns in the regional school district, will meet on Monday, Sept. 30, at 6:30 p.m. in the Hoosac Valley High auditorium to vote on the budget, the only item on the warrant. This will be a majority vote.
A joint meeting of the School Committee and the select boards chose Thomas Bernard as moderator. Bernard, president of Berkshire United Way, is the former mayor of North Adams and was considered a neutral selection.
"I've started to familiarize myself with the warrant and the relevant section of MGL, and I'm boning up on my Robert's Rules of Order just to make sure that we do everything as clearly and transparently as we can next Monday evening," Bernard told the committee Monday.
West Dews ran for 137 yards, Landon Corcoran made big plays down the stretch and the Wahconah defense made the biggest stop of the night to stymie a comeback drive in the closing minutes of a 22-18 win over rival Hoosac Valley on Friday night.
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The committee voted unanimously Monday set a district vote on the fiscal 2025 budget and resolved its continuing support for the spending plan.
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President and CEO David Bissaillon purchased the vacant restaurant, which closed in 2019, as a permanent home last year for the legacy company, which offers a wide array of personal and business insurance.
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Voters on Monday rejected a Proposition 2 1/2 override and passed a motion that would level fund the town's fiscal 2025 school assessment. click for more