Amanda's ballet exam challenge
Amanda is raising money for the STV Appeal by sitting a ballet exam... but it's not going to be easy...
Her challenge is to sit (and hopefully pass!) the RAD Grade 5 exam in November 2014. It is the end of the old syllabus and the last time this grade will be examined.
Serious injury...
Two and a half years ago, Amanda ruptured her achilles tendon during a teaching course; a devastating injury for a dancer or sports person. She spent 4 months in 4 different casts on crutches and in a wheelchair followed by months of painful physiotherapy to teach herself to walk again. Exactly 2 years ago, she tried my first tentative little 'jump' and any chance of dancing again seemed an impossibility.
Over the past 2 years, she has made slow progress to be able to teach dancing again, although may never again be able to dance properly. Her left leg is considerably weaker and less mobile than the right and she has no stamina at all! Throughout all of this, her committment to her students has been outstanding; she only missed one afternoon of classes, and attended every class to supervise the 6 teachers it took to cover them all, as well as even choreographing for our cruise holiday while on crutches!
Meeting the challenge
Amanda has chosen this challenge to raise funds for the STV Appeal, a charity which supports disadvantaged children living in Scotland. Some of the projects which have received funding from the charity are in the local communities in which we run our classes. She says, "Most people will just assume that I could do this easily but to be able to get through a whole dance class will be a challenge in itself. To be able to perform it with a smile while trying to get my bad leg to do the right thing will be even harder."
"Teaching our adult ballet classes has been a great way for me to get back some of the dance skills I had before my accident, but there are many thing which I still find painful or physically difficult. However, it could have been worse and I am still very much luckier than those in need of support from charities such as those supported by the STV Appeal."
how to sponsor Amanda
You can sponsor Amanda by:
- Donating in class time in the STV Appeal collection buckets
- Making a donation on her JustGiving page for the challenge
- Texting "CSBS99 £2" to 70070
Your donation could help make a life changing difference to children and their families living in poverty in Scotland.
Thank you.