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Students give back with The Brave Project

admin March 2, 2015 Dance News No Comment

The Brave Project 2015The Brave Project, a dance benefit show led by five brave student leaders, will be presented this Sunday, March 1 at 5 p.m. at Oswego High School in Illinois. Featuring student dancers and choreographers, the performance will raise funds for each youth leaders’ chosen nonprofit, varying in mission.

 

The Brave Project was founded as a result of five inspirational youth. Scarlett Nash (age 11), Alyssa Bulin (14), Sean Dudson (14), Hannah Polhill (16) and Lili Nash (16) all joined together under the mentorship of Emily and Brian Weber to begin this grassroots benefit, believing they could use their love for dance to make a difference. As members of the Green Team ID Company at the Webers’ Yorkville Performing Arts Center (YPAC), the students began to learn about servant leadership and community engagement, and through this project put their lessons into real-life application.

 

YPAC is an affiliate member of an organization whose foundation is built on and named More Than Just Great Dancing (MTJGD.) This organization, founded by Misty Lown, encourages the dance industry to lead in community service. Weber shares MTJGD’s principles to guide these five students with this service-based project.

 

Student Leader Scarlett Nash will use her dance piece to raise awareness for Autism and to fundraise for the nonprofit Autism Speaks. Alyssa Bulin has a heart for ending child abuse and will be supporting the victims’ advocacy organization, CASA of Kendall County, with her dance work.

 

Likewise, Sean Dudson will use dance to raise awareness for the epidemic of bullying in America’s schools. Having personally experienced it himself as a male dancer, Dudson will be supporting Free2Luv, a nonprofit whose mission is to take a stand, spread love and end bullying.

 

Hannah Polhill, on the other hand, will focus more on physical poverty as she highlights the need for food donations and assistance in the local community. She will be supporting the Kendall County Food Pantry.

 

Lastly, Lili Nash will educate the audience on human trafficking and the realities that this issue affects thousands of Americans each year. She will dance for INK 180, a local organization founded by Chris Baker that addresses this issue.   

 

For more information on The Brave Project or YPAC, visit http://yorkvilleperformingarts.com/brave-project.