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High Country Dance Studio Hosts Inaugural ‘Tie Dye Trot’ To Raise Funds To Perform at Disney World in June

March 13, 2013. The High Country will experience its first “Tie Dye Trot” on Sunday, April 14, at 2 p.m. at the Greenway Trail. 

Hosted by High Country Dance Studio in Boone, North Carolina, and sponsored by Wells Fargo, Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff, New River Building Supply, and many other generous local businesses, the dancers have planned the race to raise money to offset the cost of their trip to Disney World in June. 

TieDieA few months ago, the award winning dancers were approved to dance at Downtown Disney and set about preparing for the challenge.

Race day participants can challenge themselves with a 5k race or kids 12 and under can sign up for a 1 mile fun run… all participants should be prepared to get messy as the dancers and other volunteers toss clouds of rainbow-colored dye in their direction. 

Even the spectators will not be short on entertainment, as there will be plenty of fun for everyone, including performances, bounce houses, and a community mural.

The studio director, Amber Hendley, and instructors encourage growth and community participation by accepting many invitations for local performance opportunities.

However, based on the nature of small town life, the girls have not had the chance to travel, as a group, to a different place to share their talents and joy for performance with a wider audience. 

We don’t go unless the whole team can go, and that means family, too. Could some of them go without raising funds? Probably… but, as Amber puts it, “that’s not how we operate. We want to make it happen for the whole group, because we think every child deserves the same experience.” 

Any earnings beyond the cost of the Disney trip will go directly to the HCDS scholarship fund, so that talented and deserving dancers can expand their skill base.

If you ask the dancers at High Country Dance Studio in Boone, North Carolina, they will say CLOGGING IS LIFE. 

HCDS, home of the High Country Cloggers, teaches classes in clogging, jazz, hip hop, and creative movement, and is the home of the Mini Mountaineers Appalachian State University’s youngest dance team.

The dancers at HCDS range in age from 3 to 63; they learn and perform with heart and passion, and are developing skills and fitness. The cloggers are taught a dance style that evokes the roots and heritage of their home.

They can use their gifts to participate in their community.  They are more than a team… they are a family. 

The sense of self being instilled in the dancers at HCDS is what really makes the studio stand out among other studios. Each child is given a chance to shine, and hard work is rewarded with the chance to challenge themselves and improve.

For some of them, the studio is a place of respite from a world of struggles at school, at home, or with social difficulties. At HCDS, they can be proud of who they are and what they have accomplished through dance.

On a regular basis, all of the dancers of HCDS perform at local fundraisers for families in need, nursing homes, Special Olympics rallies, and Relay for Life events, and have even orchestrated food drives for hungry local school children.

Most recently, the dancers planned, staffed, and performed at a Chili Cook off to raise money to feed local families their holiday meals.

They earned 15 of these meal baskets and hand-delivered them to those families the day before Thanksgiving. They have learned to use their skills to better their community.

Race Info:

  • Race Registration fee for the run will be $35 for an individual, $45 race day, $85 for a family (parents and up to 3 children under 15), $95 for family race day● Groups, such as youth groups and sports teams will benefit from a special rate if registered by March 15. Group leaders should email amyforrester1977@gmail.com to sign up.
  • Race t-shirts will only be guaranteed to those who pre-register and complete payment 3 weeks in advance.
  • Any additional shirts will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
  • If you miss the t-shirt cutoff, we advise wearing a solid white t-shirt and creating your own tie dye. 

For detailed information, visit our website at bit.ly/TieDyeTrot or contact Tracy Tilley 478-973-6671 tracywtilley@skybest.com  or Amy Forrester 828-406-7351 amyforrester1977@gmail.com