My riddle of the day: What do the hit TV show “Dancing with the Stars” and the local business Community Connections have in common?
If you answered that they are both in Durango, you would be correct. On Friday, Durango stars will have their own turn to dance, albeit at the Durango Arts Center and not on national television. Community Connections will be hosting this showcase of dance as a fundraiser to help enroll people with disabilities off the waiting list.
The event is the brainchild of Malia Durbano, freelance writer, dance instructor and board member at Community Connections.
“I was watching ‘Dancing with the Stars’ last season and thought, ‘Wow this would be a great fundraiser,’” she said. “I love to dance and know many people in this community do, also.”
Like the show, the Durango version highlights community members (our local “stars”) outside the roles in which we usually know them. Entrepreneurs, teachers, social workers, musicians and a host of others will grace the stage and explore their hidden talents.
And that’s the real answer to my riddle. “Dancing with the Stars” and Community Connections both highlight people’s hidden talents. In the case of Community Connections, the hidden talents belong to people with developmental and intellectual disabilities.
Brandy Loutherback, a student at Durango High School and participant with Community Connections, will be one of the dancers at Dancing with the Stars.
“People will be surprised when they see me on stage dancing,” she said. She has never before publicly shared her ability to dance and choreograph. When asked whether she hasn’t danced in public because she has chosen not to or because she has lacked the opportunity, she tells me, “both.”
The lack of opportunities is, unfortunately, the reason many people with disabilities keep their talents hidden. I have friends with intellectual disabilities who are not only great dancers, but also are amazing musicians, writers, storytellers, teachers, artists, chefs and comedians. Imagine how much the community could benefit if these hidden talents could come out of the dark?
Too often, people with disabilities are identified by what they can’t do. When they have the opportunity to show the world what they can do, the entire nature of their identity can change. They are contributing something special to the community, just like we all want to do.
The purpose of the Dancing with the Stars fundraiser is to provide those opportunities to people who are currently waiting for services from Community Connections because of lack of funding.
Durbano experienced firsthand the effects of long waits for disabilities services. Her brother, a man with Down syndrome, sat on waiting lists for services in another state until her mother was in her 80s, and it became an emergency situation. As a result, she is passionate about creating fulfilling opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities. Perhaps that is her hidden talent.
Tickets for Dancing with the Stars are on sale at the Durango Arts Center (259-2606) or online at durangoarts.org.
Tara Kiene is the director of case management with Community Connections Inc.
