I just wanted to express my thanks to everyone from Tommie Brown International Academy who made their 'Dancing with the Stars' night such a success. Members of the faculty and administration showed off their best moves, as six pairs of dancers competed in the rumba and performed a freestyle dance.
The pairs were: Ashley Latham and Nick Fike; Shannon Morrow and Billy Campbell; Lea Ann Burk and Reggie Upshaw; Vanessa Harris and Aaron Luke; Dawn Rowe and James Bacon; Liza O'Connor and Mike Lewis. Ms. Burk is the principal of Brown International Academy, Ms. Harris is the assistant principal at Brown International Academy, and the other performers are members of the faculty. Ms. Harris and Mr. Luke won the competition, following up a sultry rumba with a very energetic 1940s swing dance routine. All six pairs wowed the audience with their dancing skills, creative choreography and style.
The event was emceed by Brown Academy's Emily Martinovic and David Karnes from WRCB-TV. Ms. Donna Sutton of the Brown International Academy staff organized the event. Judges for the event were Carol Langston, Karla Riddle, Chris Garcia, Sharon Watts and Shawn Kurrelmeier Lee, while Jennifer McElwain served as the vote tabulator.
Members of the Brown Academy family, including school board representative George Ricks, as well as friends of the participants and other members of the community came out to cheer all of the dancers, with 'Team Bacon' bringing a cheering section. Many members of the audience expressed a desire to participate in a similar event next year, while praising the bravery of all the performers. The dancers all said that they had a great time preparing for the event and that they were glad that they could find another way to help the children of Tommie Brown International Academy.
"Thank you" to all the participants, organizers and judges for giving so freely of your time to make this event a success. I can't wait until next year.
James Bell
Brown Academy parent and member of the PTA Executive Board