Beyond Abuse of Greenwood is bringing back one of its most successful fundraising events, Dancing with the Greenwood Stars, and a team from Lander University is gearing up for the competition.
Now in its third year, Dancing with the Greenwood Stars is scheduled for Saturday, April 22, in the James Medford Center at Piedmont Technical College. Doors open at 6:45 p.m., and the show begins promptly at 8 p.m. While individual tickets for the event are $75, there are numerous sponsor packages available. For ticket information, go online, call (864) 227-1623 or send an email.
In the past, tickets for the event have been hard to come by as community members quickly claimed all 550 spots, making it a sellout the first two years and raising $70,000 collectively for Beyond Abuse. "The success of Dancing with the Greenwood Stars is crucial to the success of our mission as we help to increase awareness of the services we provide in our efforts to serve victims of child abuse and sexual assault in Greenwood County," said Cathy Miller, executive director with Beyond Abuse.
The 12 teams entered in this year's competition will base their performances on the program's theme of Viva Las Vegas. "All of our teams will be dancing to songs that have been performed in Vegas, so we will have quite a variety," said Miller.
Lander board member Linda Dolny, of Greenwood, is leading Lander's team in the competition. "From faculty and staff, to students and board members, our team is made up of representatives from just about every constituency at Lander, and we're all very excited to show what we can do," she said.
Lander team members for Dancing with the Greenwood Stars are: board members Linda Dolny and Jack Lawrence; Andy Benoit, vice president for Enrollment and Access Management; Kenneth Calliham, admissions counselor; Ryan Hewitt, admissions counselor; Haley Moore, a junior from York; Dr. Andre Michelle Lubecke, professor of mathematics; and Erin Garland, coordinator of registered student organizations & service learning.