Our instructors bring a compassionate and inclusive view of the arts and in-depth experience in working with children. They have been with Reach for the Sky July since it's fist camp in 1996.
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Kathi Marin I have been dancing all my life! My earliest training was in Santa Monica, California with a wonderful Russian teacher at “Mari School of Dance.” I went on to major in dance, attending Christian College, San Diego State, and ending here at Cornish College here in Seattle. My interest has always been in walking a line between strong technical understanding of dance, and learning how to reach and teach the unique capabilities of each of the students in my care. I studied kinesiology, sports medicine, and movement therapy for deaf children. I also studied and became certified in aerobics and yoga instruction before opening my studio, The Center for Dance, in 1987 in Issaquah. We moved to our larger facility in Preston in 2001.For the last twenty years I have had the honor to run The Center for Dance. I have been blessed with some of the best instructors available, and they have helped me create a studio that offers the best in technical training within a nurturing environment, while fostering self-esteem and creative confidence in our students. Thirteen years ago I began a summer program “Reach for the Sky July” which serves the marginalized youth of the area, those children who for whatever reason, are not blooming in their young lives. Each year we bring 35-40 8-12 year old children to a full scholarship camp for three weeks. They receive instruction in dance, art, and theater, developing a production of their own which they proudly perform at the end of camp. The purpose of the camp is to encourage respect for each other, their world, and themselves while being exposed to the arts in a hands-on experience. The children that return year after year, some that have joined the dance studio and are thriving in the dance world speak profoundly to the success of this camp. I feel very blessed to have had so many families grow up here at The Center for Dance. I teach the very youngest dancers here at the studio. My aim is to encourage their own dancing hearts to be seen and expressed, even if they sometimes also need to learn to share the pink scarf. In the last several years the added joy of watching my own granddaughter find the magic of dance…priceless. Heartfelt gratitude to those who have shared this dancing journey with me. |
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Kris Coffing Cristie Coffing obtained a Physical Education degree from Central Washington University with a degree in Dance and English. She has danced professionally with Winnie Chapin Young and Co., Ericka Angelakos and associates and performed with other independent choreographers. She currently works with Theatre Black Dog and the Heart & Soul Ballet Company
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Laura Peterson Laura Peterson has been teaching dance at Reach for the Sky July from it's first year up until 2007 when she studied in abroad and wrote a thesis and journal article titled. The effect of a 3-week arts camp on self-perceptions, life satisfaction and subjective vitality in underserved youth
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Brin Hamilton Brin is a professional photographer and runs her own business Brin Hamilton Photography. Brin has a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Eastern Michigan University. She is a founding member of Reach for the Sky July. Brin has been involved with teaching art to children for the past 17 years. |
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