Cambridge Chronicle

Wednesday, August 14, 2002

Pumping up JAM'NASTICS

COMMENTARY
Kate Piers Summey

I arrived late to see a stage filled with more than 50 children in white T-shirts and black shorts, ranging in age from about 5 to 15, with a breathtakingly beautiful array of skin and hair tones, from light white to chocolate brown, from bleached blond to black corn-rows.

Their energy was high, bodies pulsing with the rhythm and faces gleaming. The audience was clapping and shouting in response, "Go, girl, go... You got it!" Sometimes a voice called out the name of a camper: "That's right Christian!...You go, Keely!" And then, a phrase from the song seemed to express what we were imagining the dancers were feeling: "I'm great!" People in the audience caught the phrase and spontaneously shouted, "You're right...You're great!"

The music reached a climax; the dance was over. The audience clapped and clapped, calling children by name. The children broke from their dance line-up, jumping, screaming and hugging each other. They'd really done it! Their audience was thrilled, and they felt proud of their success in pulling the dance together. It had been an amazing, uplifting experience for all! These children were being held, celebrated, honored by their community, recognized for hard work well done. Nothing else mattered.

After a team and staff demonstration, the show was over. JAM'NASTICS staff helped children find their bags with street clothes, lunch boxes, bathing suits and final crafts projects to take home. Parents, grandparents and friends of performers greeted each other warmly; some lingered to chat. Adults hugged and high-fived their own and others' children, who still wanted to hear more about how people liked the show and discuss their own increased skill. Some people were commenting on the special treat of the last dance, a duet by two staff members for whom the children had cheered with enthusiasm.

The children had received so much encouragement for their own growth in performance that they knew how to give back to other performers - in this case, their own admired and beloved teachers. As one child's grandmother commented to me, "The way these adults share the stage with children is so unusual. It's a special and important part of what JAM'NASTICS does well: they encourage mutually supportive relationships among children, teens, and adults. No stars; no competition. No put-downs, no failure here...instead, a group of creative, energetic individuals of different backgrounds and ages become...a fine-tuned, multi-generational team, each choosing to share whole-heartedly what they feel is ready to show out of the repertoire of new skills they've been striving to attain."

As another mother stated, "...it doesn't seem to matter what level a child is when they enter the program. The staff isn't looking to identify and promote a few children with exceptional, natural talent. Instead, the staff always cheers kids on whether they are trying their first somersault or performing a smooth-flowing cartwheel on the balance beam. The staff is committed to helping every child set realistic goals and then encourage them as they try hard to achieve each small step to reach those goals. They are there to help every child focus and try their best, and then they let them know how well they did...No false praise here...just honest feedback and support for full-hearted effort...and it doesn't matter if you are 4 or 14...the staff breaks down the trick or dance steps and you start at the beginning."

Then, a robust grandmother chimed in, "They seem completely accepting of all types of bodies and degrees of coordination...Each person is accepted for being themselves and for the energy and dedication the person puts into their own progress...and getting involved with the spirit of being on a team...Sometimes I wonder if they put on these shows just to give the kids an experience of the necessity of becoming a team. After all...no single person could produce such a splendid, spirited show!"

As people begin to mingle in the hallways, I heard some worried comments about the speech that opened the evening's show. JAM'NASTICS' executive director, Anara Frank, shared with the audience that the program was confronting severe shortfalls in funding. With regret, she explained that there would be some major cuts in programs, staff, and scholarships. She urged parents and friends of JAM'NASTICS to share their ideas for a sustained effort to raise new funds as quickly as possible. She presented this hard news with characteristic optimism. She is confident they will find a way to struggle through these hard times. She is convinced they will succeed. After all, the show must go on.

But, in my own mind, a bit of anger and frustration crept in. Just days ago a meeting for City Councilors with residents of Area 4 (where JAM'NASTICS has its office and many programs) was being convened to examine the causes and remedies for recent incidents of violence. It doesn't take the proverbial rocket scientist to see the connection. Too few funds for programs that support children and families and the quality of all of our lives - as unequal residents of the wonderful, resource-filled city of Cambridge - goes down.

So, can JAM'NASTICS survive? I think so. Established residents can help JAM'NASTICS with donations of time, supplies or money. Businesses can sponsor a child or a whole team. Adults looking to get in shape or learn the latest styles of dance in an upbeat, community environment will take classes. Parents will continue to collaborate in various fund-raising efforts and spread the word about JAM'NASTICS to their friends. And children will keep dancing, reminding us all of the beauty we create when we work together.

It can happen. JAM'NASTICS and other programs like it can survive in these difficult times, and we absolutlely need them to. But it will only happen if we all pull together immediately - to provide community support now, when other resources are disappearing. And through this process, we will begin to rebuild the community we have been losing.

If you or someone you know wants to get involved, please contact JAM'NASTICS Inc. at 617-354-5780 or www.jamnastics.org.

-Kate Piers Summey is the pen name of a writer who lives in Cambridge.