I CAN! Dance With the Stars event this weekend

Submitted photos TINY DANCERS: Dancers with the I CAN! Dance program will take the stage with Central Arkansas celebrities for the I CAN! Dance With the Stars event at 10 a.m. Saturday at Fountain Lake High School. I CAN! Dance is a nonprofit program that offers dance classes to children with special needs. Celebrities participating in the event include, above, former "America's Got Talent" stars Triple Threat, State Representative Mickey Gates, and Lakeside Intermediate Principal Sandy Hawkins.
Submitted photos TINY DANCERS: Dancers with the I CAN! Dance program will take the stage with Central Arkansas celebrities for the I CAN! Dance With the Stars event at 10 a.m. Saturday at Fountain Lake High School. I CAN! Dance is a nonprofit program that offers dance classes to children with special needs. Celebrities participating in the event include, above, former "America's Got Talent" stars Triple Threat, State Representative Mickey Gates, and Lakeside Intermediate Principal Sandy Hawkins.

Dancers with the I CAN! Dance program will take the stage with central Arkansas celebrities for the I CAN! Dance With the Stars event at 10 a.m. Saturday at Fountain Lake High School.

I CAN! Dance is a nonprofit program that offers dance classes to children with special needs.

Four of the 11 I CAN! Dance classes from around the state will perform at the event, including classes from DancePraize in Arkadelphia, Lakeside Intermediate School and Fountain Lake School.

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Gates

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Hawkins

Area celebrities participating in the event include state Rep. Mickey Gates, Triple Threat, Lakeside Intermediate Principal Sandy Hawkins and former Henderson State University homecoming queen Amy Cooper.

Each class has worked on a routine for the past 10 weeks and is now ready to perform. The event is free and open to the public.

In addition to dancing with the special needs dancers, former "America's Got Talent" stars Triple Threat and former "American Idol" contestant Hope Windle will sing for the crowd. Triple Threat will perform one of its original songs from their newest Christmas EP, "Holiday Harmony."

The performance has been made possible partly through a grant from the Arkansas Arts Council. A second I CAN! Dance With the Stars event featuring different classes and celebrities will take place at 3 p.m. Nov. 6 at University of Central Arkansas.

The I CAN! Dance classes began when 2-year-old Katie Mayberry, who was born with spina bifida and was mobile through the use of a wheelchair, asked her mother if she could take a dance class like her big sister, Ellie. Her mother, Julie, replied, "When you turn 3," and thought Katie would forget about it. Katie questioned her mother again at the age of 3 and Julie knew she had to find other children with disabilities to form a dance class, a news release said.

The first class began in 2005 with two students and has grown to include seven different locations and 11 special needs dance classes. Each class has around 10 children, ages 4 to adult, with disabilities including spina bifida, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism and other developmental delays.

The classes also include dancing "buddies," children ages ten and older who assist with children in need of one-on-one attention. Some need help moving their arms and wheelchairs, while others need help focusing their attention. Some of the buddies are siblings to the children, allowing these families to enjoy an activity together.

Visit http://www.icanarkansas.com or call 501-888-4140 for more information.

Entertainment on 10/27/2016

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