In
the fall of 1982, a unique ministry was born at Casas Adobes Baptist
School.
Lanette Armstrong (Doran), then only thirteen years old, was asked by the school to lead an after-school dance program. Lanette, with the help of her sister Rayette, continued to foster and expand the ministry. In the fall of 1989, Tracy Nicholson (Fleishman), Lanette's best friend, began teaching with Lanette. Together, Lanette and Tracy continued to build their loving ministry.
In 2002, after twenty-one years of dedicated service, Lanette and her husband, Harold, moved to Washington D.C. For the past five years, Tracy and her dedicated staff of teachers, many of whom grew up in the program, have overseen the continued growth of the program. From very humble roots, Casas Dance and Gymnastics Academy (CDGA) blossomed into one of the largest non-competitive dance and gymnastics programs in Tucson with upwards of 550 students and twelve teachers. While CDGA has provided children the opportunity to learn and perform dance and gymnastics skills, its emphasis has always been on creating a Christ-centered environment of love, encouragement, and mentorship.
Recognizing that the continued growth of Casas Church was placing certain space constraints on CDGA's ability to grow, the idea of relocating the program from Casas Church took hold. Over the past several months, Tracy, her husband Mike, and her staff diligently have been preparing for the beginning of a new program, which will be named "Trinity."
Trinity is scheduled to open August 20, 2007. Trinity will be located at 2950 West Ina Road, Suite 170, behind L.A. Fitness and Home Style Gallery in the Heritage Plaza, located on the Northwest corner of Ina and Shannon. The new 6,500 square foot facility will have over 4,000 square feet of gymnastics space and a dedicated 1,000 square foot dance studio with a wooden dance floor. Trinity also will be offering art classes for children next spring. More importantly, Trinity is bringing to the program the same dedicated staff that made CDGA such a success. In other words, Trinity will be a continuation of everything that CDGA has offered for the past twenty-five years.
Trinity will be offering classes in gymnastics, ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, lyrical, and break dancing for children ages 1-18 and adult classes in ballet, jazz, hip hop, balance/strength/flexibility, and ballroom/Latin.
Information and class schedules are available by calling Trinity at 797-8100 or by e-mail at trinitydandg@gmail.com.
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