TERRE HAUTE —
A former Colts cheerleader, an Indiana State Police officer and a funeral home owner are among the 13 celebrities participating in the 2010 “Dancing with the Terre Haute Stars,” a CHANCES for Indiana Youth fundraiser.
This year’s lineup includes Yasenka Peterson, Indiana State University; Natalie Overton, ServPro; Barbara Baker, Regional Hospital; Janet Van DeWinkle, WTWO; Gary Greiner, Greiner Funeral Home;
Dr. Randy Stevens, Union Hospital; Teresa Shaffer, Clabber Girl; Bill Kauffman, First Financial Bank; Holly Pies, Vigo County School Corp.; Renee Bauer, Harsha Behavioral Center; Christa Pierce, Fleschner, Stark, Tanoos & Newlin; Joe Watts, Indiana State Police; and Jeff Millington, Pepsi.
CHANCES announced this year’s dancers during a luncheon Monday at Terre Haute Regional Hospital. The fourth annual Dancing with the Terre Haute Stars will take place Oct. 1 at Hulman Center. The event is a spinoff of the hit television show “Dancing with the Stars.”
The event keeps getting bigger and bigger, said Brandon Halleck, CHANCES executive director. Last year, it grossed $75,000 – $25,000 more than the year before – and about 700 people attended. The event sold out and “we expect it to sell out again this year … It’s an event that everyone enjoys.”
It’s also “extremely important” in helping CHANCES raise money, he said, especially with the current economy and funding cutbacks at the state level.
Halleck said determining the winner of Dancing with the Terre Haute Stars is based on whoever raises the most money, not dancing ability. “We have this fear no one would sign up if it was based on talent,” Halleck said.
Participants receive 10 free dancing lessons with a professional through The Dance Studio.
“Everybody has done a wonderful job over the years. It’s really amazing how much they can do over the course of 10 hours [of lessons],” he said.
Among the 2010 dancing stars is Pierce, who used to be cheerleader for the Indianapolis Colts from 2003-06. She was nominated by a co-worker at Fleschner, Stark, Tanoos & Newlin.
“I love to dance and I’m very excited about it,” she said. As a former Colts cheerleader, she’s used to dancing in front of big crowds.
Watts, of the Indiana State Police, said a representative of CHANCES asked him to participate. “I said sure, as long as you’re not expecting a lot of dancing. One thing I’m not is a dancer,” he said.
A dancing professional will teach him the steps and guide him through the process. “I’m glad to help out,” he said. Watts said he is a little nervous, but he also believes it could be fun learning something new.
Greiner, owner of Greiner Funeral Home, said he attended the fundraising event last year and “caught the bug.” He volunteered to participate.
“I have a little bit of theater background … I’m very excited,” Greiner said.
Peterson, chairwoman of ISU’s health, safety and environmental health sciences department, said Dancing with the Terre Haute Stars will be a new experience for her, but it’s for a good cause. CHANCES “does wonderful things for children,” she said.
Pies, a curriculum coordinator with the school district, said, “It’s a good opportunity to help an organization that has done so much for our kids in this community.”
The Oct. 1 event is presented by CHANCES and First Financial Bank. Doors open at 6 p.m., dinner will be served at 7 p.m. and dancing begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $55 and can be reserved by calling CHANCES for Indiana Youth at (812) 232-5190.
Other sponsors include Vectren, Indiana State University, ServPro, Terre Haute Regional Hospital, WTWO, Lamar, Time Warner Media Sales, WBOW, Greiner Funeral Home, Baesler’s Market, Clabber Girl, Union Hospital, Harsha Behavior Center, Fleschner, Stark, Tanoos & Newlin, The Dance Studio, Mann Law Firm, Ballyhoo Pizza King, Hamilton Center, CASY, Pepsi, ISU Credit Union, Garmong, MTS Digital and Simply Decadent.
CHANCES for Indiana Youth, which serves a 12-county region, is a nonprofit agency operated out of the Booker T. Washington Center that aims to keep youth away from drugs, alcohol and tobacco.
Sue Loughlin can be reached at (812) 231-4235 or sue.loughlin@tribstar.com.
News
Meet the 2010 lineup for 'Dancing with Terre Haute Stars'
- News
-
-
Giant welcome home for Steve
Terre Haute was suddenly home to thousands of cheering New York Giants fans Friday as residents welcomed Super Bowl champion Steve Weatherford back home for a parade.
-
‘One for Terre Haute,’ Steve tells crowd at North
“This one was for Terre Haute,” native son Steve Weatherford proclaimed Friday as he shared his Super Bowl victory with the community that helped send him on the path to a world championship.
-
Hometown support vital to success, Weatherford says
Steve Weatherford said Friday he wouldn’t be celebrating a Giants’ Super Bowl victory if not for the support he’s received from his hometown, his parents and mentors in his life.
-
Craning for a rare glimpse
A visitor from the Far East has naturalists flying to Linton, hoping some good comes from one bird’s bad directions.
-
Vigo’s primary election filings complete
The slate is set for the May 8 primary election, with the race for three at-large seats on the Vigo County Council drawing the largest pool of candidates at the county level.
-
Documentary on electric vehicles plays Sunday at Rose
The rising popularity of electric vehicles and their impact on the world eco-system is the focus of a documentary, “Revenge of the Electric Car,” being presented at 3 p.m. Sunday in Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology’s Hatfield Hall Theater.
-
Man gets 10-year sentence in battery case
A West Terre Haute man received a 10-year prison sentence Friday after pleading guilty to aggravated battery for beating a friend caught in bed with the man’s wife.
-
Slow drips: It’s maple syrup season in Indiana
More seasonal, colder temperatures will hit the Wabash Valley this weekend, which is ideal weather for maple syrup production, said Keith Ruble, superintendent of the Vigo County Parks and Recreation Department.
However, Ruble voices concern that this year’s maple syrup season may be short.
-
Downtown restaurant celebrates expansion
The streets of Terre Haute were chilly Thursday night, but for the glow of hot pasta inside Louise’s Pizzeria and Cafe.
-
Contract signed for new Y
Papers are signed and the ink is in place for a new YMCA to operate in Terre Haute.
-
City to impose $30 release fee on towed vehicles
The Terre Haute City Council voted without opposition Thursday to impose a new $30 release fee on vehicles towed and impounded by the police as part of a criminal investigation.
-
Valley educators cautious on Indiana’s ‘No Child’ waiver
Indiana is one of 10 states to receive a waiver from federal No Child Left Behind requirements.
-
Driver dies after Illinois school bus crash
“Brace yourself. Brace yourself,” Fay Pickering shouted to her students just before the school bus she was driving crossed U.S. 40 and landed in a ditch Thursday morning.
-
Trial date set for former WTH police chief
A July 23 trial date has been set for a former police chief of West Terre Haute accused of theft.
-
Motorcycle gang member pleads guilty in federal court
A member of an Indianapolis motorcycle gang who delivered methamphetamine to a Terre Haute dealer has pleaded guilty to drug charges in federal court.
-
July trial date set for mother charged with child neglect
A July 30 trial date has been set for a Terre Haute mother charged with neglecting and battering her toddler.
-
Business hosting SPPRAK fundraiser
Java Haute is hosting the latest fundraiser sponsored by SPPRAK — Special People Performing Random Acts of Kindness.
-
Valley high school cooking competition under way today
Clabber Girl Corp. and Gordon Food Services will host the fourth-annual High School Chef Competition, beginning today through Saturday, and again Feb. 18, in the Culinary Classroom at Clabber Girl.
-
Leslie leaving Terre Haute Chamber
The Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce today notified members that Rachel Leslie, Chamber executive vice president, has accepted a position as director of advancement operations for St. Mary-of-the-Woods College.
-
Terre Haute road name game
What used to be called U.S. 40 from the Wabash River west through West Terre Haute to Interstate 70 needs to be renamed and, probably, get new street addresses, a Vigo County planner recommends.
-
MARK BENNETT: William Henry Harrison taught us how to campaign
William Henry Harrison is running for president, again.
It seems impossible, because today would be his 239th birthday, and America has never elected a deceased person to the Oval Office. -
Air National Guard cuts won’t hit 181st Intelligence Wing
The Air National Guard is taking the lion’s share of planned cuts announced last week by the U.S. Air Force. But no cuts are currently expected at Terre Haute’s 181st Intelligence Wing. In fact, the nation’s evolving defense strategy may spell growth at the local base.
-
Friends group takes over Ernie Pyle home in Dana
The western Indiana home in which renowned Hoosier journalist Ernie Pyle was born and an adjacent museum dedicated to preserving his legacy as a World War II correspondent have a new owner.
-
ISU rec center pool out of service while being repaired
Indiana State University is spending about $10,000 to repair a swimming pool at the Student Recreation Center, which opened in 2009.
-
Clinton man throws away, then recovers, $50,000 ticket
A Vermillion County man found himself in a scenario that strikes fear in the heart of Lottery players everywhere. He threw away a $50,000 winning ticket.
-
Show to feature talents of artists with disabilities
Artists whose disabilities have overshadowed their work get a chance to shine in the light of a prodigy this coming month.
-
Fort Wayne forester tells of damage
The emerald ash borer likely will cause as much as $8 million in damage to Fort Wayne’s ash trees by 2015, the city’s manager of forestry operations told a Terre Haute audience Tuesday.
-
Unclaimed assets now part of Goodwill auction site
Many of Indiana’s unclaimed assets are now on Goodwill’s online auction site, Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller announced Tuesday.
-
Clinton man throws away $50,000 Hoosier Lottery ticket
A Vermillion County man found himself in a scenario that strikes fear in the heart of Lottery players everywhere. He threw away a $50,000 winning lottery ticket.
-
Romney’s bad day is Santorum’s best in GOP race
Republican Rick Santorum is looking to capitalize on a string of stunning victories that snapped his four-state losing streak and raised new questions about front-runner Mitt Romney’s clout with conservatives.
- More News Headlines
-
Obama Scraps Birth Control Mandate
Video of M.I.A's Obscene Halftime Gesture
US Airmen's Killer Sentenced to Life in Germany
Raw Video: Deadly Blasts in Syria
Navy Names Ship for Gabrielle Giffords
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Palin Brings Anti-Washington Message to CPAC
5 Killed in Wrong-way Crash on I-10 in La.
Raw Video: Rough Seas Stop Oil Removal
Uzbek Man Pleads Guilty in Plot to Kill Obama
Romney Slams President Obama at CPAC
Gingrich: Pres. Obama 'waging War on Religion'
Winter Slamming North Asia, Parts of Europe
Woman Pleads Guilty in 1987 Newborn Kidnap Case
Test on Comforter in Powell Unit Shows Blood
The Pits: Israelis Spit Olives for Glory
Syrian Forces Renew Bombardment of Homs
Skaters Still Hold Hope for Dutch Marathon
Snow Strands Italian Towns
Androgynous Model Walks Runway As Man and Woman
Recording Superstar Whitney Houston Dead at 48
Fans 'Speechless' Over Houston's Death
Romney Tops Santorum in CPAC Straw Poll
First glimpse of Blue Ivy Carter
Absolute Lin-sanity
Hate to be Rude: Bubba Watson
Peek inside Barbie's closet
Angry Dad Shoots Teens Laptop
Hero Driver Saves Kids From Burning Bus
Funeral to be held for Powell boys
Sandusky on having to stay inside and people turning on him
Woolly Mammoth Caught on Camera?
Did JLo 'Assault' Marc Anthony on Camera?
Christie Brinkley's Runway Slip
Toddler forced to run half-naked in snow
Halle Wants to Leave the Country
Northern Lights shine above earth
Plane makes perfect belly landing
