Being a dance therapist with The Andr�a Rizzo Foundation's dance therapy program Dr�a's Dream continues to be a very special part of my life.  My strong bond with Andr�a began long before becoming a dance therapist. My two daughters and I ran a school of dance for twenty years. Andr�a, as a young cancer survivor, began dancing with us at a very early age. Her love of dance was very evident from the outset. She continued to dance with us until she headed off to college where she pursued her dance training on a higher level.  Andr�a often stated that, "Dance was her life."

My becoming a dance therapist was yet another bond between us as Andr�a had a strong desire to become a dance therapist so she could return to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) where she had been cured of cancer as a child. She wished to "give back " by providing dance therapy with the pediatric cancer patients. This was her dream; however, at age 24, her life was tragically ended by a drunk driver. Even though this was a mother's worse nightmare, her mother, Susan, vowed to keep Andr�a's dream alive.

Thus began The Andr�a Rizzo Foundation "Dr�a's Dream".. bringing dance therapy to pediatric cancer patients and children with special needs. I was both humbled and honored when Susan asked me to be the foundation's first dance therapist. I began my work for the foundation in 2007 as the resident dance therapist at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford, CT.

Once a week for one and a half hours I serve, at bedside, the pediatric cancer patients ages one year to seven years of age. For many of these children, this provides a much needed opportunity for them to move to music and above all, a reason to be filled with joy and laughter. This form of therapy also serves to provide a child in need with pain management. 

Another benefit of dance therapy is its positive effect on the entire family. Often parents and siblings will join in the movements done to music. To see their child moving and laughing means the world to these parents. To be able to enhance a child's attitude is truly the very best medicine.

A notable affirmation for the positive effect of dance therapy on the children has come from both the nursing staff and the doctors. They have told me how much the children have benefit from my work.  I have also been asked by the physical therapist to use dance therapy in conjunction with her on occasion.

Once a month, as a dance therapist for the foundation, I work with a group of special needs pre-schoolers in an elementary school. Movement to music, large and small motor activities, and free-style dance moves has been most rewarding for the children and myself, as well. Regardless of their disabilities, movement to music is the very best avenue for their continued growth and development.

Now, the beginning of 2015, it is a tribute to the work of the foundation that the number of dance therapists now reaches across the country in numerous children's hospitals. Dance Across America has provided funding for these programs. I thank God for this wonderful opportunity to serve as a dance therapist for the foundation.