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Kids get residents up on the dance floor…
with a twist

February 12th, 2019

Thirty-six kindergarten students from nearby Parkway Elementary School, along with teachers, assistants, and parent volunteers packed a lot of fun and action into a recent visit to Points West Living Athens Creek in Penticton. They were only here for an hour, and kept residents on their toes the whole time. 

Start with the Hokey Poky

The visit started with the students performing action songs, like the Hokey Poky, Mexican Hat Dance and the Chicken Dance, then they each grabbed a resident dance partner and danced to The Twist and Just Dance.

Free to twist and shout!

There’s something contagious about young children’s sense of physical freedom, and many residents felt free to 'Twist and Shout'! "Residents commented on how the children were without inhibitions,” says recreation coordinator Ellie Bertrand, “and they commented on how much they enjoyed the visit and getting up to dance with the children, getting their daily exercise in.”

The Twist came right back

Resident Jean Hirmer (photo inset) was quick to her feet when the dancing started. “Jean said she hadn’t done The Twist in years, but it came right back to her,” says Ellie. Dancing with the kids brought back memories for her. As a Canadian-born American teenager she visited her brother in Vancouver and introduced him and friends to the new dance craze, The Twist. Jean eventually settled in Canada with her husband Joe, “the dream of her life,” moving to Penticton in 2001, and Athens Creek in 2017. “When you visit with Jean,” Ellie says, “you are definitely left with the impression she knows how to have fun.” 

More fun kid stuff

During the remainder of the students’ visit, everyone played War (the card game), as they enjoyed a chocolate chip cookie baked fresh that morning by Chef Alex Kuzemchuk. Before they left, says Ellie, “They topped off their visit with a performance of The Chubby Snowman and Baby Bumble Bee.” 

Photo: Everybody is doing The Twist during the Parkway Elementary kindergarten visit to PWL Athens Creek in Penticton on January 30. Inset: As a teen visiting from the US, Jean Hirmer introduced the 1959 Chubby Checker dance hit The Twist to her friends in Vancouver.

More photos at Flickr: Kids get residents on their feet to dance… with a twist

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