Thank you for taking a moment to read exactly what National Dance Institute means to me. I can confidently say that I would not be the person I am today without the support, guidance, and joy that NDI brought into my life.

I began dancing with NDI when I was in 4th grade after watching my older brother Max dance with them for the previous two years. I will admit, I did not know what I was getting myself into. However, when the pianists began playing their music and the instructors started their first warm-up, I was hooked. During my first year, the theme was “Science and the Arts.” It is honestly a bit poetic for someone pursuing medical school to be introduced to the intersection of science and the arts in a dance class.

As I continued with NDI, I danced in studios with children from all five boroughs, vastly different backgrounds, and various perspectives up to that point. Dance provided us with a universal language to connect, relate, and interact with one another. It made my Saturdays from 4th through 8th grade incredibly special. I would walk into the studio each week filled with anticipation, greeted by teachers whose energy was contagious and who treated us like artists, teaching us bold and original choreography.

Over the years, my gratitude for NDI has only deepened. Working now in a Community Health Fellowship where students often don’t have access to arts education, I’ve realized just how rare and transformative my experience was. I will never again take for granted what NDI gave me.

I cannot emphasize enough how NDI has molded me into the person I am today. Beyond dance, NDI has changed the way that I think and interact with the world. It’s hard to put into words just how deeply it lives in me. NDI taught me to see people fully, to consider the whole person before jumping to conclusions, to listen with empathy, and to recognize that everyone carries a unique rhythm shaped by their life experiences. These are lessons I carry with me every single day and hope to bring with me into my career as a doctor.

As I prepare to run the New York City Marathon, the opportunity to fundraise for NDI is an exciting one. It provides me the opportunity to give back to a place that means so much to me and provides arts education for thousands of students across New York City. Please consider donating to contribute to the arts education of the next generation.