Occupation: I am 24 years old and am a freelance dancer and choreographer, a certified vinyasa yoga instructor, and a certified integrative nutrition health coach. Currently, I am a nanny for the sweetest family in Sandy Hook while I am also building my coaching business.

As a health coach, I mostly work with young female dancers in their teens and 20s. I offer one-on-one coaching sessions as well as group coaching. My newest offer is a brand-new group coaching program I am launching this spring for dancers to gain self confidence, improve body image, squash self comparison, and eliminate disordered eating patterns.

Family: I was born and raised in Newtown, living with my parents and my older brother, Jonah. I have so many beautiful memories here with my family and friends.

Pets: We now live here with our two Shetland sheepdogs, Sophie and Stanley, and our cat, Humphrey.

How long have you lived in Newtown? Newtown has my heart and will always be my home, but I did explore some other places on my own for a brief period. I lived in Massachusetts for a bit, where I attended Montserrat College of Art for a semester. I loved the school and the people I met there, but dance was calling my name, so I decided to transfer schools. It was then that I attended Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Penn., for four years to receive my BA in dance choreography. Ever since graduating, I have been back in Newtown. Newtown will always be home to me, but I am definitely ready to explore many more parts of the world.

What is your favorite travel destination? My favorite travel destination, of the few places I’ve been able to experience so far in my life, is Italy. I spent a magical month in Arezzo, a beautiful little city in Tuscany, at the Accademia dell’Arte studying dance. I would love nothing more than to go back there and dance again under the Tuscan sun.

Who or what has been the greatest influence in your life? I owe that entire life-changing experience to my parents, who generously paid for all the expenses. I am eternally grateful for all of their support. They are definitely my biggest influences in life, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

What organizations are you part of in Newtown? I attended Lathrop School of Dance in Newtown as a child before moving on to further my training. I am now back dancing there with my mom and the Stardusters. Lathrop is a big family of dancers who bring so much joy to the town in their yearly recitals and shows they put on at the Newtown tree lighting and other town events every year.

If you could spend the day with one person, who would you choose and why? If I could spend the day with one person, I would pick my Papa (my grandfather on my mom’s side). I miss him dearly, and I wish I had been older than 16 when he passed.

What is the greatest piece of advice you have ever been given? I’m not sure what the greatest piece of advice I’ve ever been given is, but one that stands out in my mind is “The grass isn’t greener on the other side, it is greener wherever you water it.”

What is something you cannot live without? Something I cannot live without is my passion. I would be lost without the extreme sense of passion I feel and have for dance, art, coaching, and almost any endeavor I choose to take on in life.

What is your proudest accomplishment? Paying for my health coaching education and creating this program from scratch all on my own has been my proudest accomplishment so far in my life. I feel so passionately and strongly about how necessary this type of support and education is for young dancers, and I am ready to change the mental and physical health of the dance world, one student at a time.