About Me
I'm Karen Brunette, founder of Dance to Thrive.
I've spent my life happily dancing and teaching, beginning as a young girl with the rigors of classical ballet. After a short career as a ballet dancer, I transitioned to studying partnership dance styles like Ballroom, Latin, and Swing. I found a home in this beautiful form of dance and began teaching it over 25 years ago. I discovered my passion teaching partnership dance to
adults 55+ while witnessing the joy and incredible benefits this activity offers to this community.
It is my mission to broaden the awareness and availability of dance programs for Colorado seniors. In founding Dance to Thrive, I am pursuing this mission and aspire to make a positive impact on the 55+ adult community along the Front Range.
A joyful community of dancers
About
Dance to Thrive
Enhancing lives beyond 55
Many seniors are challenged with declining physical health, declining cognitive function, a lack of mobility, and lack of social connection. Partnership dance is an activity proven to meet these physical, cognitive, and emotional challenges. Dance to Thrive works with lifestyle directors and active adult community leaders to develop dance programs to enhance the lives of the people in their communities.
When partners join our class, they build a greater bond not only with each other but with their fellow dancers. Relationships flourish through learning, laughter and the formation of true friendships. A new community evolves around dance, resulting in numerous benefits, including pure joy.
Dance to Thrive, based in the Denver metropolitan area, is the only company along Colorado’s Front Range offering end-to-end dance program development services, including pairing 55+ communities with dance teachers. By connecting communities with dance teachers, they each benefit, and together, we're able to make a significant impact in the lives of more seniors.
Our Services
For Senior Communities
We offer a full dance program setup for senior residential communities, recreational and social centers, which includes designing the classes, finding teachers, and promoting the program to the community members.
For Dance Teachers
We enable dance teachers to join our Dance to Thrive roster so that we can connect them to nearby senior communities to teach classes.
For Media & Education Outlets
Karen is an enthusiastic advocate for senior partnership dance, and shares her experiences and outcomes with news outlets and senior publications. She is eager and available for interviews to continue to spread its benefits.
For Social Dance Events
We plan, manage and host large social partnership dance events that are open to all within the nearby communities.
Our Dance Methodology
Dance to Thrive programs are built around group classes and social dances in a non-competitive environment. Our teachers work from a nationally-recognized curriculum, making appropriate adjustments for seniors as a whole and individuals within a class. Teachers will assess balance, hearing, and other potential physical limitations of the students and will accommodate them as they teach. The unique needs of each student as well as the relationship dynamics between partners are considered - all done to ensure that classes are customized to age, ability, and communication styles.