Nearly a decade ago this full-time housewife, mother of two and Dancing with the Stars fanatic launched a blog called Just Another Ordinary Day. My not-so-hidden agenda in blogging was to become famous… not paparazzi-infiltrating-suburban-neighborhoods famous… just famous enough to garner an invitation to join the cast of celebrity contestants on DWTS. Fast forward five years. The invitation never came. Forced to confront the sad reality that being recognized as “that lady who writes the funny blog” at deli counters and dry cleaners across metro Atlanta was NOT famous enough for DWTS, I simply resigned myself to writing and sharing personal essays purely for the joy of it and (hopefully) for the entertainment of others.
While it’s true my numerous letters to the producers of DWTS went unanswered, I eventually found my way to the ballroom anyway and dragged my poor unsuspecting husband right along with me. Before long I went from frumpy-baseball-mom-and-housewife to The Dancing Housewife.
Even though blogging and competing with my husband is super fun, my friend Quin’s recent success as a ballroom dancing contestant on America’s Got Talent sparked the return of my DWTS fantasy. Quin is a 71 year old pro am dancer, who not only auditioned with her partner Misha for America’s Got Talent and made it, but also got sent straight through to the live show by way of the Golden Buzzer!
Pretty cool, right? And if one close-to-home-hitting motivational story isn’t enough, today out of nowhere, I received this email:
Hello USA Dance Members –
At USA Dance, we are committed to supporting an inclusive culture that helps promote dance for all. In recent weeks, our team was contacted by Daniel Chaplin who is an active USA Dance member looking for support from our community. Daniel, who has Down syndrome, took up ballroom dancing nearly five years ago, and he has since danced in competitions around the Southeast as he has advanced through the ranks from the newcomer to the bronze to the silver skill levels. He has truly beat the odds.
About a year ago, Daniel had the opportunity to meet and dance with Kym Johnson, a fan favorite of “Dancing with the Stars”, at a special event in Birmingham AL in front of a large audience. He was so energetic and crowd pleasing, that Kym said, “Daniel, that was amazing. . . . If you were on ‘Dancing with the Stars,’ you would be getting 10’s all around, you really would.” That sparked an idea in Daniel. What if he could get enough support from friends, family and his dancing community to earn a guest appearance on his favorite TV show “DTWS”?
Below is a petition message in support of Daniel to live out his dream on “DWTS”. While it is rare for USA Dance to send out a petition, we felt that in this case it was an honor to help our community member and embrace inclusivity. There is no obligation to sign, but support is greatly appreciated.
If you’d like to sign please do so HERE
Thank you,
USA Dance Governing Council
Shut the front door!! I do not know Daniel, but I’ve seen him dance several times at competitions on the USA Dance circuit and he’s good! Really good!
Daniel is an inspiration and an overachiever by any measure. Not only is he a very respectable ballroom dancer, he received his high school diploma, holds a job and is a National Down Syndrome Congress Board Member. I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t love to get tapped for Dancing with the Stars myself, but honestly I can’t think of a better way to live out my dream than vicariously through the experience of watching Daniel Chaplin pursue that coveted mirror ball trophy! Do me a favor. Please take a moment to add your name to this amazing young man’s petition and help him to live his dream…and mine.
Click HERE to sign the Daniel GoChaplin DWTS Signature Page.
Don’t forget to tune into America’s Got Talent on FOX on Tuesday, August 21 and vote for Quin and Misha and be certain to LIKE them on Facebook today!
#DanielForDWTS #DanielGoChaplin #Quinspire #Quin&Misha
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