Local Focus: Wild West Out East fundraiser to feature non-stop line dancing

When the Gisborne Cancer Society decided to cancel the Relay For Life due to Covid-19, the Supportive Care Co-ordinator Carolin Deutsch said they put their thinking caps on to find an alternative fundraiser.

"The cancer society does a fundraiser in Gisborne every year called Relay for life,
which is an acknowledgment and remembrance, but also in support of all those who are living with cancer or have died from cancer," she said.

"We didn't want our Relay for life to be a big superspreader event.

"We thought about what we could do and we came up with the idea of Relay Your Way."

Individuals and teams can fundraise by doing their relay on a day, time and length of their choosing.

Fundraisers then complete their relay wherever it suits: in the community, in their backyard, or keep it indoors at home.

Janine Hamilton-Kells said it was a "crazy time " to run an event due to Covid-19, but wanted to help those affected by cancer in Gisborne.

"You know this is a really difficult time to have cancer,' she said.

"Not only have you got the diagnosis and everything that you are going through, you have the added stress of Covid and the added restrictions.

"So we just thought, cancer doesn't stop for Covid, so we are not going to stop either."

Hamilton-Kells started line dancing during the lockdown, using YouTube to learn the dances.

Once out of lockdown she went looking for a class. When she was unable to find a class that suited her timetable, she decided to start her own.

"So I put it all out on Facebook and got a lot of interest.

"Then I put the word out to get an instructor and couldn't get anybody that was able to take it on."

Unable to find an instructor, Hamilton-Kells took it upon herself to become an instructor. The Rhythm and Lines club was created.

A year down the track it is running classes for beginners and intermediate line dancers.

With the support of Smash Palace as a venue, Rhythm and Lines will be hosting a Relay Your Way fundraiser on March 11 named Wild West Out East.

The event will see three hours of non-stop line dancing.

"There will always be someone on the floor line dancing and everyone is welcome to dip in and out of that as they have the capability or enthusiasm or energy to do that," Hamilton-Kells said.

The Rhythm in Lines motto is: There is no such thing as mistakes in line dancing, they are just accidental solos.

"If you can walk through the door you can line dance," Hamilton-Kells said.

For information about Rhythm and Lines classes, check out their Facebook.

If you would like to donate to the cancer society or run a Relay your way fundraiser, go to
www.cancer.org.nz.