Dancing Diary: Harcourts Dancing for Hospice week five

Rotorua Daily Post's Laura Smith is taking part in this year's Harcourts Dancing for Hospice.

Rotorua Daily Post reporter Laura Smith is taking part in this year’s Harcourts Dancing for Hospice. She shares her thoughts in the build-up to the August 17 event.

OPINION

Dear reader, you may be happy to hear my dance partner Nikora Simpkins and I are over our little blip of frustration and self-annoyance.

We left the Westbrook School hall after our lesson on Monday feeling buoyed and optimistic, happy knowing we are a little bit better, a bit smoother.

We’re both putting in the effort, as is everyone else, to get our routines perfected for the big night and to put on as good a show as we can.

Rotorua Community Hospice’s Jess Meade and Denise Byrne are putting the effort in as well to make sure everything is running smoothly, both now and for the event.

The seemingly tireless duo are absolute wonders - it must be like wrangling cats getting all us dancers organised on top of all the other things they need to do.

Their efforts to make the event as wonderful as possible helps ensure Hospice can continue to help patients and their whānau.

At the end of the day, they take the time to come to lessons and make sure we are all doing okay. It’s very much appreciated, and seeing them put their souls into it helps me remember why I donned a pair of dance shoes.

Note: Sorry, there was no dancing diary last week. I was away for work and then on leave.

This author is taking part in Harcourts Dancing for Hospice outside her salaried hours. NZME is a sponsor of the charity event and any content by the Local Democracy Reporter is done in her own time.

Laura Smith is a Local Democracy Reporting journalist based at the Rotorua Daily Post. She previously reported general news for the Otago Daily Times and Southland Express, and has been a journalist for four years.