The Fisher House Foundation is a national organization offering free housing to families of injured or ill service members while their loved ones are cared for. This May, the organization will be opening their first home in Connecticut on the grounds of the West Haven campus of the VA Connecticut Healthcare System. Previous “Dancing With Our Heroes” events organized by the Fred Astaire Dance Studios have raised nearly $300,000 to help in the construction of this house.
Bates joined the United States Army National Guard in 1982 and trained as an Armored Calvary Scout, serving with the 26th Air Cavalry Yankee Division stationed at Quonset Point. He served with the HHC 2nd Infantry division and with the 1ST Battalion 75 Ranger Regiment, and was honorably discharged in 1996.
Bates has worked for Coventry Lumber for 13 years, the last 5 as an outside salesman. He’s a member of the American Legion, is National Executive Committee Man for the Department of RI as well as the Post Commander of Post 81 in Coventry. He has a daughter, Jillian, and a grandson, Ethan.
“I want to thank the Fred Astaire Dance Studios for putting on this event and to the dance studio in Warwick for their support, tolerance and great instruction. Thank you Juliet, Paige and Emily,” Bates said.
Toolan grew up in Narragansett, where she started dancing at 7 at Narragansett Performing Arts Centre.
She began with Ballet and Jazz, which lead her to quickly fall in love with the art, so she started exploring other styles such as Lyrical, Tap, and Hip Hop. She attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas where she received her Bachelor’s in Fine Arts.
She joined the Fred Astaire Studio of Warwick in 2017.
The gala will be held at the Mystic Marriott Hotel and Spa in Groton, CT and will feature one or more heroes nominated to represent each studio. A professional instructor from each studio is committing 10 hours of their time to train each hero on either the fox trot or swing.
The night of the event features a silent auction, sit-down dinner, professional shows, general dancing and the “Dancing With Our Heroes” competition. But the competition starts much sooner than that as the community is invited to go online and pledge support for the hero of their choice with a donation. Every dollar raised for each veteran counts as a vote. And of course the real winners are the families served by the Fisher House.
Author: Rob Borkowski
Rob has worked as reporter and editor for several publications, including The Kent County Daily Times and Coventry Courier, before working for Gatehouse in MA then moving home with Patch Media. Now he's publisher and editor of WarwickPost.com. Contact him at [email protected] with tips, press releases, advertising inquiries, and concerns.
This is a test
