Three local acrobatic athletes who are aiming to go to Mexico to represent Canada raised more than $300 at a local hotdog sale, with more fundraising campaigns coming up.
Mia Chambers, 12, Brooklyn Wiseman, 16, and Nyima Hussein, 14 – who all hail from Maple Ridge – will be competing in the dance style that combines classical dance elements with acrobatics at the IDO World Acrobatic Championships, scheduled to take place July 22 and 23 in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico.
The hot dog fundraiser for the three girls raised $316 on Sunday, April 16, outside the Canadian Tire in Maple Ridge – but, they need to raise more.
“Because dance is an art and not a sport we have to fundraise to get to Mexico,” explained Nicole Chambers, who posted online about the community fundraiser.
The girls qualified for the event Easter weekend last year at an event in Langley where they competed against around 200 other dancers from across the province for a spot on the national team.
They had to demonstrate their skills in the basics, like performing the splits, front and back walkovers, and other standard skills that are in all routines.
READ MORE: Maple Ridge dancers to represent Canada in acro at world Mexican competition
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Initially the world competition was supposed to be held in August last year, but it was postponed because European countries didn’t want to attend because of the war in Ukraine.
The girls have been studying acro since they were about three-years-old, and now spend upwards of 18 hours per week training. The trio study at Blue Crane Contortion in Maple Ridge in addition to dance classes at various schools in the Lower Mainland.
A bottle drive has been planned for the upcoming Mother’s Day weekend, May 13 and 14.
For those who would like to donate, organizers are offering both a pick up and drop off service.
Email chambersadventures@gmail.com for more information.
They are also planning another hotdog sale in June.
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