Dancing began for Tana when she was 3. She took lessons from a neighbor. By the time she was 12, she was teaching. “I recruited neighborhood kids,” she says. She eventually had two classes of 15 students each. She continued teaching through high school.
Tana’s mother encouraged her dancing and understanding of the art. “She took me to every ballet and tap performance she could,” Tana recalls. “By seeing other productions and working on my own, I discovered my niche was creating a show and putting it together.” She created Goldilocks and the Three Bears at 16. As an instructor and producer, some of her original performances included Growing Green, The Great Disneyland Caper, and Alice’s Wacky Wonderland.
Tana knows how to create a rich life beyond dancing. She is a writer of children’s books, a poet, an artist who creates her own gift cards, and an organic farmer. Tap Shoes and Horse Shoes, published in 2011, is the story of Bill, a farm kid with two left feet until he learns to tap dance with his favorite horse Harry. Two other books are completed and awaiting publication. One, The Old Tin Cow, is about the tin cow sculpture on I-5 north of Weed – in the story, the tin cow comes alive.
Tana and Mike love working the farm and cooking together. Now that both are retired, they plan to do some bicycle touring, especially exploring Siskiyou County and the northern coast. “We are happy and enjoy spending time together,” relates Tana.
Tana’s rich and fulfilling life has a strong spiritual base. The Bible and her tenet, “Love God, love people, love life, and love to laugh,” have served as her foundation. I can’t think of any book other than the Bible that has been more of an influence on my life,” she says. Tana’s joy and love of life spill over to the many lives she touches.
To contact Tana, and for book information, call (530) 938-4089.
Posted in: Be The Change
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