Simone's Journey to Ailey

I am reaching out to all of you for Simone, a dance student of mine.  I've never done anything like this and hate to ask anyone for any help, but this is something that I feel very strongly about and want to help her as much as I can.  Simone has been a student of mine for eight years. I had her starting at the age of 8 for ballet, jazz and modern.  She is now 16 and one of the most talented dancers that I have ever had the privledge of teaching.  She is one of those dancers, who you know will go on to do something great.  Not only does she have extraordinary talent, she has the soul and the heart, the drive, work ethic, and resiliancy that is needed to enter into the profession of dance. Very early on I said she had the potential to become an Ailey dancer.  She has just taken her first step towards that possibility.  Simone has been accepted into the professional division of Alvin Ailey's, 2017 6 week summer intensive at The Ailey School in New York. The only problem is, she and her family cannot afford the tuition, room and board to send her there at this point.  It will be heartbreaking if she cannot go. She is doing all she can to raise the money, but she won't sacrifice her commitment to her current dance studio nor her academics. 
To tell you a little more about Simone, she is one of those people who truly has a light inside of them. It is contagious.  She is such a beautfiul, young soul. As I stated before, she is a very talented dancer, whose passion matches her techniqe. I can't say enough about her character.  She has always been wise beyond her years, truly caring and compassionate. I've never known her to join in the typical teenager gossip or drama.  She is loved by all of her peers and is an incredible roll model to the younger dancers. She always follows through with her committments and does extremely well in school.  She deserves to have a shot at her dream of becoming a member of the Alvin Ailey company one day.
Now, more than ever, I feel it is important to support those young people who are the future of the arts.  I can promise you, she will respect this gift and be forever grateful.  She will continue to work harder each day and I feel she will be successful no matter what, but it would be such a gift to her and her family if this financial hurdle was out of the way.
Initail funds are needed quite quickly, by the end of March if possible, but will continue to be needed through May. Every little bit helps.

Thank you for your kindness.
Miss Lindsay