Keep 47-yr-old Patricia at Canada's National Ballet School!

Hello, or hello again! I am Patricia, 47, mother of an amazing kid with a disability, and I spent the last school year as a student at Canada's National Ballet School!

After starting ballet very late in my life, at age 37, I got accepted into the 1-Year Teacher Training Program in 2022 - at age 45 :) This changed my life forever, and it's still changing!

Last September, I finally enrolled in this world-renowned ballet school to get some of the best ballet teaching education that this world has to offer. Most of my lovely classmates were half my age and had trained ballet since childhood. And the few that were somewhere around my age had a full-on professional ballet career behind them. What an amazing opportunity to learn with and from them!

The fact that I finally got to start the program last year was a miracle in itself, because of several unexpexted events:

• I failed the audition a few years ago when I tried for the first time

• Then, once I made it through the audition in 2022, I had to postpone my enrollment for a year because my Canadian student visa didn’t get approved in time (I am originally from Germany)

• I had to cover insanely high international tuition fees, which seemed entirely impossible. (Read on to see what happened then.)

Fast forward to now: I was supposed to graduate from the program at the end of this past school year. Initially, committing to just a year of full-time study seemed already monumental. I mean, as a single parent of a teen with multiple disabilities, with all the responsibilities and daily battles that that brings about, a year in a physically and emotionally very demanding ballet teaching program seemed almost utopic.

But a few months into starting the program, I realized: Doing this program for only a year – wouldn’t do it justice. Wouldn’t honor the depth of learning that I was receiving - and that I eventually would pass on to my students. Because I want my students to get the very best I can give, and I can't imagine anything more beautiful than supporting THEIR ballet dreams and aspirations. And there is definitely more to learn for me in order to do that to the best of my ability. Just because I am a mature student doesn’t mean I can shortcut the hours that are required to become a good teacher.

So, I took the leap. Early this year, I nervously decided to apply for the FULL 3-YEAR-DIPLOMA-TEACHER TRAINING PROGRAM!

While I didn’t have to formally audition for it, there was still a decision-making process, and it took a while.

AND THEN IT HAPPENED! In April, I finally held my new Letter of Acceptance.

It felt even bigger than the initial acceptance. Because this time it meant I would embark on a true vocational path through something that came into my life by accident and way "too late", and that so far, didn’t have any vocational paths for "too late" starters.

So far, it still all sounds like a dream, and that the decision to continue studying was clear-cut and easy.

But it wasn’t all the time.

The truth is, the juggling of this very demanding education with my responsibilities at home was tougher than expected. On top of his usual physical and academic challenges, my son had one of his most difficult mental health times of his life, and while I had additional support come in, it was still rough. His struggles were made worse by a really crappy housing situation (still ongoing). So I had to coordinate complex legal action and somehow improvise solutions in the meantime. Luckily I had a lot of friends and neighbors supporting us (thank you!). But it was still often more than I could absorb. Things did fall apart in several other areas of life as well. Sometimes I would sit there, rub my eyes, and wonder how many more trials life would send my way while I just wanted to live my dream peacefully? :-D

But I feel very deeply about keeping it going, despite the obstacles.

I feel stronger than ever about this education and how it will make me better in opening up ballet to anyone who wishes to get into it. No matter at what age, what ability, and no matter the reasons and goals that students bring to the table. I am only now starting to piece together how adult ballet education can be more systematic (just like for kids when they start young), and less frustrating and less stagnating overall. Adding two more years will also give me more time to learn from NBS' adapated kids programs and adult programs. NBS also does pioneering work around programs for older adults with neurological conditions. All of the above is a dream for more diversity and inclusivity in ballet!

With my acceptance, the National Ballet School agreed to continue my partial scholarship, and I am able to cover a small amount of the remaining tuition on my own. That leaves me with roughly $11,000 still open.

GoFundMe made all the difference for me when I first got accepted in 2022 and faced prohibitively high (for me) tuition fees. That's when I created my first campaign: Over 200 caring and generous donors made it happen, and I can't thank all of you enough for it!

So I have decided to ask this community for help again, and that's where this new, second campaign comes in!

So, dear reader, now that we're so deep into the story: Would you be up for helping me pay for the 2024-2025 school year at Canada's National Ballet School?

If you care about my mission and are able to, then this campaign gives you a chance to contribute! Any amount, no matter how big or small, is much appreciated. That’s the beauty of crowdfunding – instead of putting a big financial burden on one person alone, we can spread it over a whole village, with everybody giving what they are comfortable with. And there is no need to contribute at all - the choice is entirely yours. And if you want to send good energy and encouraging words, that’s much appreciated, too!

We can never do it alone. It can be hard to ask for help, but it can also create bonds - and ballet miracles :)

Thank you so much and have a wonderful day,

Patricia