Members of a local dance group are back in St. Louis after taking a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Paris. The group of four young ladies got to catch some of the Olympic games in person. What's more -- their dance coach made it possible.
To be part of Legacy Elite, you've got to have the right moves. Just ask City Garden Montessori 7th grader Serenity Wells-Phillips.
"If we don't do it right, she will make us do it over and over again until we do it right,” she said.
She's talking about her beloved coach Aerie Tumlin who created a space to give dancers a platform to blossom.
"I decided I wanted to offer more to students who look like me and grew up where I grew up. So I started to expand into all-star cheerleading competition. And then, just about 5 years ago, we switched over to studio competition,” Tumlin explained.
Her students have ranged from 5 to 18 years old. Because they work so hard, the tough love coach had an idea -- reward a few of them with an impromptu trip to the Paris Olympics.
"I was like, ‘My first time out of the country. I’m really excited,’" Wells-Phillips recalled thinking.
Especially since it's not every day you get to catch your favorites go for the gold.
"I saw Simone Biles… I see her on TV but I never saw her in person and she's very inspiring,” she added.
There were also the sights and sounds of the city. Wells-Phillips watched as the Eifel Tower lit the night sky.
"I thought it was a little smaller. It's like really big,” she said with amazement.
"Just wanting to let them have that experience (and) know that there's more to just being secluded to like just St. Louis. Like, we can travel. We can do these things and it's going on all around the world, not just in one place,” Tumlin said.
With the dance form known as breaking now taking center stage to the world, these young people can have more motivation to see just how far their talents can cake them.
Legacy Elite started in St. Louis in 2009. The coach is now expanding the dance company to Houston to give even more young people opportunities.