Source: The Record / Minjae Park
Isabella Galan, an avid dancer with a broad smile, and her mother since October have collected new and lightly used leotards, tights and special shoes to give to families whose pocketbooks are strained by the costs of dancing: hundreds of dollars for classes and competitions, and all the apparel growing girls cycle through, including shoes for different dances — ballet shoes, jazz shoes, pointed shoes and tap shoes.
“She’s thrilled that she’s able to help,” said Maria Galan, Isabella’s mother, on Thursday afternoon while Isabella was in class.
Isabella thought of the idea of donating new and lightly used dance clothes after placing first among pre-teens at the USA National Miss New Jersey competition last August. The pageant requires that queens do charity work.
Dancers Closet, as Isabella called her project, merged her charity with her passion for dance.
The Galans set up collection boxes in local dance studios, including Dance World Academy, where Isabella dances for up to four hours every day; D3 Dancenter in Clifton, and Stage Lite Center in Pequannock.
