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(Photo: Susan Morning)

In life, it is not our experiences that make us unique but the way in which we come out the other side that makes us special. For Amanda Taylor, the birth and subsequent death of her daughter left her and her husband, Gabe at a crossroads: would they deal with the experience by following a path of despair or one of creation?

While some people in a similar situation may choose to wallow in grief, Amanda chose the latter path and turned her experience into something productive by creating Rhiannon’s Kids, a new children’s fund in Mammoth.

“Rhiannon [the Taylor’s daughter] thrived during her short life,” Amanda said. “It was due to a combination of her stubbornness and the love she received.” Support and love came not only from her parents, but from the local community and her doctors as well.

Rhiannon Lynn Taylor was born in October of 2009. Amanda had enjoyed a healthy, happy pregnancy, so it came as a huge surprise when Rhiannon was diagnosed with Trisomy 18, a terminal genetic disorder, at birth. Rhiannon was born with two severe holes in her heart as part of the disorder, and 138 days later she died of congestive heart failure.

“TR-18 is an extremely rare genetic disorder,” Amanda explained. “Most infants with this diagnosis don’t survive the first week. They are often described as being incompatible with life.”

Shortly after her arrival into this world, Rhiannon was flown from Mammoth to Reno, Nev. in order to receive the specialized infant care she required.

“There’s a misconception out there that your health insurance will help cover your travel expenses in situations like these,” Amanda said. The Taylors quickly realized this wasn’t true as they followed their daughter to Reno by car and spent several nights in a hotel room, footing the bill for gas, food and lodging while stressing over their daughter’s well-being.

Rhiannon spent the majority of her 138 days at home, comfortable and loved. The Taylors knew her time was limited and chose to make the best of it, treating her like a normal newborn and allowing themselves to develop a strong attachment to their baby girl — a decision that made it both more painful and less when Rhiannon was no longer with them, according to Amanda.

“Since high school I’ve always wanted to make a difference in kids’ lives,” Amanda, who is currently working on her teaching credential, said. “Rhiannon added more depth to that purpose. It made me want to do more. And the support of the community made me want to be supportive back.”

So, earlier this year Amanda sat down with Gary Myers, former Mammoth Hospital CEO and current Chairman of the Board for the Healthcare Trust of Mammoth Lakes, Mammoth Hospital’s Foundation.

“I told him that I wanted to start a children’s foundation to help families with travel expenses when their kids have to go out of town for specialized care,” Amanda said.

Myers was supportive and suggested that Rhiannon’s Kids be created under the umbrella of the Healthcare Trust. Amanda next spoke with local pediatrician Dr. Amy Conrad about such a foundation, and was told that the need for that type of support was huge. The only thing left was to go before the Healthcare Trust’s Board and make the pitch.

Amanda made her presentation to the Board in March, the same month in which Rhiannon had passed away two years prior. She received a call almost immediately after leaving the boardroom saying that her request to start the foundation had been unanimously approved, and the non-profit quickly began to spread its wings.

Since March, Rhiannon’s Kids has put together a Board of its own made up of Amanda as Chairwoman, her mother-in-law Kathleen Taylor as Vice Chair, and Dr. Conrad and Dr. Kim Escudero (both of whom were Rhiannon’s pediatricians in Mammoth) as medical specialists. The Board is currently looking for a fifth member to serve as its Business Manager. Rhiannon’s Kids has also started receiving donations, and found several families in need of support.

While Gabe does not sit on the Board, his networking skills and connections throughout the snowboarding industry will serve as key elements in helping the organization as it grows.

Last weekend’s Dancing with the Docs marked another milestone for the organization as its first fundraiser.

Each doctor that danced in the event was competing for the charity of his or her choice. Dr. Escudero chose to dance on behalf of Rhiannon’s Kids and ended up raising between $2,000 and $3,000 (the numbers were still being tallied at press time).

“We were so happy to be a part of Dancing with the Docs,” Amanda said. “The event offered great        creativity and originality and really has potential to grow.”

As for growth with Rhiannon’s Kids, Amanda would one day like to see it serve the entire Eastern Sierra.

“We’re so remote here,” she said. “I want to be able to help families, to be able to make a small difference and give back to my community.”

Currently, Rhiannon’s Kids serves newborns to 21-year olds who have acute and chronic medical conditions and are established pediatric patients regularly served by Southern Mono Healthcare District. Doctors such as Conrad and Escudero refer children and their families to the foundation for assistance.

The support provided is designed to cover expenses for lodging, travel and meals in acute or emergency situations, or for scheduled medical services.

Rhiannon’s Kids is just ramping up and will have a website available soon to provide more information. For now, contact rhiannonskids@yahoo.com to learn more.

Dancing with the Stars, passe. Try Dancing with the Docs!

This summer, five Mammoth Hospital doctors and their “celebrity” partners will be shaking their booties for a chance to be crowned the winning team at the “Dancing with the Docs” gala event, to be held Sept. 22.The fundraiser, a dance competition between physicians, takes the place of Mammoth Hospital’s Festival of Trees annual event. The hospital’s Fund Development Coordinator Bubby Greene pitched the idea to Community Relations Director Lori Ciccarelli after seeing a Dancing with the Stars spin off titled, “Dancing with the Priests.”

Ciccarelli loved the idea and easily got the board of the hospital’s foundation, the Healthcare Trust of Mammoth Lakes, to buy in as well.

“It’s going to be something fun for the town,” said Ciccarelli, who will emcee the Sept. 22 event with Chair of the Healthcare Trust and former hospital CEO, Gary Myers.

Slated to perform:

Kris Wilson, MD, Pediatrician and Tommy Czeschin, Olympic silver medalist and Amazing Race television star, with Leah Dutcher choreographing.

Kim Escudero, MD, Pediatrician and X-Games gold medalist Johnny Teller, with choreographer Pamela Stayden.

Yuri Parisky, MD, Radiologist and Disabled Sports Eastern Sierra Executive Director Kathy Copeland, choreography by Gigi Van der Riet.

Kurt Smith, MD, Anesthesiologist (choreographing) and Jamie Halverson of the Mammoth Lakes Foundation.

Jennie Walker, MD, Emergency Medicine and Town of Mammoth Lakes Recreation Manager Stu Brown with choreography by Allison Page.

 

Many of the teams met for the first time this week to kick off rehearsals. As an additional bonus to the event, the teams will be filmed throughout the three-month process. Beginning July 27, local television station Sierra Wave will turn the footage into a nine-week miniseries leading up to the gala. New episodes will play every Friday evening (time TBA), and will then repeat throughout the week. The gala event will also be taped and play the week after it occurs.

The Sheet touched base with all of the teams this week to get a look at how the competition was stacking up.

Yuri Parisky and Kathy Copeland – Jumpin’ and Jivin’

Kathy Copeland, known for her fun-loving and energetic personality seems like she might be tough to keep up with on the dance floor, but at their first meeting on Wednesday night, Yuri Parisky proved a good match.

“Yuri will do his homework and Kathy will wing it,” said their choreographer Gigi Van der Riet to the camera after spending an hour and a half with her team.

The couple will be performing the Jive.

“The Jive is not as technical but it takes a huge amount of energy,” Van der Riet, a native of South Africa with a background in ballet, contemporary and jazz dance, said.

With zero dance background, Yuri did his best to pick up the moves quickly in the two-hour rehearsa.

“I’m doing this because I believe in the hospital,” Parisky said. “Patients I take care of benefit from the Healthcare Trust. Plus, it’s a great way to get back in shape, lose some weight and prove that talentless people can be taught to dance!”

“Going out and making fools of ourselves is a fun way to give back,” Kathy joked. She says her sole claim to dancing fame was at Whiskey Creek during her drinking days.

“It’s like the Romans feeding someone to the lions,” Yuri added.

Expect high energy and even some lifts to be part of Yuri and Kathy’s routine. The pair’s method of practice will be slightly unique since Kathy will be hiking the John Muir Trail for the entire month of August.

“We’ll be shadow dancing with Gigi when the other isn’t around,” Yuri said. “So when we come together the sparks will fly!”

 

Kris Wilson and Tommy Czeschin – Cha-Cha-Cha-ing

Kris and Tommy were scheduled to meet for the first time this Friday night, June 29, according to Czeschin.

“I have no dance background, whatsoever,” Czeschin admitted. “I am really doing it to support the hospital.” He thought the team would be learning the moves to the Cha-Cha.

Czeschin, fresh off of the reality television show, The Amazing Race, didn’t see Dancing with the Docs as following a similar reality TV track. Perhaps no one had clued him into the miniseries portion, yet.

The team’s choreographer, Leah Dutcher was excited to get the process rolling. “I can say that I am quite anxious to get started,” she wrote via email. “Having been a Ballroom dance instructor for 10 years in Los Angeles, and again for 8 years here in Bishop, I know how much hard work it takes to get people to the ‘performance’ level. I hope my team is ready for a fun, but difficult, journey!

I do hope the event is a huge success!”

 

Kurt Smith and Jamie Halverson – Disco 

Disco actually has some of its roots in various forms of ballroom, and can be very elegant when done well. Mammoth Hospital Anesthesiologist Dr. Kurt Smith and the Mammoth Lakes Foundation’s Jamie Halverson plan to put Studio 54 sheen on a disco routine for their dance.

“I picked out ‘Last Dance’ by Donna Summer, who died recently. Disco was sort of aerobics before there was aerobics in gyms,” Smith noted, emphasizing its natural athleticism, which he thinks is a bit overlooked in the dance world.

Their routine is based on one that was created by Smith for an intra-fraternity competition during his college days. Smith won, always a good reason to dig up the old moves and dig out the old Saturday Night Fever suit and dancing shoes!

Halverson said she’s also done a few turns on the disco dance floor back in the day. “I’m came out of the disco era,” she acknowledged. “I remember bell-bottom jeans, hip huggers, white and red checkered tops, collars that were super big with the sleeves flared out.” Look for their routine to be as much about the costumes as the dancing. “When I think of disco, I think of fashion,” Halverson quipped.

As mentioned, this team will be choreography its own moves.

“The toughest part of putting this together has been finding choreographers,” Ciccarelli said. “I couldn’t talk anyone into taking on two teams.”

 

Jennie Walker and Stu Brown – Crazy like a Foxtrot

If it’s true that you can’t beat the classics, then Mammoth Hospital Emergency Medicine Doctor Jennie Walker and Town of Mammoth Lakes Recreation and Communication Director Stu Brown plan to highlight why the Foxtrot isn’t just formal, it’s also a lot of fun.

I was also a dancer for many years,” said Walker. “I studied mostly ballet and jazz, with some tap and a little ballroom experience. I made a short-lived attempt at a professional career, but realized that was not likely to be successful, so I went to medical school instead! I am really excited to have an opportunity to perform again!”

“My best friend was a ballroom dancer and I danced with my daughter at cotillion, which is the extent of my ballroom dancing experience,” Brown acknowledged. “But I would describe myself as a casual observer of ‘Dancing with the Stars.’” The duo hasn’t yet settled on music, but has started working out the steps.

Choreographing the pair is actress and theatre director Allison McDonell Page, who as it happens has a fair amount of dancing on her impressive resume. “I have little ballroom dance experience, though I hope to live vicariously through my great aunt who taught ballroom dancing for 40 years in Chapel Hill, North Carolina,” she said. “However, I was a dancer most of my life. I studied jazz and modern mostly. I choreographed through high school and college and was the Director of a Dance company at Harvard.

Page said she contemplated a career in musicals as a chorus girl, but wasn’t too sure of her singing voice and decided to change paths and become an actress. “I worked as an actress for 15 years in New York City, Los Angeles and theaters around the country. Though it’s been a while since I took a dance class, I did choreograph a number for last year’s high school production of “The Wizard of Oz” (she did “The Jitterbug” number). I think we will have a blast and will be the team to beat!”

 

Choreographer Pamela Stayden and Dr. Kim Escudero

Kim Escudero and Johnny Teller – Salsa 

Dr. Kim Escudero loves to dance, but has never done so in a formal setting.

Now she’ll get her chance … if her partner John Teller shows up.

Johnny was late for practice on Wednesday because he’s busy competing in the Mammoth Motocross.

Mike Fiebiger, who employs Teller at Alpine Garage, is dubious of Teller’s talents.

“He can’t dance. He makes me look like Fred Astaire. You know white guys can’t dance. All we can do is slow dance.”

Fortunately Escudero, who’s half Puerto Rican, says dancing’s in her blood.

“She’s got great hips,” adds choreographer Pamela Stayden.

“And I’ve been pleasantly surprised [by Johnny],” Stayden added. “He’s been giving input. And they’ve got their song picked out.”

Teller and Escudero are dancing for Rhiannon’s kids, a fund set up for local children to help pay for families’ transportation costs if a child with serious medical issues needs to be transferred to a bigger hospital.

 

Ciccarelli said that there is a possibility of a sixth team if she can find another doctor to commit.

“There were zero takers when we first put the idea out there, but slowly the doctors have come around,” she said.

The competition will take place on Sept. 22 and money raised will go the hospital. Each team’s dance will last between 2-2.5 minutes. There will be two forms of judging at the gala. A panel of judges as well as a People’s Choice Award.

“The event is already bringing in people from all walks of life,” Ciccarelli said. Athletes, the medical community, DSES volunteers and more have already begun to approach her. Placing the doctors outside of their elements is a real draw.

Tickets for the Sept. 22 gala are $100. For sponsorship opportunities or to learn more, contact Greene at 760.924.4128 or Ciccarelli at 760.924.4015.

 

 

 

 

A smooth Vito puts the moves on partner Chelsie Hightower … talk about cha cha cha! (Photo courtesy ABC/Adam Larkey)

Louie Vito dukes it out with Donny Osmond

By The 40 oz. KIllah

I don’t know what you were doing Monday night, but if you missed the premiere of ABC’s “Dancing With The Stars,” you missed a moment in television history. There it was, a professional snowboarder waltzing his way into the hearts of millions of American viewers. A contestant who is also linked to our Mammoth area; Pro Snowboarder Louie Vito.
Louie, like many pros, comes to Mammoth for early-season training to prepare for the upcoming season. I’ve known Louie since he was a kid competing on the USASA amateur circuit. But forget about all that right now. We need to talk dancing. And if one thing is for certain, if Ballroom Dancing ever becomes an Olympic sport, Louie will have the upper hand on any professional snow athlete. Cha cha cha.
As far as the male contestants he’s competing with on the show, Louie is going to have to overcome the decades of popularity of Donny Osmond and the polished moves of Aaron Carter. That said, knowing Louie’s tenacious drive to win, I think he’ll send Donny packing his bags to the wax museum and sneak up behind Aaron, not only stealing his moves, but stealing his girl as well. It wouldn’t be the first time I’d seen Louie with more than one girl on his arm.
Which brings me to Louie’s partner, Chelsie Hightower. Grrrrrrrrrrr. Who let that little leopard out of her cage? I was thinking to myself as I watch the show, “Louie, forget the Waltz. Forget the Foxtrot. Propose dude, propose.” At the end of his performance I was totally stoked on how well he did. And I was also impressed with how well he held himself on camera.
Something else also dawned on me as I was watching the show. Louie will always be an alumni of Season 9 with the other contestants, for Life. And what does that mean? Connections. Big time connections. Let’s take a look at some of the possibilities for Louie in the future.
He’ll never have to worry about pool supplies or replacement water wings thanks to Olympic Gold Medalist swimmer, and new friend, Natalie Coughlin. He’ll be hanging in the Dallas Cowboys VIP suites sipping champagne and scarfing down brats watching the game with buddy and Hall of Famer Michael Irvin. If he ever gets confused and needs some advice on clearing his head, a call to new friend Macy Gray could do the trick, or maybe not.
If he decides to start a business, new big sister Kathy Ireland will be there for business advice and father figure Tom DeLay could provide the connections for raising the dough. (Just don’t ask questions as to where the money came from).
I can also see him chilling out over at the Osborne’s crib sipping a latte with Kelly and getting tattoo advice from Ozzie.
And lastly, UFC champion Chuck Liddell will be his new bodyguard, ready to beat the crap of anybody that takes a swipe at Louie’s size again.
Louie is taller than most men and I’m betting he’s going to kick ass on this show.
Stay tuned for next week’s episode!
FYI … Louie is still alive on “DWTS,” making it through to the next round. He (and Chelsie) avoided the ax that fell on fellow competitors Ashley Hamilton and Macy Gray.