During the holidays, many local businesses say “thanks” to their customers and local business partners for relationships created throughout the year. Whether with cards, gifts or a holiday gathering, business people take the time to recognize that working together benefits everyone.
Boggs Inspection Services is no different. Working in the home inspection industry, it’s no surprise that owner Dwayne Boggs and his staff work closely with local real estate agents all year long. The most common time for an inspection is when you are preparing to sell your home or have placed an offer on a new home and need confirmation that everything is in good working order. Boggs and his team show their appreciation for this relationship each year with hundreds of beautiful holiday poinsettias delivered to agents all over the area.
The plants could be purchased in bulk from any number of wholesalers, but instead, Boggs purchases them from a local booster club dedicated to raising funds to help support local dancers. Inspired to Dance Booster Association was started by two moms, Makieda Hart and Shannon Steadman, who recognized that dancing competitively brought joy and physical fitness to their daughters but also big bills to their budgets. They hatched the idea to form a booster group to help fundraise for area dancers, off-setting the cost of competitions, costumes, and travel.
This group is unique in that it’s not tied to any one studio. Parents can join the booster no matter where their children dance. Members come from all around Thurston and Pierce Counties as many of the area studios compete in similar competitions and share the same needs.
Shannon Steadman’s 11-year-old daughter Sierra is a fifth grader at South Bay Elementary. She currently dances at Center Stage Dance Academy in Lacey and previously danced at Debbie’s Dance Etc. for many years. “The money raised doesn’t go to pay for the dance lessons, but instead, helps families with all the additional expenses that come along with dance,” Shannon explains. And those expenses can really add up. With costumes costing between $70 and $300 each, competitive dance can become prohibitively expensive for many families.
Sierra’s dad, Mike Steadman, knows Dwayne through Gateway Rotary Club and when Boggs learned last year of the opportunity to support the kids, he jumped at the chance. “His efforts make it a lot easier on the girls so they can concentrate on dancing and what they love, not on fundraising all the time,” shares Steadman.
Boggs remembers being a kid, too, involved in activities and feeling the pressure to fundraise all the time and likes that he can help reduce that pressure. “People don’t think about dance for fundraising. They may focus more on sports like football when they think about giving financial support. But these kids work really hard and I like that I can help the whole group when I support the booster club, not just one child,” he shares.
The poinsettias, numbering 210 plants this year, are one of the ways Boggs gives back to the community. “I really like to give back to the people who have supported me and helped my business grow,” Boggs says. And his purchases of the poinsettias will help Sierra and her fellow dancers make it farther this year than ever before.
The 210 poinsettias have been distributed and are decorating offices and homes throughout the South Sound. Boggs Inspection Services’ office manager, Heather Rowell, played “Santa” over the last few weeks delivering the plants to real-estate offices and partner businesses. She even got her own daughters involved in the community-wide deliveries.
Inspired to Move engages in a variety of fundraising activities throughout the year with the holiday plants being just one. The new group is looking for more members to grow a strong financial support system for dancers throughout the area. For information on how you can be a part of the group visit them on Facebook.
“We know Dwayne has a lot of choices on what he does with his money to help the community,” shares Mike Steadman. “That he chose the help our daughter, and other dancers like her, means a lot.”
