VOLUNTEER BRIDGES THE GAP FOR ASPIRING DANCERS

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Nily Samara. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.

Nily Samara knows that dance can be an expensive hobby. That’s why the 16-year-old high school student is doing her best to make her passion more attainable for other young people.

As a young child, Nily was enchanted by a performance of The Nutcracker. Since then, she has loved studying ballet. She has dedicated years of her life to her passion, and believes dance can have a transformative effect on people. But Nily also understands how lucky she is to have that opportunity. From leotards to pointe shoes made halfway across the globe, stepping into the world of dance is a costly endeavor. Nily feels it shouldn’t be that way, and she wants to change things.

This desire led her to found Ballet Bridges, an organization that makes dance accessible to youth, regardless of background, abilities or finances. Whether students have disabilities or financial struggles, Ballet Bridges removes the restrictions that make the world of dance unattainable for many young people. Nily does everything from leading dance classes for children with special needs at partnering organizations to organizing hip-hop dance workshops. She’s also incredibly active in finding those expensive dance supplies and providing them for people who don’t have them. People who need things like pointe shoes and leotards can apply on the Ballet Bridges website, and the donated goods are subsequently redistributed. Goods are also frequently shipped to dancers who don’t have them in other locations, even internationally.

Nily is currently living her dreams, studying ballet in London for the summer before she comes home to Michigan to return to high school. When she tells her fellow dance students in London about her work with Ballet Bridges back home, many of them are also inspired to help. They’re eager to put out donation boxes at their dance studios, or do whatever they can to spread the message of expanding access to the joy of dance wherever they can. That willingness to pass the message on is a powerful example of how volunteerism works best. By sharing the message, we all benefit.

Tell us about your volunteer role with Ballet Bridges.

I’m the founder of the organization, and I also lead all of the operations. I teach both in person and online. We do have some teachers who will be helping out next year, so I will also recruit people. I also work on the donation boxes. Through the website, we have people who apply for donations, usually dance studios, teachers or parents, and after the board goes over the applications, we match them with the donations we have received. We redistribute what we’ve collected. People can donate, and they send it over. There’s a lot of outreach on my side. Sometimes, stores or brands can donate too.

What inspired you to get started with this initiative?

It started quite informally. I was visiting my cousin the summer before my freshman year of high school, and she asked me to teach her some dance moves and skills, because she knew that I was a dancer. I started teaching her, and she loved it so much. My little cousin has a disability, so seeing how much confidence and enjoyment dancing gave her, I wanted to continue. That summer, I kept teaching her more, and she invited her friends over. The summer I was teaching classes in the neighborhood, I loved it so much that when I came home that summer, I decided to continue within my community.

What are your long-term plans or goals for the organization?

I want to work on expanding and making sure that we’re able to help all sides of the world. There’s only so much that I can do within my community and online, but I would love to continue teaching more classes in all parts of the world and build a team of ambassadors to do that. I’d also like to increase efficiency, because it’s very hard to constantly ship items out, especially internationally. So we often have to wait for fundraised money before we ship. I’d love to work on fundraising so that we can get stuff out more efficiently, and recruit a team so that we can teach more classes and increase the scope of our impact.

What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?

Seeing the smiles on people’s faces, whether it’s when I’m teaching a class or when I get pictures back from people who receive donations. It’s impactful to know that I’m doing something bigger than myself, and that I’m impacting so many people in such a simple way. It doesn’t take too much just to help out and to improve people’s access to something that makes me so happy, because I love dance so much. Being able to share it just makes me even happier.

What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?

I learned a lot about listening and being able to identify and pick up on small stuff. I certainly wasn’t the most experienced at teaching, because I’ve always been a student. I learned a lot about listening, collaborating, and determination as well, because it wasn’t easy to make this all happen. I think along the way, I learned a lot to make it easier.

Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?

It doesn’t take too much effort to be able to share something that you know you have a skill in. For example, if you’re a dancer, that’s a very fortunate thing. A lot of people don’t have the opportunity to learn all this. Being able to share it brings a lot of happiness and a lot of joy. It’s very rewarding for you, but it’s also very impactful and brings a lot of joy and enjoyment to the person that’s being impacted. It’s a very simple thing that can make the world a better place.

Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?

Look into something that you’re passionate about. For me, it’s dance. It could be anything that you’re super passionate about. And when you’re passionate about something, it comes much easier. I would just say to try it. It can be on a small scale. For me, it was very informal when I was teaching classes at first. It’s very enjoyable, especially when you do something that you love so much. You’re going to want to continue doing it. I would say to look for something that you enjoy and then try it and see how it goes. There are so many different ways you can volunteer. There’s something for everyone.

What do you want people to learn from your story?

I want people to learn that it’s okay and very normal to start small. Even on a small scale, your options can make such a big impact. If you stick with something as well, it will go very far. I had no idea this would turn into a whole organization, but all it takes is consistency. It can take you very, very far.

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Nily? Find local volunteer opportunities.