Calhoun’s Dancing with the Stars 2021: Megan Wright and Christian Lewis
You’re invited to United Way of Gordon County’s 10th and final presentation of Calhoun’s Dancing with the Stars presented by Mohawk Industries, CalhounGordon Community Foundation, and Morning Pointe of Calhoun. The recordsetting fundraiser will close with an April 16 finale at the Calhoun Performing Arts Center at 7 p.m. A dress rehearsal is scheduled for Thursday, April 15, with tickets sold at a discounted rate. This year’s show will feature a combination of adult and student dance teams as they compete to raise funds for United Way of Gordon County.
“I have had the pleasure of working with the Dancing with the Stars Committee to help execute one show and plan two others since I joined United Way,” said Latour. “The tenth year of Dancing with the Stars is a blend of everything accomplished in the past decade,” she continued. “This may be our last dance, but the future is bright indeed!”
Latour went on to thank the DWTS Planning Committee – Andy Baxter, Kristy Brown, Jennie Coker, Bekah Kirby, Amy Parker, and Michelle Frix Ward – for their hard work over the years. She also thanked all the sponsors, especially Mohawk Industries, which has been the premier sponsor all along and has been joined by two others this year.
“Mohawk has been proud to serve as the title sponsor
of Dancing with the Stars since the event’s inception,” said Robert Webb, Senior Director of Public Affairs and Corporate Communications with Mohawk Industries. “For a decade, the dancers have entertained audiences and raised over a million dollars to support the important work of United Way’s partner agencies. We salute all the individuals who have shared their talents to make this such a successful fundraising event year after year.”
The finale will include several special features, but the dancers will be the stars of the show. The ten teams, listed alphabetically by the female partner’s first name, are Abby Crowe and Ben
Bingham; Aubry Dorsey and Isaac Nance; Carly Curtis and Skylar Benham; Carson Glaze and Grant Glaze; Joy Nudd and Garrett Nudd; Kaylan Gaines and Addison Baker; Lily Stephens and Nate Stockman; Megan Wright and Christian Lewis; Raven Pasley and Ian King; and Suzanne Roberts with Tony Pyle.
Megan Wright and Christian Lewis will dance together as Team Eight, the fifth of the six student couples in the competition. Both are students at Calhoun High School. Megan is the daughter of Burt Wright and Darlene Wright. Christian is the son of Tim and Misty Lewis. This will be Megan’s third appearance in the dance competition, but it will be the first for Christian.
Megan is an active member of the Thespian Troupe and the CHS Women’s Trio, performing as the Girl’s Literary Soloist. She is a member of HOSA. She volunteers each summer at the Summer Theatre Camp at the Harris Arts Center and has worked on various service projects through her participation in the Miss America Organization and the high school thespian troupe.
She also serves on the FEMA’s Youth Preparedness Council as one of fifteen across the nation selected for the prestigious council in 2019. As a member of this council, she works on disaster preparedness projects and attend the Youth Preparedness Council Summit in Washington, D.C., each year to meet with FEMA leaders and others to prepare for the year ahead.
She currently holds the title of Miss Cobb County’s Outstanding Teen and will compete at Miss GA’s Outstanding Teen Competition in Columbus in June. She was the 2019 GHSA Class AAA Literary State Champion in Girls’ Trio and 2018 GHSA Class AAA One Act Play State Champion, Miss Rome’s Outstanding Teen 2019, Miss Kennesaw’s Outstanding Teen 2018, Preliminary talent winner and 2nd Runner Up at Miss Georgia’s Outstanding Teen 2019.
Christian Omari Lewis is not an experienced dancer but is an accomplished student athlete. He plays football, baseball, and basketball. Christian is an All-State
Quarterback for the Calhoun Yellow Jackets. He is a member of Fellowship of Christian Athletes and attends Adairsville Body of Christ.
He is involved with Student Government. He intends to attend college but has not decided on the college or university. He enjoys spending time with his friends and family.
First- and second-place winners will be identified in two categories – Judges’ Choice and People’s Choice – for both the student and adult teams. People’s Choice winners are determined based on their fundraising successes. Judges’ Choice winners are determined based on the scores the contest judges give their dance performances. The adult teams winning in those categories will receive trophies and bragging rights. The student teams winning in those categories will receive trophies, bragging rights, and college scholarships. Each student on the first-place team in each category will receive a $1,000 scholarship and each student on the secondplace team will receive a $750 scholarship. A panel of judges will be assembled from field professionals outside Gordon County.
Tickets will go on sale to the public on Saturday, March 27. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, tickets will be sold on a first-come-first-serve basis with limited audience capacity. Sponsorships remain available for individuals or corporations wishing to support the fundraiser. Those arrangements may be made by contacting the United Way office at 706602-5548, or at www.gordoncountyunitedway.org.
Rosemary Althea MacDaniel Wright, 87, of Calhoun, GA, died Friday, March 26, 2021, at her home. She was born August 20, 1933, in Dayton, Ohio. She was preceded in death by her mother, Mary Althea MacDaniel, her father, Charles Nelson MacDaniel, her brother, John MacDaniel, her husband, Claude Steiner Wright, her daughter, Mary Elizabeth Wade Carroll, and her granddaughter, Lori Beth Wade. She is survived by three of her children, Claudia Wright, Janie Wright Stokes (Charles Stokes), and Charles Wright. She is also survived by 4 grandchildren, Amber Stokes Crumpton, Timothy Wright, Andrew Stokes, and LeShea Wade Burchett; and 12 great-grandchildren.
Rosemary was a 1954 graduate of Georgia Baptist Hospital School of Nursing in Atlanta and a Registered Nurse. She was married in 1957 to her husband, Claude. She worked in Atlanta and Marietta, before she, Claude, and their 4 children moved to their farm in Calhoun in 1968. Rosemary worked at Gordon County Hospital and several other hospitals in the surrounding area throughout her career. She retired from Northwest Regional Hospital in Rome, GA, and went on to teach LPN students with Chattahoochee Technical College in Acworth, GA. She was a member of Calhoun First United Methodist Church and the JoAnn Owens Covenant Sunday School Class. She loved her church family, singing in the choir, and playing handbells. She enjoyed reading, coloring, travelling, and most of all, being with family and friends. She always had a beautiful smile for everyone.
Her service will be held Saturday, April 17, 2021, at Calhoun First United Methodist Church in Calhoun, GA, with visitation from 1PM to 2PM and the service beginning at 2PM. At this time, masks and social distancing will be encouraged due to Covid 19. She will be interred with her husband at the Georgia National Cemetery in Canton, GA. In OLHu RI flRZHUV, GRnDWLRnV may be made to the JoAnn Owens Covenant Sunday School Class at Calhoun First United Methodist Church.
You may leave the family online condolences at www. thomasfuneralhomecalhoun. com
Thomas Funeral Home has proudly been entrusted with the care of Rosemary Althea MacDaniel Wright.