Ringgold assistant football coach is getting ready for his spotlight dance.
He’s been working for months now to get the Ringgold Tigers defense to have quicker first steps, but new Ringgold defensive coordinator Houston White has recently been working on a little quick step of his own.
White and professional partner Tisha Deal will take to the dance floor for the 10th Annual Dare to Dance event at the Chattanooga Trade and Convention Center next month. Proceeds for the event will go to benefit the Kidney Foundation of Greater Chattanooga.
In conjunction with Dare to Dance, White hosted a Coaches for Kidneys Benefit Run this past Saturday in the Denmoore neighborhood in Ringgold, just a stone’s throw from the Catoosa County Colonnade.
“I’m very fortunate to have the opportunity to participate in Dare to Dance,” White said. “All the proceeds from today go to the Housing Department of the Kidney Foundation of Greater Chattanooga. “It assists with housing costs for people who have kidney disease. It’s a great cause and every little bit we raise will go to helping a family who’s dealing with a kidney disease.”
Amanda Browning is a former multi-sport athlete at Gordon Lee, who participated in Dare to Dance a few years back. Her involvement with the event led her to begin working for the Kidney Foundation of Greater Chattanooga.
“Because we’re not associated with the national organization, all the money we’re going to raise for Dare to Dance and other events, like the one Houston is having here today, stays here in Chattanooga and benefits local kidney patients, which is huge,” she explained. “We don’t have to send money to New York or Los Angeles or anything like that. We only have two paid employees and the rest are volunteers, so we’re really helping local dialysis patients.”
White said he was asked to participate in Dare to Dance after some online videos went viral.
“Somebody got wind of some Facebook videos that my wife posted of me and her dancing around,”
he explained. “I got contacted by some ladies from the Kidney Foundation asking if I’d be willing to do it. I wasn’t able to do it last year, but we were able to work it out this year. Tisha actually teaches (dance) here in Ringgold. It’s a great event and I couldn’t be more proud to help them.”
White said he and Deal have been practicing their steps for the past month in preparation for the big night on Sept. 23.
“We’ve been practicing a couple of times a week,” he said. “Sometimes life gets in the way and it’s tough, but we’ll keep working. I’ve got a great partner
who’s an awesome instructor, so I’m very excited about that.”
White added that he was more nervous about the upcoming football season than having to take to the dance floor with the eyes of Chattanooga upon him.
“I’m not worried about the dancing,” he said. “Tisha will have
me in shape. Besides, there’s less expectations for me on the dance floor than out on the football field.
“But I’ve got a positive attitude about it. There’s a reason we do things like this. It’s about serving other people and that’s what we’re trying to teach our kids.”