Great story!!

[Guest guest]

Boy, I wish I could see him dance! Enjoy.

Judi-Mom to Sam & , Almost 5! Identical Twins

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A dancer, by providence, finds his niche

By , Globe Correspondent, 12/13/2001

They came to regard it as a sign from God, a delicate

moment of divine intervention. It happened last

December with a single sheet of newspaper, dated more

than two weeks earlier, dancing on the wind in their

Melrose backyard.

It turned out to be a page from the Globe's

Living/Arts section, which the s normally

didn't read. But on this occasion, Rosemary and

Leonard chanced upon an article about ''A

Dancer's Christmas,'' the Boston Liturgical Dance

Ensemble's annual celebration of the holiday through

dance, music and pageantry. Suddenly, they saw the

answer to their prayers.

Those prayers revolved around their 31-year-old son

, a lively and creative young man with a

startlingly direct gaze and a 100-watt smile. He has

music in his soul and dance in his heart. He also has

Down syndrome, and with his relatively limited

language skills, music and dance are his most vibrant

and vital outlets for self-expression.

The s had been looking for creative

opportunities for , who had just finished working

on a play in Providence with Kaleidoscope Theatre. The

article's description of ''A Dancer's Christmas'' made

it seem the perfect vehicle for their son.

They e-mailed the company's artistic director, the

Rev. VerEecke (affectionately known as Father

Bob), who invited to attend a summer workshop in

liturgical dance at Boston College, where Boston

Liturgical Dance Ensemble is in residence.

Father Bob was so impressed by the young man that he

invited him to be in this season's 21st presentation

of the popular holiday show. And what began as a

creative opportunity for has turned into an

unexpected gift for ''A Dancer's Christmas.''

''He brings the meaning of what we're doing to life,''

says Huggins, associate artistic director of the

company and a performer in the piece for the past 18

years. ''We're all crazy trying to remember the

choreography and teach each other the steps and he's

just ever present in his praise of God. He always

says, `Don't worry. It will be fine. It all comes from

the heart.' He's a beautiful spirit, always glowing.''

The company, which consists of 30 professional and

student dancers as well as a children's cast of 20, is

noted for its range of ages and ethnicities in

retelling the Christmas story. The addition of

adds to the inclusiveness, bringing a freshness to

rehearsal that the cast finds inspiring.

At one recent rehearsal, the cast broke into applause

after 's solo, responding not just to his

competence but to his infectious exuberance. ''It

reminds them of why they're doing this in the first

place, out of love for movement,'' Father Bob says.

''They love to dance, but so many other things like

self-image and presentation and technique can get in

the way. Everyone who has seen him is blown away by

the authenticity of his movement, the purity and

innocence and clarity of his movement expression.

''He really dances with the music,'' Father Bob adds.

''You can try to train dancers to do that, and some

get it, some don't. He's so natural.''

The youngest of eight children, was raised with a

can-do spirit. Leonard recalls, ''Parents are usually

told when they have a child with Down's about all the

limitations they will have, and they set out with that

in the back of their minds. We were somehow able to

look on the positive side.''

Both former lay missionaries in South America,

Leonard, a civil engineer, and Rosemary, trained in

child development, set out to uncover their son's

innate talents and abilities, realizing the importance

of finding other avenues of expression.

Music and dance emerged early on, with singing

and dancing from childhood. He often accompanied his

sister, Ellen, to her dance classes, and 10 years ago,

he began to take classes in ballroom dance and tap,

working with Peggy McGlone and Patty Hassel at

McGlone's Waltham studio.

Equally important is singing. has a huge

collection of Broadway show albums and a near

encyclopedic knowledge of show tunes. He also skis,

swims, has been a paper boy and an altar boy.

Currently, works at a Shaw's Supermarket, where

the staff says he is their best worker.

Beneath the happy demeanor, he takes his

responsibilities seriously, and he takes his mistakes

hard. ''People need to understand that this wonderful

smiling person has to work hard to achieve the things

he's achieving,'' Rosemary says. ''There seems to be

afoot this notion that Down's kids are all

happy-go-lucky, but if does something wrong, I

may have to accept apologies for about an hour.''

She says it is difficult for to follow more than

two instructions at any given time, which can be

especially tricky in the dance world, where

choreographers are often used to rattling off half a

dozen directives at a time. But Father Bob considers

it a privilege to work with , and himself

seems to relish the challenge.

With liturgical dance, he seems to have found his

truest form of movement expression. Now he even

improvises dances at home for his evening prayers.

''It feels good right here, in my heart,'' he says

simply.

This story ran on page B15 of the Boston Globe on

12/13/2001. © Copyright 2001 Globe Newspaper Company.

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