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Meet the 8 locals performing in Vail Valley Foundation’s Star Dancing Gala in July

Voting available online

The Vail Valley Foundation’s YouthPower365 program is asking supporters to step right up for its largest fundraiser of the year, the Star Dancing Gala slated for Tuesday, July 16.

The program’s largest fundraiser to help support youth in the valley will be held at the Vail Valley Jet Center, welcoming more than 700 supporters.

This year’s theme is “Step Right Up” and will feature surprise performances, a circus atmosphere and the dancing of eight local celebrity dancers, paired with pros, who have been working hard all year to prepare for the event.



“We’ve got a phenomenal lineup of dancers this year from all walks of life,” said Vail Valley Foundation’s senior vice president of education and the arts Sarah Johnson in a news release. “Together with the circus theme, I think we are set for a spectacular evening, all dedicated to providing the afterschool and summer-school education support that is so critical to the thousands of young people we serve.”

Former Colorado State Senator Mike Johnston will return to emcee the event.

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The public can support the cause by sponsoring or attending the event, and/or by purchasing votes for the community members who are dancing in this year’s event. For more on the dancers and to cast a vote, visit stardancinggala.com.

YouthPower365 provides programming for thousands of local youths, from Very Young Composers to COPA soccer to Girl PowHER to Dollars for Scholars to the Magic Bus to PwrHrs afterschool programming and more. The programs help improve literacy and math skills, and provide caring environments for all the valley’s young people to grow and flourish.

Here’s a look at the celebrity dancers who will take the stage at the Star Dancing Gala in July, all of whom will be working hard to earn your “vote” online between now and then:

Liz Logan Sterett

Liz Logan Sterett helps women become more confident and discover their purpose. She is a coach, in-demand speaker and the CEO of her lifestyle brand, BeSOUL. Her message, “Be You, Fearlessly,” resonates with people around the world. She hosts LizTV and The Badass & Beautiful Revolution. She lives in Edwards with her husband, Dr. Bill Sterett, and enjoys spending time with her two step-sons.

Liz Logan Sterett

Patrick Scanlan

Having grown up in the Vail Valley, Patrick Scanlan moved back after a 10-year hiatus. He attended the University of Richmond, where he met his wife, Hillary, and enjoyed an illustrious career as a third-string kicker. After college, he was a Teach for America Corp member and taught fifth grade in Harlingen, Texas. He’s now a Group Mentor for YouthPower365’s PwrOn Group Mentoring program. Scanlan is also the director of sales at Fortius Capital and has dedicated himself to the firm’s goal of providing attainable homes to the people of the Vail Valley.

Patrick Scanlan

Victoria Jones

Born and raised in Littleton, Victoria Jones long dreamed of calling the mountains home. She made that dream a reality in 2013 when she moved to the Vail Valley. With over a decade of experience as an interior design professional, she started her own business, Studio James, in late 2017. She focuses on high-end residential design. A true tom-boy at heart, you’ll find her snowboarding, bowling, playing golf or softball. Often, her beloved French bulldog, Penelope, is by her side.

Victoria Jones

Charlie Meynier

After growing up in Thibodeaux, Louisiana, Charlie Meynier attended Louisiana State University and LSU’s School of Veterinary Medicine. At the same time, he joined the United States Army and embarked on a 13-year career as an engineer and eight years as an intelligence officer for the engineer battalion. Following vet school, he completed an equine orthopedic surgery internship outside of Austin, Texas, and started a career as a racetrack veterinarian based in New Orleans. He met his wife, Atlanta, in Austin. They purchased the EagleVail Animal Hospital in 2007 and have grown their family and practice to include three children, Jeep, Berkeley and Price, as well as a menagerie of pets and two practices with an emergency clinic.

Charlie Meynier

Rachel Nelson

Born and raised in Vail, Rachel Nelson traveled around the world as a professional snowboarder. Emanating boundless energy, positivity and compassion, she has practiced yoga since the mid-’90s and taught yoga since 2005. She is a 1,200-hour Tier 3 certified Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga teacher and former faculty member. Her yoga classes are powerful, playful, challenging and leave attendees with a greater sense of purpose and authenticity. She has presented at Yoga Journal Live, Wanderlust, Telluride Yoga Fest and many other large events. During her free time, she enjoys playing outdoors, including hiking, camping, gardening or snowboarding with her husband, Jay, their son, Odin, and their two dogs.

Rachel Nelson

Mike Testwuide

Growing up in Eagle County, Mike fell in love with both skiing and hockey but ultimately pursued hockey. He attended boarding school in Lake Placid, New York, and then junior hockey in Waterloo, Iowa. He fulfilled his childhood dream of playing for the Colorado College Tigers, where he was the captain. After college, he played professionally in South Korea where he was given Korean citizenship after an MVP season. He represented South Korea at the 2018 Olympics. He continues to play professionally in Korea and spends his offseasons in Vail.

Mike Testwuide

Jean Liu Urquhart

Born in Virginia to Taiwanese immigrants who came to the United States to attend graduate school, Dr. Jean Urquhart moved all around the country for her father’s work. After growing up in the San Francisco Bay area and in San Antonio, Texas, Urquhart studied history at Yale. She credits working at the National Institutes of Health with inspiring her to become a doctor. Urquhart met her husband, Alec, while attending medical school in Dallas. The couple moved to Denver for their medical training and quickly fell in love with Colorado. They’ve spent the last 12 years in the Vail Valley raising their two daughters. Urquhart runs her own dermatology practice, Mountain Dermatology Specialists. In her free time, she enjoys spending time playing outdoors, connecting with friends, cooking and traveling.

Jean Liu Urquhart

Chris Lindley

Currently, the director of Public Health and Environment for Eagle County, Chris Lindley focuses on keeping everyone in Eagle County healthy, and most importantly, its youth. Before his current role, he worked as a firefighter for Denver Fire and served as a member of the special operations water rescue team. For more than a decade, he led Colorado’s Public Health Emergency Preparedness Division, followed by the state’s obesity and prevention efforts as the director of prevention services division at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. Along with being a decorated combat veteran — he received a Bronze Star while leading troops in Iraq — Lindley holds a Master’s Degree in Epidemiology and a Masters in Business Administration.

Chris Lindley

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