The center was created by Gabrielle Deschaine to offer interested individuals a comfortable, safe and stimulating environment where they can explore their self-expression and creativity.

Grow in Motion provides services based on the concept that the body, mind and spirit are connected and that growth in one area leads to growth in the other areas. Gabrielle's philosophy is that as we grow in expressive and creative ways, the body/mind/spirit connection becomes more apparent and fosters a sense of wholeness, or completeness, in the individual.

One has the opportunity at the Center to work on growth through dance and wellness classes, as well as performance opportunities with the center's own student troupe, the Gypsy Fusion.

Gabrielle also offers body-centered clinical counseling in groups or individually.

As of Spring 2005, Gabrielle can accept inusrance payments through Private Healthcare Systems
www.phcs.com

GABRIELLE DESCHAINE, MA, LCPC, ADTR • OWNER

Gabrielle's belief that movement brings growth is based on 25 years of dance experience and six years working as a Dance/Movement therapist. She has trained and performed ballet, modern dance and jazz across the country including Illinois, Michigan, Washington D.C., as well as a performance tour in the Czech Republic through the Friendship Ambassadors, New York. As a certified Cecchetti Ballet instructor, Gabrielle has been on staff at three reputable dance studios, as well as fitness centers for the last 14 years before creating Grow in Motion in 2001.

Gabrielle coupled her strong dance background with a master’s degree in Dance/Movement therapy at Columbia College, Chicago and holds a license as a clinical professional counselor in the state of Illinois. She has worked with children, adolescents, adults and seniors in various settings such as hospitals, shelters, retirement communities and foster care homes. Gabrielle has been employed with MacNeal Hospital as a clinical therapist for five years and uses movement to promote healing with her clients. She currently sees private clients and offers body-centered workshops to address the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of the individual.

KAREN HERSH (aka PIPER) • DIRECTOR

Karen began studying various forms of dance for 10 years ago. She began her training w/Deeply Rooted out of Chicago, IL. Here she studied and perfomed Horton and Graham style of modern dance along w/Dunham and ballet for 5 years. Over the last 5 years of her dance experience, she has been studying ATS dance mainly with the Grow in Motion studio in IL, which is where she performs regularly with the troupe Gypsy Queens. Karen also teaches ATS at the Grow in Motion Studio.
Karen has also been involved with the troupe PURE. Pure is Public Urban Ritual Experiment, which is a project created by Kaeshi from Bellyqueen in NYC and Darshan from Gypsy Caravan. PURE is a collective of dancers and musicians who have come together to share their love of dance and music with the public for the purpose of healing and peace.

TESTIMONIAL

I wanted to express my gratitude to you in full detail. I’ve been through a lot of heartbreak and depression over the past year, and even when it sometimes seemed like torture to get myself out of the house and to dance class, coming to class was often the one thing that kept me going.

Dancing has always been a source of joy in my life, but no other dance has brought me more joy, more of a sense of celebration (of my body and of life), more poise, more creativity, and more of a bond with other women than your tribal belly dance. And I have explored a lot of dance. I feel like I really got your vision right away and I’ve loved it ever since. And no other kind of dance that I’ve explored has allowed me to appreciate all the different bodies of women, and in so doing relieved me of having too-high expectations of myself.

For the first time since high school, I was able to stay committed to a dance class. There are many reasons, and here are a few: 1) Your tribal vision and the sense of community I experienced, 2) having the goal of a performance, and 3) a contracted commitment to attending class if we were going to perform.

Your style of preparing us mentally/ emotionally/ spiritually for the performance, and so far in advance, seemed so smooth and brilliant. I am certain that your background in movement therapy, etc., has a lot to do with me feeling supported enough to do it.

RS