Hoton1Salsa Leads the Crowd At the ICC Memorial Day Latino Festival
LaGrange, IL- (May 31st, 2010) On Saturday, over 80 members of the International Christian Church of Chicago all gathered at LaGrange Memorial Park for their yearly Memorial Day Latino Festival, with great food, friendly faces and a great salsa lesson from one of Chicago’s leading dance companies, Hoton1salsa.
Rick Mangram and Valerie Moreno, both Hoton1salsa instructors, lead the large crowd and had great responses from all those who participated.
Anthony Franklin, an ICC member from Chicago, had a great time soaking up the sun and learning new moves from the lesson. “The dance was easy to learn, the leader [Rick] is really good at communicating a lot of energy.” Although Franklin has never taken lessons before, he was impressed. “I’d really recommend him to anyone who wants to learn.”
William Boea, the event coordinator loved the energy of the class. “Rick has a very great spirit, he’s good at engaging the crowd. Rick is the man!” he said.
Boea shared how this event takes place every summer around Memorial Day and most of the church members are from out of state, coming from all around the country. “We are part of a worldwide movement that has been going around the U.S and we’re growing pretty fast,” Boea said.
Boea found Mangram online who immediately was interested and they planned the event. “We talked on the phone and were both fired up about it,” said Boea.
Belinda Espino, another ICC member who danced along had to take a few water breaks due to the hot sun, yet enjoyed the workout. “It’s [salsa dancing] very healthy for the body. I just need more practice so I’m not so tired “Espino said. She thought Moreno and Mangram were very professional and organized, “They motivate the people they’re teaching; we need to do more of that.”