Tasha Walters grew up having to limit how much she could dance because her family couldn’t afford it. Years later, as a solo parent to her daughter Paizlee, she made a promise: nothing would get in the way of her daughter’s joy. That promise became something much bigger than either of them expected.
When Paizlee’s father signed over his parental rights, their world turned upside down. Dance became her anchor. “When so much of her life was in chaos, I knew how important it was for her to have a constant, and dance was that constant for her,” Tasha says. “For five years now, that girl dances nonstop, and every time I get to see her on stage or she gains a new skill, she lights up.” Through it, they found more than a hobby — they found a community, friends who became family.
Paizlee’s dance studio owner had quietly been helping families afford dance for years. Last year, she asked Tasha: what if they made it official? Together with one of Tasha’s best friends, they founded Fearless Dancers Foundation, a 501(c)(3) working to remove financial barriers to the arts — dance for now, with hopes to expand into photography, theater, and singing.
Soon after founding the nonprofit, its purpose became clear. One of their dancers lost her dad unexpectedly, leaving her mom to support three kids alone. “This is why we are doing this nonprofit,” Tasha remembers thinking. “Not only to allow our dancers to continue to dance, but to take care of their families… they just need to know they aren’t alone.” With 501(c)(3) status still pending and no money in the bank, the team rallied anyway — raising two months of free tuition and two weeks of meals for the family.
Nearly 2.5 years into her time at CHG Healthcare, Tasha says her team’s support — including volunteer time off and a team fundraiser project — made building the foundation possible alongside her day job. “I’ve never had that support before at any other company,” she says. Someday, once Fearless Dancers Foundation turns two, Tasha hopes to apply for a CHG Healthcare Foundation grant — and show the dancers her “boring adult job” could impact them directly.
