NEWARK - In her death, Joan Garrett Wine's legacy is the thousands of children spanning generations she taught to dance in Licking County over her nearly 70-year tenure.
Wine, 91, died in August after a brief illness, according to her obituary. Born in Zanesville, Wine graduated Frazeysburg High School in 1946 and the Ohio State University in 1950 with a bachelor degree in education. Shortly after, she founded The Joan Garrett Dance Arts Studio in Newark and was actively teaching until her death.
Michele Rexroad, one of her assistant teachers at the studio, said she first met Wine when she started taking dance lessons from her at 8-years-old. Rexroad said at that time, she didn't know she would stay with Wine and teach for years, becoming "partners in crime" and best friends for the past 31 years.
Rexroad remembered going to New York City with Wine every summer, seeing places she wouldn't have seen if not for Wine.
"She was also a mentor, personally and professionally. I learned not only how to teach dance, but I learned a lot about professionalism and being an adult," Rexroad reflected. "She was a second mother. I saw her every day... She always called me her daughter."
Another former student of Wine's, Kerry Wee, also considered her longtime teacher to be a second mother to her.
"She was truly like a second mom, when it comes to what I learned from her when it comes to how to behave. She was definitely a disciplinarian, but in the best way," Wee said. "She's just such a strong and consistent teacher. She doesn't skip a day."
Wee credits the solid foundation Wine gave her to her ability to enter the entertainment industry to become a professional dancer in California.
A student of Wine's from her tap class at 4 to when she graduated at 18, Wee laughed as she remembered herself being a brat in Wine's studio one day. Wee said she was facing away from Wine when she felt a ballet slipper slap the back of her head. Noting ballet slippers are very soft, Wee said Wine must've thrown the slipper at her head from behind. But, Wee said she got the message and got back in line.
"She always got the reputation for being such a disciplinarian, but she had such a warm side," Wee said, next remembering how Wine had covered her face with her hands as if she was crying during one dance class. "We all quieted down - we were probably 7. She opened her hands and just started laughing. She totally had me fooled. Even now I see kids being taught, I think she's got the right formula."
Wine being a disciplinarian was a common theme for those who remembered her, but they remembered her strictness with fondness.
A former assistant teacher of Wine's, Donna Stasel, said Wine may have been harsh at times, but she truly loved her students. She said many of them have gone and done other things, but the discipline they learned from Wine has helped them in other aspects of their adult lives.
Stasel began taking dance classes from Wine when she was 10 and taught for her for about 30 years, now teaching seniors.
"She was such a dedicated lady to all the kids. Teaching was her No. 1 priority in her life. She wanted everybody to do the best they could, and gave them all the tools they needed to accomplish that," Stasel reflected. "She taught me to be a good dance teacher and I still teach to this day...She gave me a love for dance that I'll never outgrow."
Wine's son, Jon Wine, laughed when he said someone accurately described his mother like a grizzly bear with a kind heart.
Jon Wine said his mother was about hard work and discipline, but she was also a very loving and giving person. He said it wasn't until after her death, he found out she helped a lot of people, sometimes financially.
"She had a kind heart, and like I said, tough, disciplined, and a perfectionist - maybe to a fault. But if you were going to do it, you were going to do it right and you were going to do it to the best of your ability," he said. "With her students, that's the same way she was."
According to Jon Wine, his mother and father, Dr. Jack Wine, were married for 62 years until his death in 2016. Jon Wine was their only child.
It's not only Wine's talent, dedication and passion for dance that will be most remembered, nor her reputation for discipline. Wine's legacy is the generation of children she taught.
"In the history of Licking County, you've got a little girl that came from Frazeysburg, Ohio - population of 1,000, that got to the highest levels of her professional organization," Jon Wine said, noting his mother was president of Dance Masters of Ohio and Dance Masters of America. "The main thing is that 70 years she taught there in Newark. I would be hard pressed to come up with another person that has touched more young girls lives, adults in a positive way. And that's the way she needs to be remembered."
Wee said her teacher shaped many young lives with her commitment, patience, love and wisdom.
"My childhood wouldn't have been the same without her and she gave me the foundation I needed to become professional," Wee said. "Joan is immortal because she lives in all of us who were privileged enough to be her students."
Rexroad, whose 8-year-old daughter also took dance lessons from Wine, said the woman taught her dance, confidence, poise, grace, and more. As the most influential person in Rexroad's life, she said for her daughter to experience Wine's teachings too, meant a lot to her.
"The legacy is how many thousands of students she has impacted over the years and who have brought their own children," Rexroad said. "Her footprint in the community, she has a national footprint. Her footprint is huge for the people she impacted by doing good for others, teaching dance, and leading organizations."
Read or Share this story: https://ift.tt/2YU8b6u
September 01, 2020 at 05:45PM
https://ift.tt/34Nk2H8
Longtime Newark dance teacher remembered for dedication, passion for dance - The Newark Advocate
https://ift.tt/31lUVcw
Wine
No comments:
Post a Comment