Dancing With The Gorge Stars returns after one year gap due to COVID

Tria Bullard

Tria Bullard works in The Dalles as program manager for Google. Though she’s been asked to participate in DWTGS in the past, it had never worked out in terms of timing, she said. In fact, Bullard said she’s never attended DWTGS before, even as a guest, so she’s looking forward to seeing how the whole event turns out.

“I’m really excited just to see, because I’ve heard so much about it,” Bullard said. “But January’s usually a really busy month for my family and so we just haven’t been able to attend. So I’m really just looking forward to seeing how it all works and watching everybody dance.”

Despite a usually hectic schedule throughout January, Bullard said this was the year things finally lined up. Additionally, she felt this year was the perfect time to do something a little different.

“The last two years have been so weird with COVID and everything, I just kind of thought, ‘Why not push myself and do something new and unexpected?’ So I said yes,” she said.

Though Bullard has experience in dance, having done tap and jazz, ballroom is a lot different, she said. She also started rehearsals a day after the other teams, due to having been in Mexico and needing to get tested for COVID, which made her just a little nervous.

However, her pro partner Tim was confident in her abilities, despite them only just beginning to work together. “She’s picking it up fast,” he said. “We’ve got this.”

No matter how well she ends up doing, though, Bullard is just excited to be a part of the event and help raise money for the Mid-Columbia Community Concert Association (MCCCA). “I’m grateful to be able to participate and help raise money and raise awareness for the organization,” she said. “I’m just excited to do it.”

Annette Byers

Annette Byers is a mathematics instructor at Columbia Gorge Community College who first took an interest in DWTGS a few years ago when she attended the event and watched Mary Davis dance and take the mirror-ball.

“I just said that looks like a blast, so I thought I’d put my name in the hat,” she said.

What’s funny is that when Byers watched Davis in 2019, she didn’t know that Davis’ pro-dancer partner, Drew, would someday be her partner in the same event.

Byers said she and Drew have been a great pair so far, as they both share an interest in math. She’s really enjoyed learning from him and is excited to dance with him in the competition, a sentiment that Drew shared.

“I have loved meeting you,” Drew told Byers. “I love dancing with you so much. I was telling everyone in the car this morning how excited I was for our rehearsal.”

Byers said her favorite part of the experience so far as been seeing her friends’ reactions to her participation in DWTGS. “My sons were like ‘Mom, what? What are you doing?’ They were so surprised,” she said, laughing. “I think that was my favorite.”

She’s also excited to raise money for MCCCA, Byers said. Having grown up in The Dalles, Byers said her mom would take her to MCCCA concerts when she was a kid. Even though she wasn’t necessarily grateful for it at the time, Byers said that now she is able to appreciate the importance of community concerts.

“I think it’s a great opportunity to bring music to a smaller town because it’s hard to get into Portland,” she said. “It’s great to have those opportunities here, so I’m happy to get to raise money for them.”

Aaron Carter

Aaron Carter, owner of Columbia Gorge Honda and Columbia Gorge Toyota, decided to join DWTGS after a call from Patti Blagg, MCCCA vice-president. He said he and his wife are always looking for ways to give back to the community and this seemed like a great way to do it.

“We are always trying to do as much as we can for the community and this is a fundraiser,” he said. “So when (Blagg) called and gave me the description of what they were trying to raise funds for, we wanted to be a part of it. And so I said, ‘Yeah, let’s do it.’”

Though Carter said he wasn’t much of a dancer usually, his pro partner Kylie said she thought he was a natural.

“He’s being very bashful, but he’s embraced everything,” she said. “He’s going above and beyond expectations that I had set out for him.”

Carter said the experience has been fun, but also a little stressful. He really wants to do well and get his hands on the mirror-ball trophy, he said.

“I like to have fun but winning is fun,” Carter said.

Despite his competitive spirit, Carter is still having a good time and is enjoying practicing his dance and getting the steps right. Though he’s nervous right now, he knows that, with enough practice, he’ll be ready come competition time on Friday.

“I’m excited to keep learning more and then I think I’ll feel a lot better once I get it down and then I’ll have confidence,” he said. “Nervousness is usually a lack of preparation …but I’m not an unprepared person.”

Todd Carpenter

Todd Carpenter, owner of Last Stop Saloon, isn’t normally a dancer. He said, with a laugh, that he had no idea how he ended up here, though he was glad to be helping with community fundraising.

“This is way out of my comfort zone,” he said. “Never done anything like this in my life.”

Carpenter said he was nervous, but having a skilled partner like pro Bailey was definitely helpful. He said she was a great teacher, and they were making lots of progress. Bailey agreed that they were already most of the way through the choreography, even though it was only the second day of rehearsals.

“He is definitely nervous, so we’re working through a little bit of the nerves,” she said. “But when he does come down and he’s a little bit more relaxed, the dance moves just flow.”

Bailey is no stranger to The Dalles either, having been a pro in previous years of DWTGS. She previously danced with Dean Dollarhide, which Carpenter kidded was a good sign.

“If you can teach Dean to dance, well, I should be okay,” he joked.

Carpenter said the dancing was a lot of work, he was already a bit sore, but it was fun too. He said he enjoyed doing something different and new, in many ways it’s been a fun break from everything, he said.

“It’s actually a lot of fun,” he said. “Just very different for me.”

Dennis Morgan

Dennis Morgan, managing principal broker for Copper West Properties, said that when he got the call, he was eager to sign on and wasn’t nervous about the idea of putting himself out there.

“I’m a thespian and I’ve been on stage for 30-plus years, local theater,” he said. “Plus I’m all about community too and this supports the MCCCA.”

Morgan said it’s not that he doesn’t feel nervous at all, however. He said despite all his years of performing, he always gets a bit of an adrenaline rush before he goes out on stage, but he makes that work for him. He doesn’t think this will be any different.

Unlike the other Gorge stars, Morgan hadn’t met his partner as of Saturday. In fact, she wasn’t expected in until Tuesday, he said, due to a “scheduling snafu.” Luckily, he’s had a substitute, as Mark, the owner of the studio, has been working with him.

Despite not having met his actual pro yet, Morgan said he’s really looking forward to the competition and getting to take home that mirror-ball trophy.

“I’m just excited to see how I do,” he said. “Am I competitive? Well, yeah.”

Morgan’s substitute partner and owner of the Utah Ballroom Dance Company, Mark, said he thinks Morgan is going to win.

“He’s going to take it all,” Mark said, grinning. “His actual professional partner isn’t here yet so I’m training him. I’ve got skins in the game now.”

At the end of the day, Morgan said he’s just excited to still be doing things like this, even now that he’s in his 70s.

“I’m just happy to be here and still kickin’,” he said.

Erika Wilson

Erika Wilson is the owner of the Columbia Laser Skin Center owner, and she has never done anything like DWTGS before, she said.

“Initially, when Patti asked me, my instinct was like, ‘No way, I’ve never danced, I have no familiarity with it,’ she said. “But during that conversation I remembered of a pledge I made to myself five years ago that I was going to do things that I normally would say no to. And this is something I would normally say no to.”

Wilson said her pledge to herself came after a health scare, which made her look at her life and reexamine it and realize that she wanted to get out there and do as much as she could.

“To me, stepping outside my comfort zone has become kind of the best part of life even though it’s awkward and uncomfortable,” she said. “When you look back on your life, you’re like, ‘Oh, that was actually a great experience.”’

So far, Wilson said she really has enjoyed the experience, despite being intimidated at first.

“It’s really challenging but super fun,” she said. “I have an awesome partner. He’s just a great teacher and makes it really fun and breaks it down so I can put all the pieces together.”

Outside of just the fun she’s been having, Wilson said the greatest part of participating in DWTGS is supporting MCCCA, as well as getting connected with other members of the community and the dancers. She said she’s even been impressed with how well her fellow stars have done.

“I’ve been watching some of my compatriots out there,” she said. “They’re looking good. So good that I’m going to go home and practice!”

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Dancing With The Gorge Stars will start at 7 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 14, at The Dalles High School. Besides the star/pro dances, the competition will feature a pro ensemble dance, as well as an opening dance by The Dalles Dazzling Dancers, a dance group made up of local students.

Tickets for the event can be purchased from Klindts Bookseller, The Dalles Chamber of Commerce or online. Tickets are $25 beforehand and $30 at the door. For more information or to purchase tickets online, visit mccca.info.