Acrobatic wonders: Weehawken’s gymnastic program offers first recital

It might be a little-known fact, but for four years, there has been a gymnastic program in Weehawken, sponsored by Weehawken Recreation, which has been giving youngsters a chance to learn more about the sport within a structured learning situation. Just how serious is the gymnastic program? Enough to exclude most adults. “We have to keep the parents out,” said Chuck Barone, Weehawken’s recreation director. “We noticed that when we allowed parents to watch, the kids didn’t have the same attention span and didn’t learn. So we decided to lock the doors and keep the parents out.” Lori Maione and Adrianna Rodriguez organize the gymnastic program, which had 15 to 20 regular participants this winter. The program was open to both boys and girls, but the boys that enrolled in the program at the outset decided to drop out after a while, making it strictly for the female set. The young ladies learned a variety of tumbles, cartwheels and routines from their instructor, a professional gymnastic instructor named Heather, who is very well-respected by administrators, but whose last name escapes them. “The girls did really well with Heather and learned a lot,” Maione said. “They were enthused and they learned a lot.” So much so that the township’s recreation department decided to hold a gymnastics recital for the very first time, to give parents a chance to see all that their daughters had been learning. “Since we thought that the girls had progressed so much, we decided to have the recital and decided to present awards for the first time,” Barone said. “Each child did a routine and a trophy was given to the most outstanding gymnast.” Natacha Jaramillo was the recipient of the award as the program’s top gymnast. The recital was held last Saturday at Webster School, with approximately 100 people in attendance. Needless to say, the recital was well-received. “The turnout was very good,” Maione said. “I was surprised with how many people showed up.” Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner, whose daughter, Kaitlyn, was a participant in the program, was on hand to hand out the awards, as was Councilman Lou Ferullo. Barone was so enthused by both the turnout of the parents and friends, as well as the performances of the youngsters, that he has plans to expand the program, like adding a balance beam to the program. “We’re looking into the possibility to purchase more equipment for next year,” Barone said. “We have a solid nucleus that we can work with. We want to look to improve the entire program in the future.” And there’s always the possibility to have competitions in the future against other towns’ programs. “With the group we have, if they stay together, we can certainly try it,” Barone said. Maione isn’t so sure. “I think that’s a little bit down the road,” Maione said. “I don’t know how far advanced other programs are. We’re basically cartwheels and flips. But you never know. I can see it go further. We have advanced a lot since we started four years ago.” Maione believes it is important to offer gymnastics to the young ladies. “It’s nice that we have something that girls can get involved in, even if they’re not that athletic,” Maione said. “Everything they did was done at their own pace. There was no pressure to perform and that was very nice. We had a lot of fun, so we want to make sure we keep it going.” Those have to be reassuring words for some talented young ladies who may just aspire to become the next Nadia Comeneci or Mary Lou Retton. You never know.

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