SwingShift and the Stars celebrate milestone - Grand Traverse Insider - Morning Star Publishing

By Karin Beery
Contributing Writer

Photo by Windborne Photography 2014 champions Troy Broad and Pam McCormick danced a bolero last monthand held on to the lead, taking first place in the dance portion of the competition. They also topped the leader board in fundraising with more than $126,000 for Leelanau Christian Neighbors.

TRAVERSE CITY – Another successful season saw new records set during the 2014 SwingShift and the Stars Dance-off for Charity. Though the dance portion of the event is over, there’s still time to donate and
participate in this fundraising event.

Season seven saw new and returning dance professionals taking the floor during four nights of competition. Veteran instructor and former champion Hans Benghauser suffered the first injury of the event, but everyone was prepared for such an emergency.

“Immediate attention was given to address the situation, allow for recovery time, and put in back-up plans if needed,” said Leslie Haskin, event coordinator. “Our number one focus was the health and well-being of our injured cast member.”

Benghauser recovered and returned to the dance floor with partner Beth Footh for Brickways Foundation. It was the team of Troy Broad and Pam McCormick dancing for Leelanau Christian Neighbors (LCN), however, that danced away with the win. They took an early lead by one-tenth of a point and never looked back, winning the overall championship by eight-tenths of a point.

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SwingShift and the Stars celebrate milestone - Grand Traverse Insider - Morning Star Publishing