The lives of brothers Tony (left) and Joey d'Alelio revolve around school, drama club and hours of practice at the Divine Dance Center.

Tony shows off a 2008 trophy.

Photos courtesy of the d'Alelio family

Joey strikes an athletic pose.

The montage of trophies in their bedrooms spoke for the two young dancers, before the interview. Some stood from the floor to eye-level, while others densely covered shelves and dresser tops.

The Southwest Roanoke County home of Jim and Beth d'Alelio houses two of the Divine Dance Center's very accomplished competition dancers, brothers Tony and Joey d'Alelio, 16 and 12 respectively. Tony is a sophomore at Cave Spring High School, and Joey a sixth-grader at Cave Spring Middle School.

The boys dance nearly any form: ballet, hip hop, jazz and clogging. Tony favors contemporary while Joey's favorite is musical theater.

Both brothers started dancing at age 9 but were inspired for different reasons.

"At first it was because of girls," Joey said and cracked a smile. "But then later I realized I really liked it."

Tony was first inspired after seeing videos of his mother singing, dancing and acting while attending Shenandoah University. Anything that was on a stage and in the spotlight would have been fine for Tony, so he decided to audition for "The Nutcracker." He landed a part as "Fritz," discovered he was good at dance and pursued it.

In competition, Joey's duo, "Two of a Kind," won overall best recreational performance, and Tony was awarded first place for "They Both Reached for the Gun."

Tony told a story that once while on stage he completely forgot his choreography and had to improvise nearly the entire routine on the spot. Somehow he still took second place. This hasn't happened to Joey yet, but his biggest challenge was overcoming stage fright, which didn't take more than three performances.

A moment of free time is extremely rare as the boys' lives revolve around school, drama club and hours of studio practice with their Divine Dance Center instructor, Riley Fitzgerald.

The Brambleton Avenue studio has given Tony the opportunity to train with dancers who were hand-picked for Britney Spears and Michael Jackson, as well as travel and perform solo as Junior and Teen Mr. Dance (like Miss America, but of the dance world).

"Riley makes sure we're exposed to great dance education all over the East Coast," Tony explained. He had been practicing for "Thoroughly Modernly Millie," 20 minutes of which his team performed in Manhattan this month.

"I want to do Broadway," Tony said, as his eyes lit up. He told a story of the only time he saw a Broadway production in New York. "After seeing the energy and passion on stage, I know I'm just going to get it!"

Joey is practicing for his school's "Annie Junior" play and a duo with his best friend, Claudia Anderson.

"We're really proud of them and support them in anything they want to do," said mother, Beth. "It's busy trying to schedule everything ... even dinner ... but if you can do something you love, why not encourage it?"

"I'm amazed at what they do," their father, Jim, added. "And just when I think they can't get any better, they do."

Beth is a teacher's assistant at High Park Elementary School, and Jim is an entrepreneur. Only Beth travels with the boys to regional competitions, but the whole family goes to nationals, including the third brother and avid supporter, Nick.

Tony wants to attend The University of Cincinnati or Shenandoah University as his mother did. Joey said he wants to do the same and, likewise, go on Broadway.

"As long as there are girls," Jim added, chuckling.

-- Keisha Graziadei | Special to SWoCo

Viewing platform project earns Harriman his Eagle Scout Award

Scott Harriman, 18, and a senior at Cave Spring High School, earned the highest Boy Scout honor of Eagle Scout in November 2009. Harriman has been involved in Boy Scouts from a very early age and said he got involved because his father was also a Scout growing up.

Harriman began his Eagle Scout project a few years ago and came up with the idea to build a viewing platform at the soccer fields at Cave Spring High School. For Harriman, a soccer player, the project was dear to his heart.

"I've been playing soccer all my life, probably before I event started scouting, so I've always loved the sport and always loved Cave Spring and felt that I should leave something there when I graduated. I thought this donation would be suitable," Harriman said.

But not long after he began planning his project in 2007, a building at Hidden Valley High School collapsed, forcing the county to postpone building projects on school property.

"Finally, last year I found a way to build off-site and then have it transported onto school property," Harriman said. "I had to work with the county and the school board to get it approved."

Harriman had the help of about 19 friends, which included his father, friends and their families, and some fellow Scouts. He also received help from one of his soccer coaches, a contractor who made sure the plans were safe, and Dr. Martin W. Misicko with the Roanoke County Public School System.

It took the crew about three days to build the platform and another day to transport it and then another day to put the final touches on it.

"It's a viewing platform used for score tables and video cameras for the soccer field," Harriman said.

The platform is 16 feet by 10 feet and is raised three feet from the ground.

"The most challenging part of the project was probably to find a time where I can get enough people to work on the project. I learned time management and leadership skills and how to get things done from the project," he said.

Harriman conducted two car washes and asked for donations from companies like 84 Lumber and was able to raise about $2,000 for his project. The project was completed during the summer of 2009.

"I would love to thank everyone who volunteered to help me and donated their time. And I'd like to thank Roanoke County for letting me get the project done. And Dr. Misicko was a big help."

Harriman plays soccer and basketball for Cave Spring High School. He's the SCA president and a member of Beta Club.

Harriman plans to go to college this fall, but has not decided where he will attend. He has been accepted by six colleges.

-- Emily Flora | SWoCo

Lisa Hirshorn finds her passion in teaching Spanish

Growing up in Miami, Lisa Hirshorn's role models were also very important people in her life, her grandparents from Cuba.

About 20 years ago, when she moved to Roanoke and attended Hidden Valley Middle School and Cave Spring High School, she quickly realized she didn't have very many, if any, Spanish- speaking peers.

"It seems like yesterday when I would go to Tanglewood Mall with my Cuban-born grandparents who would always speak Spanish to me. I remember thinking everyone was staring and wondering what we were saying to each other. I now visit Tanglewood Mall and find several families speaking Spanish to each other. Spanish does not seem to be a novelty anymore."

After high school, Hirshorn attended Radford University, where she received a degree in business administration with a concentration in marketing. After she graduated, she headed back to Florida and worked in outside sales, where 75 percent of her clients where Spanish speaking.

"That's when I realized it was important for me to be bilingual," Hirshorn said. "I knew it would make me more marketable."

Not long after her graduation and her move, she met her husband, Marc, who is also from Miami.

"Once we settled down we decided to move back to Roanoke," she said.

Hirshorn transferred with her company and moved back to Roanoke and decided to go to graduate school and pursue a degree in education.

"My passion was in Spanish, and I knew how important it was to teach others. I do come from a family of teachers. It must be genetic."

She was offered a job working for Roanoke County teaching Spanish to high school and middle school students, as well as business marketing. It was a dream come true. The language that she grew up speaking with her family was paying off, and she was able to pursue her calling.

"I enjoyed the kids. It was a great experience, and I could bring my personal experience into the classroom."

For two years Hirshorn, taught in the school system, but when she decided to have children she also made the decision to be a stay-at-home mom. Hirshorn has two children, Lauren, 9, and Emily, 7.

One day a friend asked her to help her son with his Spanish. Hirshorn agreed, and before she knew it word had spread, and she ended up tutoring most of the kids in her neighborhood. She then began volunteering at her daughter's preschool and elementary school once a week to teach Spanish.

"So I found myself teaching Spanish to all these kids of different ages," Hirshorn said. "I realized there was a niche there. I developed a curriculum and started approaching preschools. That's when I started my business.

"Studies do show that the younger you start learning a foreign language the easier it is to master later in life. I find that young children are also great motivators for the rest of the family. Learning is fun in any language."

Hirshorn's business is called Super Smart Spanish LLC, and her motto is "Learning Spanish the super smart way." Her business comprises herself and her equally bilingual sister, Jennifer Boush, also of Southwest Roanoke County.

Her mission is to bring awareness and share the passion she has for the Spanish language and culture to our area.

Just last year, Super Smart Spanish was contracted to teach its preschool curriculum at 10 on-site locations. They hope to expand this fall.

Thus far, Hirshorn and Boush are really excited about the progress they've made. Hirshorn has been teaching Spanish now for about 12 years in some form or another.

"I love teaching Spanish," she said. "It's very rewarding to me. In a way it gets me closer to my roots. When my grandparents passed it allowed me to keep their memory alive.

"I think they'd be very proud. I really owe it to them to why I speak Spanish. They gave me a lot of love and tangible things, but the greatest gift they gave to me was teaching me Spanish."

Contact Hirshorn by e-mail at lisahirshorn@cox.net or call her at 353-8980.

-- Emily Flora | SWoCo