Salsa for a Cause
by Thavary Krouch
posted December 1, 2004

International networking parties, Latin night at the Red Room and the Blue Cactus, Brazilian night, and social gatherings for movie and dinner are just some of the various events associated with INtoSalsa. Since its appearance onto the Indianapolis salsa scene, INtoSalsa has stirred up much excitement within a sleepy city waiting to be awakened. In over a year's time, it has accomplished to bring together a diverse group of individuals, all sharing a common love; the music and dance of salsa.

While we continue with dance classes and weekend parties, we have easily overlooked the growth that has occurred before us. Like that of children whose nature is to grow up so quickly, we can hardly believe how much time has passed since we've last seen a young relative that has suddenly grown to a full man or woman. Individually and collectively, we too in the salsa community have grown in such a short expanse of time.

With every tempo of music and rhythm of step, we have become a community or comunidad. As this newly formed community takes shape and continues to develop, so too will the endeavors of INtoSalsa. Through their fundraising efforts to support local not-for-profit organizations and their projects, INtoSalsa has demonstrated that a social scene of salsa dancing can readily transition to a social scene of philanthropy.

The partnership with not-for-profits toward local and international development projects has proved a successful one. Fundraising events such as the recent YETI (Youth Enhancement Training Initiative, Inc.) fundraiser which helped to raise money for an orphanage in Nepal is an example of the creative convergence that takes place when we meet to "dance for a cause." On the surface, it may have been another mid-week night at the Red Room. Aside from a welcoming Indian dance performance and the mingling of the masses, when donations were asked to be taken at the door, one knew that the lighthearted atmosphere could not take away from the seriousness behind the fundraiser.

The act of giving from our hearts, and arguably, more importantly from our pocketbooks is vital to any community looking to sustain itself and thrive. Without adequate funding, families and youth are left without clean water, food, and basic education, to name just some of the few things that many of us take for granted in our everyday lives. Such projects ensure that underprivileged communities are given opportunities to participate in the social, economic, and political systems set in place, and even the capacity to change those systems that are unjust.

Although holding fundraising events has contributed to advancing the causes of not-for-profits whose goal is to serve the greater good of their community, it is but one of the many possibilities of how we can take care of each other and the space we share. Community service takes many forms, from volunteering at a local shelter to donation of food and clothing. And we are never in short supply of activities that involve the giving of our time.

In order for philanthropy's "love of mankind' to continue its work, a commitment to the partnership of our growing salsa community and that of the community at large is required. As it is on the shared space of the dance floor, salsa dancing cannot happen without action and love. The same is true for growth to occur, as is happening within our community and our struggle to define and redefine our role within the greater community of Indianapolis and the rest of the world.