POSEY MEALY
Community Leader
Posey is a native Charlottean who graduated from UNC Chapel Hill. After college she moved to New York City to work in the Fashion Industry as a Sales Rep for Geoffrey Beene and later as the Head of US Sales for the German company, Mondi. After ten years, Posey and her husband Mark, moved back to Charlotte to raise their three children and she began her work as a community volunteer, with an emphasis on the Arts and Children’s Services.
Posey has served on the Board of the Charlotte Ballet and has chaired several of their Galas. In addition, she served on the Board of the Mint Museum of Art and the search committee to find it’s current Director, Todd Herman. She and her husband Mark have been involved in the Young Presidents Organization and have planned numerous events and trips for the group over the past twenty years.
Posey tutored for many years at Siegel Avenue Pre School, Druid Hills and Landsdowne and she continues a mentoring relationship with one of her former students thirty years later. She was also involved with the Harvest Center and served as Co Chairman of Women of Vision, a division of World Vision focused specifically on women and children in need around the world. Currently she is serving on The Crossnore School Promise of Hope Campaign, after chairing several of their annual fundraising events.
Posey loves to plan parties for her family and friends, as well as her many charities. She also loves to dance and participating in the Charlotte Ballet Dancing With The Stars will allow her to raise money for two charities that mean a lot to her, the Charlotte Ballet and the Crossnore School.
GET TO KNOW POSEY
- Dancing Experience: Posey took Ballet as a child and had attended numerous dance performances in Charlotte, New York and Europe.
- Fun Fact: Posey likes to ski as much as she likes to dance, especially the bumps! She is also staying busy having fun with her five grand children, all under three!
- Why did you choose to support Charlotte Ballet? As a native Charlottean, she has watched the city grow and knows how important a vibrant art scene is to that growth. She is thrilled that Alejandro Cerrudo has come in to become the new Artistic Director and believes the company will do great things under his leadership.
LUKE CSORDAS
Seasons with Charlotte Ballet: 1
Luke Csordas grew up outside of Allentown, Pennsylvania where he was drawn to dance due to its ability to tell stories and ignite joy. He studied at the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance where he trained with role models such as William Forsythe, Jermaine Spivey, Bret Easterling, and Jodie Gates.
He is passionate about bettering his community, having served on the Student Advisory Board all four years of his undergraduate studies. While studying to receive his BFA in Dance, Luke also focused on Cinematic Arts at USC’s SCA.
Intersecting dance and media, Luke hopes to achieve his goals using cinematic storytelling in order to share, listen, and encourage empathy through stories told by dancers.
GET TO KNOW LUKE
- Hometown: Allentown, Pennsylvania
- What inspires Luke: I am most inspired by the mundane things we find in our day-to-day life and finding the beauty and even magnificence in them. Some of the most beautiful art exists everywhere and effortlessly.
- Most looking forward to about living in Charlotte: As I start with Charlotte for my first year, I’m looking forward to being inspired by so many new artists.
- Pre-show ritual: Meditate, blast show tunes, watch Gilmore Girls, and/or eat some Ben & Jerry’s
CROSSNORE COMMUNITIES FOR CHILDREN
Crossnore Communities for Children is a recognized leader in helping children who have experienced abuse or other trauma reclaim, rebuild, and reimagine the essential belief in a safe, dependable home. For more than 100 years Crossnore Communities for Children has provided a Christian sanctuary of hope and healing for children in need from North Carolina. Our holistic model of care allows us to care for and nurture each child’s mind, body and spirit. In 1909, The Children’s Home was opened in Winston-Salem, NC by a group of dedicated United Methodist churches. Just four years later, Dr. Mary Martin Sloop and her husband, Dr. Eustace Sloop, founded Crossnore Communities for Children in the rural Appalachian community of Crossnore, NC.
In 2016, both organizations began looking to the future. The Children’s Home was providing robust mental health services in the community and had established an infrastructure for billing Medicaid services. The Children’s Home also had a campus of 212 acres in the heart of downtown Winston-Salem, an excellent location for expanding services. The Crossnore School was a small agency in the mountains with a robust residential foster care program. At the same time, Crossnore Communities for Children was concerned about broadening service offerings to weather upcoming shifts in child welfare policies. By working together and ultimately merging into one organization in 2017, Crossnore School & Children’s Home was positioned to continue serving children and families by diversifying program offerings across a continuum for children at risk of entering the child welfare system, those already in the system, and those who are aging out of the system.
Four years after the merger, the Board of Trustees established a Strategic Plan with one of its goals being to grow the Crossnore brand as the regional leader in high quality, holistic child welfare services. To meet this goal, Crossnore partnered with a marketing consultant in Winston-Salem to review and update our messaging. From their research, interviews with stakeholders, and expertise, a compelling message was created and a fresh update made to our visual identity, and Crossnore Communities for Children was born in June of 2021.
Visit Crossnore Communities for Children’s website for more information.
Crossnore is in the midst of a capital campaign to raise funds which will support their expansion into Charlotte!
LEADERS AT A GLANCE
Check out the fundraising competition live via the Star Dancer leaderboard. Support your favorite Star Pair and cast your vote today by purchasing tickets or making a donation. All ticket sales and donations received are split 50/50 with Charlotte Ballet and the Star Dancer’s chosen charity. $1=1 Vote! On March 4, the People’s Choice Award will be presented to the Star Pair with the most funds raised. Judges’ Choice Award is presented to the Star Pair the judges determine had the best moves.
Total: $1,441,521
Thank you to our sponsors
- Prima
- Relevé
- Plié
- Pirouette
- Arabesque
