Jedidiah's Ballet Dream Fund

This is Jedidiah (Jed) Harwood, one of our six children. At two, Jed would pirouette across our living room. At ten, he trained at the Conservatory of Classical Ballet in the San Francisco Bay Area. Last year, at twelve, his teachers encouraged him to dance in the most competitive and largest youth ballet competition in the world – the Youth American Grand Prix. Jed competed in San Francisco, and earned a place in the next round, at Lincoln Center in New York City. In New York, the principal dancer from London’s Royal Ballet told us that Jed has a future and an internationally-known master instructor offered to train him personally.

This January, Jed (now thirteen) auditioned for the Joffrey Ballet Summer Intensive in Chicago. Thousands of children who had devoted their lives to dance tried out for 150 slots. Jed was not only accepted, but received a full-tuition scholarship. He then auditioned for the American Ballet Theater in Manhattan, and was offered a partial scholarship for that company as well.

The grace, passion, grit, and pure joy we see in Jed when he dances are a constant revelation to us. We can hardly believe what they tell us, when they talk about our little boy, but it seems he has, somehow, been given the gifts needed to have a career in dance. The opportunities in front of him now, will give Jed the chance to blow the doors off his life as a home-schooled kid in Oakland, California, and to walk onto the world stage.

So here we are. Our son has been given a life-altering opportunity. Though we are incredibly proud that we can support our family as a piano teacher and a stay-at-home dad, the costs of his room and board, flights, supplies, and chaperone fees are beyond our means. If this story touches or inspires you, the way Jed touches and inspires us each time he begins to dance, we would be incredibly grateful for your support, either by giving a donation or by sharing this link on social media. Thank you.