Today we’d like to introduce you to Linda Wade.
Hi Linda, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Linda Wade has been actively involved in many forms of art since 1989 as an artist painting in oil on stretch canvas, having some of her work shown at places such as Firstar Bank, Waupun First Gallery, Channel 10/36 Auction, & a host of private showings. In 1990, Linda studied ballet at the William Riley Ballet Academy in Milwaukee, Milwaukee Ballet & Dance Works, and eventually joined Dance Eternal in 1996. After joining Dance Eternal, she was invited to join the lead dancer (Kim Brunner) in a ministry trip to the women’s prison in Texas with a group from all around the USA, where Linda met Karla Faye Tucker, an inmate on Death Row.
Karla was deeply impacted by Linda’s expression of worship dance and asked how she might pray for Linda. Her request: “Could I be a catalyst to keep youth from ending up in prison?”. Fast forward to 2001, on another flight home from the Texas prisons, Linda’s thoughts turned again to her prayer request, so in 2001, Linda stated Above The Clouds in Milwaukee with co-founder Barbara Melsheimer. After years of serving children in Milwaukee, the women in the Texas prison asked Linda when there would be a program like that in Texas. In 2022, Above The Clouds Texas was birth. Currently, we are in 3 locations in Fort Worth (William M McDonald YMCA, Eastside YMCA & Worth Heights Community Center) serving over 100 per year.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
We are still considered new to the Fort Worth funding area, so it’s a challenge to get funders, businesses, and individuals to hear about our amazing free arts education program for children. We are hoping that this will change in the next year as we have children on our waiting list wanting to take our classes, but until we increase our revenue, we have limited space and instructors.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Above The Clouds Texas provides free faith-based arts education classes for children ages 5-17 in beginning ballet, jazz, hip-hop, and tap. Our vision is to provide a life-changing experience for children who participate in our free Christian-based arts education classes.
Not only are the classes free, but we also provide them with what they need to study their chosen medium, such as ballet shoes, tap shoes, etc.
We have an amazing performing arts partner, Ballet Frontier, which allows us to contract some of their performers to teach our classes and provides us with discounted tickets to their ballet. Our instructors are all professionals in their field and love our children.
Each year, we also hold a free spring recital in May, where children can showcase what they have learned that semester. We provide the outfits for them to perform in the recital. and invite to community, parents, and supporters to attend. The recital is free and open to the public.
What were you like growing up?
I was very shy and did not have a lot of friends, as I was always sick and missed a lot of school. As a young adult, I enjoyed painting and had some of my work displayed at an arts gallery along with private showings.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://abovethecloudsmilwaukee.com/atc-texas
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abovethecloudsmke/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-wade-parcho-402ba87/
- Twitter: https://x.com/ATCMilw
