Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
Dancing is one of my biggest passions. Like most little girls, I began in pink slippers and a pink tutu taking ballet classes. This small extracurricular activity became a great joy and so much more than just an activity; so much in fact that I attended Oklahoma City University as a dance performance major. There I met Katie Lunn. Katie was in the dance program and a member of my sorority.
Katie had an infectious smile, a grand laugh, and an enormous personality. She was friendly, funny and positive all the time. She always had a great outlook on life; even when she was angry or upset she still had this bright light of joy around her. After college, Katie spread her love of dance to young children and adults. Her message to her students had very little to do with dance. Dance was just the vessel she used to spread her message. “Live, do what you love. Fulfill your dreams and never forget to pay it forward” is what she taught her students. She often wrote encouraging notes telling them to believe in themselves, SMILE, dream big, love one another, and to discover their own purpose. Katie was tragically killed in an accident just as she was beginning her career.
Katie knew how to use her passion for dance to connect with people and positively make a difference. There is a saying that goes “to watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak.” When you watched Katie you could hear her message loud and clear! You knew God was in her heart and she praised Him in her everyday actions. Some would say she left us before she had a chance to live out her dreams. However, I think she is still carrying out her dream through the lives she touched and by others continuing to pass her message along. She shared God’s love and encouraged others to do so. No, you didn’t hear about all she had done on the news and she is not famous, but making a difference in this world isn’t always about the big things. It’s about the little things we can do each and every day to make a difference even in one person’s life. To make that difference we have to be kind, we have to make the most out of every day – good or bad, lift those around you up, and share God’s love. By doing so we can bring hope to others and little by little bring hope to the world.
Meredith Lee, St. Luke’s Children’s Center Management
