Wednesday, November 22, 2000

Fayetteville physician and bestselling author Dr. Ferrol Sams will appear in the Dec. 9 evening performance of Georgia Youth Ballet's (GYB) "Nutcracker."

He will open the performance by reading the "Nutcracker" story to a group of children on stage.

"When I was growing up around here, we had two kinds of dancing: tap and toe. But I never thought I'd see toe dancing [ballet] where we used to grow cotton," said Sams. "And with a Fayette-based ballet company at that!" he added.

Commenting on the professionalism of the GYB's dancers, Sams added, "Everyone from my generation should come and see these young men and women perform. These are exceptional young people who are all in great physical condition. They put on quite a show."

Proceeds from the Dec. 9 evening performance will benefit The Joseph Sams School in Fayetteville, which is named after Sams' late grandson. The school provides education for children with physical and developmental disabilities preschool age though 14.

"Joe had Downs Syndrome and he was one of the original students when the school was first started. Then it was called the Early Years and it helped children up to age 7," Sams said. "It was amazing what they taught Joe to do, and they never had to raise their voices. He was able to be mainstreamed into public schools.

"Joe was diagnosed with leukemia at age 14 and died four years ago," he added. "He was the first alumnus of the school to die, and I and my family were all very moved when the board decided to rename the school for him."

Sams said the Georgia Youth Ballet benefit is one of many community events that have made a difference in the financial support of the school. "When they built the current building, folks in the community called it an old fashioned barn raising and they framed the whole thing in just a day," he said. "I'm grateful that folks keep remembering the school, and everyone there is hoping this ballet performance is a sellout."

The benefit performance will be Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m. at Sams Auditorium at the LaFayette Educational Center. Additional performances are Dec. 2 and 3 at Our Lady of Mercy High School and Dec. 8 at Sams. For information, phone 770-716-9858.

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