Rebecca is a young woman who has overcome typical cultural attitudes and has created, along with her family and support circle, an exciting life, working at meaningful jobs in the community, developing wonderful friendships, and living in her own apartment. Rebecca’s story is very inspirational and is one that the whole community can learn from.
The story of Rebecca’s contribution to her community as artist, dancer, dreamer, teacher and friend is told in her new 13 minute video called “Revel in the Light”. Her experience with circle building, tools for planning and the ins and outs of individualized support and community building has been helpful to other families and individuals as they plan for their future.
Rebecca’s dream is to change the world into a more compassionate place where everyone’s gifts are recognized and welcomed. Rebecca has made the transition from adolescence to the adult world in ways that make sense for her and her family.
Rebecca Beayni dreamed of going to Boston College to attend a graduate level workshop on liturgical dancing. The seed of that dream was planted a few years earlier when Fr. Bob Vereecke and the Boston Liturgical Dance Ensemble (BLDE) visited Regis College at the U of T. Over their two visits to Toronto, Rebecca witnessed the beauty and spirit-filled nature of this professional dance company and immediately wanted to learn more. She also came to realise how she and the Spirit Movers -- the liturgical dance group to which she belongs -- had much to offer the BLDE when the group was asked to actually lead some of the dance on the second event at Regis College.
Realizing this dream required a great deal of thought and planning for Rebecca’s mother, Susan. In order to avoid predictable barriers, every little detail was researched, including the physical challenges of travel. In an effort to make the journey more comfortable, the group traveled by van. The first leg of the trip included a ferry ride aboard The Breeze from Toronto to Rochester. Accompanying Rebecca was her mother, Susan, sister, Nicole, and fellow Spirit Movers Michael, Kim, Anna, and Steve.