Bertha Santillan de Medina has been teaching members of her immediate and extended family the traditional folkloric dances from her homeland of Mexico for years, but when her daughter Ely Harris-Medina moved back to Marshalltown from Kentucky, she suggested the idea of offering it to the community at large.

Santillan de Medina wasn’t sure at first, but when she heard that the Arts + Culture Alliance (ACA) was sponsoring its first ever Local Artist Innovation Grant aimed at promoting ideas like hers, she decided to apply with the intention of using the funds she would receive to purchase the appropriate dresses at a cost of about $200 each. She received encouragement from Harris-Medina, who serves on the ACA board of directors.

Back in June, Santillan de Medina was announced as one of six inaugural recipients of the grant, and she and her daughter went to work on organizing the class, which is now held on Saturday mornings in the gymnasium at the old YMCA/YWCA. She traveled back to Guadalajara to purchase the dresses, and in two days, 74 people signed up for the class.

Harris-Medina and Santillan de Medina were overwhelmed by the amount of interest but decided to cap enrollment in the first class at about 40 to keep it manageable with hopes that everyone can participate at some point down the line. As Arts + Culture Alliance Executive Director Amber Danielson noted during a recent presentation to the city council, the most common demographic in the class is 30-something mothers taking it with their children.

“The two age ranges that we saw the most, it was like 30-ish and around eight-year-olds, which was so awesome to see that intermix of generations and related. Some are going by themselves,” Harris-Medina said. “When (my husband) Ben and I decided to move back to Marshalltown, one of the big draws was the culture and everything… We moved here for our kids to be able to celebrate their roots and share it, and we hear so many negative things about everything going on in the world and cultures and identities, and it was such a neat way to kind of take ownership and provide the positive and show it as ‘Hey, this is something really cool from this culture that we want to share and balance it out.'”

And while Latina women comprise the majority of the enrollment thus far, the class is open to individuals of all ethnic backgrounds who are interested in learning more about another culture.

“I would like to share the dance (and) the music to show ‘We are here. We are Marshalltown,'” Santillan de Medina said. “I’m so happy to share that. This is nice.”

According to Harris-Medina, some of the participants had learned the dances years ago when they still lived in Mexico or even at Woodbury Elementary School but haven’t had the opportunity since.

“People of Mexican-American heritage who have lived here and who have always wanted to do it, but there was never an opportunity for them,” she said. “They’ve messaged us and they’re like ‘Hey, I’ve always wanted to do this. Can I please do it?'”

Because of the space required, they’re also thankful to the Y for allowing them to borrow the gym. The inaugural workshop includes six weekly sessions with a goal of performing at Oktemberfest later this month, which is actually one of Santillan de Medina’s ironclad rules: if you sign up, you have to perform.

Santillan de Medina and Harris-Medina continue to receive inquiries about future opportunities to take the class, and they’re proud to further the ACA’s mission of serving as an “incubator space” for aspiring artists and performers.

“We are thrilled to support Bertha’s innovative vision through our Arts + Culture Alliance Innovation Grant,” said Amber Danielson, Executive Director of the Arts + Culture Alliance. “Her project reflects the beautiful culture, creativity and community spirit that inspire and strengthen the cultural foundation of our community. We can’t wait to see how this initiative grows and evolves for years to come.”

And for parents and grandparents who worry that the younger generations of immigrant families may lose touch with their roots over time, classes like these can serve as a bridge to help them reconnect.

“It’s really nice to see my culture passed to another (group) of people,” Santillan de Medina said.