Features

 News Desk
 News Briefs
 News Summaries
 Columnists
 Sports
 Editorial
 Arctic arts
 Readers comment
 Find a job
 Tenders
 Classifieds
 Subscriptions
 Market reports
 Northern mining
 Oil & Gas
 Handy Links
 Construction (PDF)
 Opportunities North
 Best of Bush
 Tourism guides
 Obituaries
 Feature Issues
 Advertising
 Contacts
 Archives
 Today's weather
 Leave a message


NNSL Photo/Graphic

NNSL Logo .
Home page text size buttonsbigger textsmall text Text size Email this articleE-mail this page

Dance academy owner snags prestigious award

Guy Quenneville
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, October 22, 2008

SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - The owner of Bella Dance Academy was named the NWT's Young Entrepreneur of the Year yesterday in a ceremony held by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) in Vancouver.

Lina Ball, 29, accepted the award in the presence of her mother, who shepherded Ball to all her dance classes when her was young.

NNSL Photo/Graphic

Lina Ball, owner of Bella Dance Academy, received the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for the NWT from BDC, Canada's business development bank, yesterday in a ceremony held in Vancouver. - photo courtesy of BDC

"I think it will be really rewarding for her to see me accept the award," Ball said Monday.

Ball was one of twelve recipients from all provinces and territories save Nunavut selected by regional committees made up of businesspeople, accountants, and representatives of local chambers of commerce.

"The main criteria are the company's success and growth potential, innovation, participation in new economies, and community involvement," said Michel Bergeron, vice president of corporate relations for BDC "They're not weighed the same. Fundamentally it's the first one that's most important."

The BDC received a total of 200 applications from all over the country. Ball started her dance academy in 2003 when she moved to the territory with her husband, the only person she told of the award when first contacted by the BDC about it last summer. She was sworn to secrecy and could tell no one else, not even her mother, would only found out recently.

"We were under strict direction not to let anybody know. It was tough," said Ball.

Upon her arrival in Yellowknife, Ball saw an opportunity to bring something new to the city.

"When I first got there, I wondered what I what I was going to do during the long, dark, cold winter," she said. "And there wasn't a big dance program at the time.

"I had danced all my life and knew what a positive influence it was on me and that I wanted to bring that to Yellowknife."

She opened her studio on Old Airport Road, teaching all of the courses herself. She made the rounds at different community events, getting her name out there - a tireless promoter.

"I made every appearance that I could. I offered free classes to the community so that they could come try it out. I remember sitting waiting for the first class. I had a great response."

Ball started with 25 classes, 120 students and 1,300 square feet.

Now that her academy has moved to a bigger building in Kam Lake in the former location of Napoli Pizza, Ball is entering her fifth year with 35 classes, more than 300 students and double the amount of space and two studios instead of one.

Teaching kids in a town like Yellowknife can be a bittersweet experience, she said.

"Yellowknife is such a transient city," said Ball. "It's hard to work (with) someone, to teach them over years and see them just leave and I never hear or talk to them again."

Asked how she got from completing a Bachelor of Science Degree to accepting a business excellence award a mere five years into her academy, Ball said, "I think that I'm receiving the award because I provided something unique to Yellowknife. I had a good plan and I've stuck to that plan. I've taken things slowly. We've grown in moderation.

"I have a lot of fun at what I do. I mean, I teach dance for a living. The passion makes the business successful."