Amber Willis
As she watched her mom, Tammy Schaefer, dance so gracefully at the 2014 Movers & Shakers Gala, Amber was filled with pride.
"It was awesome to see her perform, because she had some anxiety about it going in," Amber recalls. "To watch that final product on the floor was great. She did such an amazing job, and I was really proud of her."
Yes, pride and love were the overriding emotions as Amber looked on from her table, but there was another feeling gnawing at her just a tad.
"Yeah, I was kind of jealous," she says with a smile. "I had always wanted to do it."
Well, now she'll get her chance, as she prepares to literally follow in her mom's footsteps on the Movers & Shakers stage.
"When I was asked to dance, I immediately said, 'Of course!'" says Amber. "I'm so excited. This is my dream come true."
She has always loved dancing, participating in ballet, tap and jazz until she was about 15, then shifting that passion to the Sheboygan North High School Dance Team. She continued dancing in college, at UW-La Crosse, before transferring to the University of Minnesota and earning a degree in psychology and Spanish.
After that, she went to Lakeshore Technical College and become a registered nurse. These days, when she's not working at her full-time job at the Aurora Sheboygan Clinic, she's hanging out with her two children, ages 7 and 5.
"I hope they can come watch me dance," she says.
Tammy, a few years back, joked that Amber was urging her to update her '80s dance moves before hitting the Gala stage. So what will Amber's routine look like, with mom watching?
"Something high-energy with quick steps," she says. "I admit, I listen to really crappy pop music and hip-hop, even though I realize I'm not so hip anymore. I still like to pretend, and I'm great at singing in the shower and dancing at weddings."
Amber is sponsored by Legend Larry's and has chosen Camp Evergreen as her recipient charity. If Amber is the Gala champion, her charity will receive $10,000. Amber will perform with her dance partner, Zeke Cribbs.