We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Annette Mesa a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Annette, thanks for joining us today. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

In June of 2019, at 52 years of age and after 33 years of service with the City of Tucson, I retired from a civilian position with the Tucson Police Department. I kept my dance business going while working towards my retirement, by teaching line dancing since 1992, and regular high impact Zumba and quinceaneras choreography since 2010. Once I announced on Facebook that my retirement was soon, the offers to teach daytime classes for active adults came rolling in.

A good friend who knew of my dance and fitness classes and was marketing director at a local assisted living facility contacted me, said she had a job for me, and asked to meet up. She showed me a video and said, “can you do this?” Although I had never done it before, I immediately replied “YES! I CAN DO THAT!” This meeting, and what was in that video, inspired me so much that it absolutely put me on the most incredible path, of teaching low impact modified fitness classes not only for active adults in a recreational setting, but for a population that would grow very near and dear to my heart; the elderly in memory care, assisted, and independent living settings.

What I saw in the video, was an instructor, seated, teaching Zumba to participants at a memory care facility, who were also seated. Being the creative that I am, the choreographer in me immediately caught fire with excitement! The thoughts and ideas on how I could create movement, fun, and human connection for these, the most vulnerable and deserving among us, overflowed!

There are two lessons, one on the business end of things. Never say never. Although I had never done Chair Zumba before, I jumped at the offer. I could have never known at the time, what this would grow into. I currently teach 12 senior fitness classes per week, to include Cardio Drumming, Chair Zumba, Line Dancing, and Zumba Gold, with half of these at assisted living facilities. I also receive numerous offers in my local community to teach at community events and private events. With that I am able to come to know and enjoy the people who are out and about in my community. Had I not accepted this offer, I would have never known what a beautifully rewarding format this would turn out to be. The joy I feel creating happiness for others, and the love I get back sometimes 3 times per day, is beyond fulfilling. I adore everything about what I do! Every single day I wake up excited about who I will see in my travels and what fun we will have.

The second and bigger takeaway I have learned from the experience of teaching at these types of facilities, is to always let your heart speak and you can’t go wrong. Especially in uncomfortable, awkward or emotionally difficult situations. I recently gave my son, a man with the kindest most loving compassionate soul, this advice. He was asking how he should greet grieving loved ones at a celebration of life. I explained that all you have to do, is let your love and your heart shine through, and those around you will feel it. And that is all you need. I apply this to my interactions in my classes. Every single person at these memory care facilities, and in all of my classes, gets a warm hello, a compliment, silliness, and a joke from me; every single time I see them. It comes straight from my heart. All I have to do is open my mouth and it flows right out. I love to see people light up. Spreading joy is my jam! Nobody gets discounted. I never assume that someone cannot or will not respond. Because even a look in the eye, is a communication and a social connection. And if there was a moment where I was about to feel uncomfortable with what kind of interaction I may or may not get, I just relax and let the love I feel for these precious humans jump out of my chest, and they feel it, and we connect. I can sense that they feel acknowledged and special. And that is what it is all about. Mission accomplished.

Annette, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

How I got into my business: I never took a single dance lesson until I was 25 years old. Yet, I grew up in a very musical household. Dad played guitar and had an extraordinary singing voice. We always had get-togethers with fun sing-a- longs at our house. We sang Oldies but Goodies, Folk Music, songs from Mexico, and so much more. At these get-together’s, we would put on little skits, and although I was a painfully shy kid, this is something that prepared me for my professional life now, which involves being on stage, and entertaining others, very frequently.

Being a musician, Dad had all the talent as it relates to playing guitar and singing, but dancing skills? Not in his wheelhouse. Enter mom. Her entire family were dancers. I remember hearing stories about her siblings appearing on American Bandstand dancing the Jitterbug. Mom taught me how to do the Jitterbug when I was a very young girl. I remember being confused but loving it at the same time. Now as a dance instructor, I am able to put the “count” to the steps she taught me and can teach others. Lawrence Welk was her favorite show. Back then there was one TV, think rabbit ears, in the entire house; everyone watched the same thing. A little bit of whining went down when we all had to sit down and watch the Lawrence Welk show. But not by me. I really loved it. I can still visualize some of the graceful waltzes, with their romance and elegance, that so appealed to my inner girly-girl and the polkas that were so energizing to watch. It is hard to remember a time when some sort of music wasn’t blaring in my house. Especially in the late 70’s early 80’s, when 5 siblings slowly but surely started becoming teenagers. There was this thing in school and among the teenagers, where you had to either be disco, or rock. You had to choose. My brothers were rockers. And with my love of dancing, it was natural for me to be, disco. Besides disco and rock, I grew up hearing a wide range of musical genres from oldies but goodies, to American folk music, Mexican music was frequently played on the record player in my house; being that my parents immigrated from Mexico. All of this variety of musical influence has helped me so much with my craft now because the good music choices just never stop. Eventually my Zumba classes evolved into Zumba Gold, which is low impact for seniors, and Chair Zumba which I teach in assisted living and memory care facilities. I easily draw upon the memories of the music I grew up with, to create some incredible play lists for these classes whose demographic is that of my parents now. Now that I have added Cardio Drumming to my class repertoire, I am more grateful than ever that I had to listen to my brother’s classic rock music rattling the windows of our house, and secretly loving it, although I claimed Disco. Because now, those are some of the tunes I am drawing upon to put my Cardio Drumming play list together, and it reminds me that 70’s/80’s classic rock is absolutely divine!

When I was in my very early 20’s, I had a group of girlfriends, who enjoyed dancing on the weekends. Other than that, although I loved dancing, and had lots of natural rhythm, I never realized I had any sort of ability, until 1992. At a friend’s invitation, I attended my very first dance class at the Cactus Moon Night club/country bar in Tucson, at age 25. It was a line dancing class by the lady who brought line dancing to Arizona from the Midwest in the late 80’s, Mariella Patterson. I advanced very quickly, started a line dance class at my place of employment during lunch, and joined her performing team called “the Dry Gulch Dancers.” I wasn’t aware that there was this whole fantastic world of traveling, competing, performing and instructing at line dancing events around the country with several hundred dancers on the floor. But then my mentor, Mary B. (Mama-Mary) grabbed me by the hand and plucked me right off the dance floor at Cactus Moon, and said, “you’re coming with me,” I joined her dance team, so fittingly named “Pizazz” and subsequently started my own teams, traveling to country western dance events. On the day in 1996 that she said to me “I want you to choreograph our next dance routine.” doors began to open, and they have never stopped.

While I was raising my children, I put the brakes on teaching classes, with the exception of one line dance class at a senior center in downtown Tucson. In 2009, I joined a Zumba class and my instructor asked if I would be interested in becoming certified. in 2010, my Zumba classes took off very quickly in my small community of Green Valley and Sahuarita Arizona.

When my son was in 8th-grade he joined his 8th grade Civics Club. It was then that I leaned that each parent would be responsible to hold a fundraiser, to help the Civics Club students travel to Washington D.C. I founded the first Continental School Zumbathon Fundraiser for this cause in 2012. This became an annual tradition, raising $4,000 in two hours at one such event. After that I learned that I had a knack for coordinating charity fundraising events, and for bringing big groups of people together for a good cause. Back to my skits/singing/dancing background, I easily transitioned into being the MC at these events. I began to either coordinate, or participate in charity fundraisers in my local community, using Zumba and dance as the entertainment; all the while working in a civilian position at the Tucson Police Department and raising my kids. Since my retirement, I have enjoyed so many more opportunities to volunteer my time for charity events, daddy/daughter dances, community events, special needs groups, and private events; as it draws me closer to my community, which I adore!

We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others?
My heart. It is pretty mushy. I genuinely love people! I love to see them light up. I want to take their pain away and make them feel special. What I get back when this happens is so rewarding. I love to be the one who is responsible for bringing them joy. I am grateful God gave me the gift of being able to lift others up. Every day that I get up and do what I do, is a heartwarming fulfilling day.

My personality helps, I’m upbeat, I get silly energy, crack jokes, get a little rowdy, make noise, whoop it up, which drops people’s inhibitions when learning. Once their walls are down, they can relax, once they relax, they start to gain confidence. That is the main goal to build confidence, so participants can have fun.

My love of singing, dancing, and entertaining. I just love all 3 and this helps set me apart. I equally inherited both my dad’s love of singing and my mom’s love of dancing, and a great love of music from them both. When I hear music. I. Must. Move. A pure absolute passion burns like a fire under my feet, and I got to get up. I like to move it, move it! Since I grew up with such a variety of musical influences/genres, I just know all the great songs and especially those that appeal to the population that I serve, since that’s what I grew up listening to. My background provides me this advantage in putting fabulous play lists together with music that thrills my participants.

Musicality. Musicality in dance is how a dancer hears the music they are dancing to and interprets it into the moves they make. I’m blessed to have it. I recognize it as a gift because it is just something innate inside of me. I do not have to work for it at all, it just naturally flows, and I mean fast and effortlessly. I can’t keep up with it. I turn the music on, get in front of the mirror and just start playing. I’ve come to the point where I don’t stop and write down my choreography notes, as I am creating it, because I’ll lose the vibe. I just turn the video on, and record myself playing with the music, so I won’t forget. Then I can watch the video and type my notes out later. Dancers are physical interpretations of music. I love being the conduit that helps that happen. Musicality is frequently used when creating choreography for Zumba class or quinceaneras, and in line dance class, where we create our own little “variations” during the dance, like an extra wiggle or shake. This is another area where having this ability, makes the class exciting for my participants, and it gives them something to emulate. I get to make the music come to life not just for myself, but for others. That’s a pretty exhilarating thing.

My kids! My heart swells up with mom pride when I see how successful they are becoming in life; both in their careers and what good people they are becoming overall. There is no greater joy. There is a meme that says, “Happiness is knowing that your children have grown up to be good people”. And boy have they ever. My son is a Hospital Corpsman in the US Navy at a supervisory level. My daughter is finishing up her senior year at the University of Arizona and will complete her degree in psychology in May of 2024.

How this relates to my business is, they witnessed strong work ethic growing up and even now in their adulthood. And I don’t just mean by me. My husband is the hardest worker I have ever known. As they grew up, they watched him never give up, hurdle obstacles, and hit that daily grind with strength, honor, and fortitude. They also watched me become successful at what I do and learned, practice makes perfect, try, try again, how to treat others, (the golden rule), love others, how to prioritize, have a strategy, gain knowledge, navigate politics, and presentation, presentation, presentation.

My children also grew up knowing their parents put strong importance on fitness, exercise, health & nutrition. They grew up in the gym and playing sports, and dancing at classes and events with me. I am very proud when I see them doing the same in their adulthood, and even teaching us things now. When your kids are now your teacher; there’s another “happiness is” meme in the making.

I also am so proud when my students in line dancing make progress. When they start off as beginners and before they know it, master more advanced dances, are pleased with themselves, and performing with me at community events. I am delighted when my standing Zumba Fitness participants reach fitness, weight loss, and health goals. I am happy and fulfilled when participants in my all of classes, with varying life’s circumstances, some recently widowed, or living with other difficult situations, come out of their shell, make friends in class, and connect socially in class and outside of class. I am proud when class is chatty, and it takes me a minute to announce that it is time to start, because everyone is excited to be there and happily conversing with their friends. I am very proud when a group of teenagers that I have been teaching Quinceanera choreography to for two months, nails it on the day of the event.

All of the above is exciting to me. I have no favorite classes. Every single day I wake up motivated for the next class and the lovely humans I’m about to see. But what is the most breathtaking, every bit inspiring, the thing that moves me the most, is to watch seniors in their wheelchairs in my seated classes at nursing homes, getting silly, laughing, playing, singing along (we call it Zumba-Karaoke), loving life, releasing their burdens by means of dance expression, and experiencing joy. It is all very humbling. Nothing is more rewarding. Nothing. My heart could burst.

I am also excited about future possibilities. One lesson I have learned in the past in this business, is to consider all offers and possibilities. Never say never because you just don’t know what something can turn in to. With that I keep my mind open for new potential formats. At this time, I am just beginning to offer a new format called Cardio Drumming. The response I have received for this class is encouraging. I am eager to see what it will evolve into during the coming year. I am excited to see what the potential is to grow my Chair Zumba class, outside of the Assisted Living facilities. I am becoming more and more aware that there is a need for this very low impact but fun way to exercise, in independent living. I have also just opened this class up outside of nursing homes and will be happy to see it grow outside of the nursing home environments. I am most excited for my student’s growth and happiness. I’m excited to see them be proud of themselves, gain confidence, and make friends. I can’t help but smile when I dance, and when I see my participants smile too, I am fulfilled.

I will make sure you get a great quality product, whether its choreography for a quinceaneras, a dance class, or leading a community event. I take pride in myself and my work. If something has my name on it, it’s going to be done right. And it will be done in a fun way. I am absolutely driven by the strongest passion. I love what I do. With that I will make it the most enjoyable experience for my clients. I’m driven by my heart; I have been told that I carry my heart out on my sleeve. Now I proudly wear it there, I have learned to follow it and let it direct me in good charitable directions where I can make a difference and make the world a better place for others.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Social Media is huge. Thank goodness, my particular clientele does not really do much with Instagram/Twitter/Snapchat/Tik Tok. Because not only do I not have a single clue how to use some of those I don’t even have an account on some of those platforms.

Facebook keeps me busy enough. I continue to build my following on Facebook, by posting lots of fun videos showing what I do. I have learned that people don’t want to just look at words you post on a screen. They want to see who you are, what you look like, how you move, how you present, how you speak. Creating events/flyers/reels/posting to online calendars are all so very time consuming, but this has been a great avenue for me to grow my client base. I also have realized in the past year, that sending out E-blasts, is also a great way to grow. With the population I serve, email is the preferred method of communication.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

Practice does makes perfect. I spend hours upon hours, days upon days practicing and tweaking my routines, speaking in front of the mirror, since so much of what I do involves speaking to large groups of people several times per week. I spend so much time learning and practicing perfecting my craft.

All that aside. it is helpful to naturally just love people. To have a natural desire to help them grow, succeed, and be happy. In this business, having a heart for others means so much. You can have all the book smarts in the world and all the training and certifications, which is good. But it always boils down to the same thing, how you make people feel.

Build them up. Inspire them. Spread joy, enthusiasm, and happiness. Compliment them. Teach them. Acknowledge them. Mentor them. Hear them. Love them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.facebook.com/linedance.greenvalley.sahuarita.annette.mesa/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annette_mesa/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/AnnetteMesa.DanceFitness
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/annette-mesa-2b765945
• Youtube: Annette Mesa @annettemesa6270
• Other: https://www.zumba.com/p/Annette-Mesa/51435

Image Credits
Dan Shearer, from The Green Valley News and Sun Newspaper