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Hamilton Spectator
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Fitness meets fun at Elvis-inspired CROONERcize
Around 50 people attended the ELVISize, Salute to the KING event, at the Royal Canadian Legion, Dunsdon Branch #461 on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. Joan Minnery and Christine Wallace teamed up earlier this year to debut a new singing and movement program, fittingly called CROONERcize. The event, which is held once a month, is designed to not only get people excited about exercise and movement, but to simultaneously raise funds for the local legion as well. So far they've raised $1,581.50 since January. 'We wanted to do a health and wellness type event in January just to help people kick off the year and get them moving,' said Wallace. 'We ended up having such a great turnout and people started asking if Joan would do it again, so we've been trying to host it once a month since then.' 'That first one we did was Stayin Alive in '25, then in February we did Hearts in Motion, and in March we did Retro Flower Power,' added Minnery. 'That one was great because it was all music from the 1960s and everybody came dressed up as hippies and such.' With this past event being entirely dedicated to the king of rock and roll, many participants came dressed up in Elvis shirts and 1950s styled outfits. Throughout the evening, Minnery had attendees clapping, swaying and singing along to some of the king's classic hits including, 'Jailhouse Rock,' 'All Shook Up,' 'Polk Salad Annie' and 'Kentucky Rain.' 'Its a workout, but we're singing and dancing, and I make the moves really easy so that everyone can do it. It's not hardcore Zumba, it's not line dancing and it's not aerobics; it's just movement with some of those things thrown into it,' said Minnery. 'It's great… they're getting a head to toe workout and they don't even realize it because while they think they're just singing along, they're actually expending their energy at the same time and so they're getting a better workout. I've had people come up and say things like, 'I'm not moving as much as I normally would, but I'm sweating so much' and it's because they're singing; that's the key to the whole thing and that's why we call it call it CROONERcize.' Long-time friends, Debbie Cross and Jackie Haigh, said that this was their second and third time attending the event. The two said that they enjoy getting to move their bodies while having some fun at the same time. 'Jackie invited me along to the 60s event and I remember that after we finished up I just felt inspired to keep moving. It's funny because the following Tuesday, I actually told Jackie that I wished it was on again because it was just so worth it. Being a teacher, I worked outside all day today for track and field, and as tired as I was… I'm happy that I came and I'm feeling refreshed,' said Cross. 'The great thing about too is, Joan has told us that you don't have to follow it step by step, you can kind of just do your own movement, stay in tune with the music and just move to your own beat. That's nice because nobody's concerned with doing it the right or the wrong way, we all just giggle and laugh and do our own thing.' This session also included a 50/50, a small raffle and a door prize for a VIP package and tickets to see Ginger Alden, who was engaged to Elvis at time of his death in 1977, during her upcoming live event in Hamilton on July 12. Minnery will be acting as the master of ceremonies for the event. For those interested in attending, the next CROONERcize event will be themed all around country music. 'That next one will be on Tuesday, June 24, and as always, entry is just five-dollars per person, so come on out!' said Minnery. Kimberly De Jong's reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative. The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at .
Daily Mail
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Stranger saves 15-year-old baseball player's life with trick from 'The Office'
A teenage baseball player from Alabama collapsed on the field last month and was saved by a stranger who used a medical procedure once joked about on an episode of 'The Office.' The teen, Evan Tucker, was trying out for a travel baseball team on April 19 when he went into cardiac arrest while standing on the outfield grass behind second base. His mother, Samantha Tucker, initially assumed he was hit by a ball and took off running for her son, she told WBRC. 'I jumped up and I heard somebody say 'he's having a seizure,' so I took off running,' Samantha said. 'It was sheer panic, like shock actually. Johnette Wilmot didn't know the Tucker family but happened to be at the field with her 11-year-old son Phoenix, who was trying out for a summer league. Wilmot, who isn't a nurse or a doctor, wasted no time and went off running for Evan as well. She began performing CPR and did so for about eight minutes until an ambulance arrived. 'I learned CPR in high school when I was 17, and I've never had to use it in 40 years,' Wilmot said, adding that she kept humming 'Stayin' Alive' by the Bee Gees. CPR instructors often use that song as guide when teaching people CPR because its tempo of 103 beats per minute is within the correct pace for effective chest compressions. He was saved by this woman, Johnette Wilmot, who rushed out to him and began performing CPR to the tune of 'Stayin' Alive' by the Bee Gees This method was further popularized by an episode of 'The Office' where an instructor used the 1977 disco hit to teach Michael Scott, played by Steve Carrell, who was practicing CPR on a dummy. On the ambulance ride to the hospital, Evan's mother hoped and prayed he would be alright. 'The entire ride in the ambulance I was saying "Jesus I trust in you,"' Samantha said. 'I had a peace about me because somehow, I knew that he was going to be okay.' And thanks to Wilmot and another mother who helped render aid, Evan managed to pull through. When he arrived at the hospital in Birmingham, Samantha said he had to be shocked with defibrillators. He spent several days in a medically-induced coma before being woken up. Evan can now speak and walk without assistance, though he is still in the hospital recovering. 'Miracles happen,' Samantha said. 'If it hadn't been for Johnette, if it hadn't have been for the Lord, my son would not be here today.' 'Because Johnette stepped in like she did and did CPR when a lot of people don't know, myself included, it's a good chance for people to think about that,' she added. The GoFundMe that was set up for Evan's recovery revealed that Evan's father, Eddie, suffered a serious stroke eight years ago After the terrifying incident, Samantha and Wilmot became fast friends. They now talk every day. Wilmot visited Evan in the hospital for the first time this past weekend, tearfully hugging him and posing for a picture with him. A friend of the Tucker family set up a GoFundMe for Evan as he continues his recovery. It revealed that the family has a history of medical problems, with Evan's father, Eddie, suffering a stroke eight years ago that left him permanently disabled. The page has raised $2,465 toward a $10,000 goal. The family is also selling T-shirts to help raise money for his care. Evan's mother and Wilmot are encouraging others to learn CPR. The American Red Cross offers CPR training in all 50 states.
