10 minute read
Working it out Together
Building on a lifetime love of ballet, Maria Gibase introduces a new type of fitness to Vidalia –offering something for everyone.
BY RENÉE MARTIN
PHOTOS BY EVAN RIEKHOF, EZ-E PHOTOGRAPHY
Weights and high-dollar exercise equipment sat untouched. Never was the silence more deafening than that caused by the Covid shutdown in gyms across America. Many never reopened. Among those that survived, masks and distance requirements made a return to group fitness classes practically impossible. Exercise routines, social connections, and overall health suffered. The changes frustrated both gym owners and disciplined gym goers. As the weeks turned into months, Maria Gibase looked for ways to keep active. With her background in ballet, she turned to Barre and began training to pass the Barre certification to become an instructor.
“When Covid hit, I was stuck in my house like everyone else,” she said. “Sure, I could have just sat around all day and watched Netflix.” I smiled politely, knowing that Maria was no more capable of apathy than Mother Teresa of indifference. “I was looking for something to keep me fit, so I tried Pure Barre and other Barre classes in Savannah. Barre uses elements of ballet, Pilates, yoga, and sometimes strength training. With my background, it seemed a good fit.”
Maria’s background was actually in classical ballet. “Growing up, the only thing I did was ballet,” she said. It was her mother’s dream to one day have a daughter she could dress in tulle and pink ballet slippers and dance the Nutcracker. But as the years passed, having a second child for Josephine and Doug Barnhill did not seem possible. “Years after my brother was born, my parents realized that they could not have more children—at least, not in the conventional way,” said Maria. “So, they chose to adopt me,” she smiled.
As soon as she was old enough, Josephine enrolled her daughter in ballet classes at Madeline Walker’s School of Dance. In hindsight, her mother’s dream would prove prophetic. The hope in Josephine’s heart became Maria’s passion and joy. “Classical ballet was all I did,” said Maria. “It was my only hobby. My only pastime. I loved it.”
Maria graduated from St. Vincent’s Academy, an all-girls Catholic school in Savannah, Georgia, in 1985 and continued her education at the University of Georgia. While pursuing her degree in microbiology, she took every dance class available.
In 1989, Maria graduated from UGA and was accepted into optometry school. But plans change, as plans do when love is involved. Instead of optometry school, Maria married Frank.
“Frank and I met right after I graduated from high school,” she said. “We dated the entire time I was at Georgia.” After getting married, Maria and Frank moved to Alabama for him to complete his internship at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. A year later, the two moved to Nashville so Frank could complete his residency at Vanderbilt. While in Nashville, their two sons, Frank and Robert, were born.
In 1995, Dr. Gibase took a position in Vidalia, Georgia, as an Anesthesiologist at Meadows Regional Medical Center (now Memorial Health Meadows Hospital.) For over twenty years, he served as Chief of Anesthesiology at MHMH.
Throughout those early years of marriage and motherhood, ballet was never far from Maria’s heart. “Wherever we lived, I would find a studio and take a class,” she said. When they moved to Vidalia, Maria found an adult ballet class with Christine Wooten. But after her third son, Joseph, was born, there was little time for anything other than raising her children and following their interests and activities. Then, Maria had Tessa.
“When our last child was a girl, I wanted her to have the chance to take classical ballet like I had as a child,” said Maria. So, she started Vidalia Ballet with three other mothers, Elaine Giles, Amelia McShane, and Jami McDonell, and operated the studio under the umbrella of the Savannah Conservatory of Dance. “They would send us teachers, and that’s how we started.”
As different owners and instructors came and went, Maria kept things going. In 2016, Christine Wooten’s daughter, Jennifer Wooten, bought the studio, which has since been renamed The Hive Collective. “Jennifer does an excellent job,” said Maria.
Even after Tessa graduated high school and left home for college, Maria continued to teach classical ballet classes at Jennifer’s studio. If not for the disruption in 2020, Maria might have kept doing just that. But the unplanned break in routine gave time for her to reflect and consider the future.
Classical ballet was never far from Maria’s heart. She discovered her heart’s passion through the beauty of the music and movement. After Tessa was born, ballet was about Tessa. However, in this new season of life, Maria just wanted to stay active to keep herself in shape. At the same time, she said, “I had friends who had depended on the gym for group exercise classes and missed the accountability and connection. Several asked if I would lead a class, so I decided to get my certification as a Barre instructor for myself and for them.” But it was Brianna Hasbrouck’s support and encouragement that helped Maria turn a plan to help out a few friends into a vision for the community.
Brianna moved to Vidalia in 2021 when her husband, Matthew, took the CEO position at Memorial Health Meadows Hospital. Before she had even unpacked, her new neighbor, Sandy Ponce, came to welcome her to the community. When Sandy learned that Brianna was a Barre instructor, she invited her to Maria’s class.
“When we walked in, she immediately introduced me to Maria as a Barre instructor,” Brianna smiled. “Maria said, ‘Awesome! Are you interested in teaching?’ I kind of laughed and said, ‘Sure.’ Then she asked when I could start. I said, ‘Next week?’ It was crazy. And that’s basically how it started.”
Maria’s seemingly impulsive proposal proved a blessing in more ways than anyone could have imagined. Brianna had an extensive background in fitness and dance that started with her school’s “High Kick” dance team in Minnesota. After graduating college with a Psychology and Family Studies degree, Brianna coached the high school dance team while working as a family advocate for DFACS.
In 2010, Brianna and her husband, Matthew, moved to Salt Lake City, Utah. Matthew worked as an Administrative Intern at St. Marks Hospital, and Brianna worked with Head Start. As Matthew continued to advance in his work with HCA Healthcare, job opportunities led the family south to Dublin, Georgia, Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia. Each place brought new opportunities for both.
In Dublin, Brianna taught Special Education at the high school. When Addie (now 9) was born, she returned to teaching fitness. Her daughter Brynlee (now 7) was born in Charleston, where Brianna taught at a Barre Above studio. In Savannah, she taught Barre and Yoga classes. When Brianna moved to Vidalia, she held several group fitness certifications, including MOSSA, ACE, and AFFA.
With Maria’s background in ballet and Brianna’s Barre certification, the two made the perfect team. As their friendship deepened and the Barre class grew in size, talk turned to moving into a place of their own. It was a big conversation for Maria, who knew firsthand the commitment involved after years of supporting and sometimes managing the ballet studio. Classical ballet had been Maria’s world. When Tessa came along, she focused solely on providing ballet classes for Tessa. As she and Brianna talked, Maria felt her heart and purpose shift toward the community, and Brianna was right there to help make it happen.
Downtown Barre—Vidalia opened for business on October 5, 2023, and the community showed up with its support. Instead of two classes a week, Maria and Brianna shared the responsibility of nine to twelve classes a week. Various classes were scheduled throughout the day, including Barre, Adult Beginner Ballet, YogaFlow, Body Sculpting, and Pilates. “The classes are for everyone at any level,” said Maria. “It’s for the one who hasn’t worked out in years. It’s for the person looking for the accountability group exercise offers. We’re here to serve anyone and everyone at any fitness level.”
Ten months after opening Downtown Barre, Brianna learned that Matthew had been offered a position as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at St. Mark Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah, where his career began. As Brianna and Matthew talked and prayed, it came down to the best decision for their family. Time would not stand still. While living in Georgia, the distance from family made visits few and far between. Utah would at least bring them closer to home. Still, it didn’t make it easier to leave the community they had both come to love.
Maria felt the loss most of all. Brianna had been an integral part of Downtown Barre and a dear friend. “We are losing our sweet Brianna, my partner and my friend,” she posted on Facebook, “as she moves on to her next adventure. The studio would not exist without her passion and her dedication. I will be forever grateful for this journey with her and for her belief in us and our community…”
As Maria considered how best to move forward without Brianna, she found a community of friends ready to step up and help carry the studio forward. In addition to Maria’s classes in Barre, Pilates, and Adult Beginner Ballet, Staci Worth leads the Body Sculpting class, Jennifer Everett teaches Pilates, and Teri Williams leads a YogaFlow class. “There’s literally something for everyone at every level,” said Maria.
Like it or not, every stage of life is a journey of change. Sometimes, as we learned from Covid, change comes without warning. Navigating the unforeseen is part of the journey, but it takes creativity and courage to rise from the ashes of the former way of doing things and move on to something new. I can’t think of a better way to describe Maria than as that phoenix who carries creativity and courage like a crown.
It’s one thing to discover your gift. It’s another to do the work to develop it. When your gift is given to benefit others, its purpose is truly realized. Downtown Barre—Vidalia is Maria’s gift realized and shared with this community.
“This song makes me so happy,” she says as she leads a Barre group to the beat of “Red Solo Cup,” or her latest favorite Ed Sheeran song. Regular exercise and connection with others: Downtown Barre—Vidalia provides both.
The studio is located at 105 East Meadows Street in downtown Vidalia. (The name kind of gives that away.) The first class is free. More information is available on Facebook at The Downtown Barre—Vidalia.
