A Very Merry Artgym Breakfast and the Best Christmas Present Ever (Shhhh…. It’s a Secret)

December 14th, 2016

We celebrated the end of the year with a hearty breakfast at the Italian Pantry.

There were plenty of tables to be had but everyone wanted to sit next to their friends, which turned out to be EVERYONE (we’re a tight-knit community) and so we spent time joining tables together before ordering some of the best coffees in town. Thank you Italian Pantry, you did an amazing job accommodating us.

I had some words to say: First, how we’ve had the absolute pleasure of Priscus Fogagnolo joining our team this year and then more recently Joe Gadon and Michele Locke, all superb coaches and good people, and how sad we are Kimberly’s moved interstate. I didn’t make a point of mentioning Rochelle de Vries and the Eternal Dance Studio team – they teach our fabulous hip-hop classes – or Claire Dawson and her one-of-a-kind yoga class – because they have been at the gym longer. But they’re equally integral to what we do, and their contributions deeply valued.

Then I explained how the hashtag #hobartsmostbeautifulgym had been coined by a lovely visitor to the gym, Aimee Pizzo-Ferrato, and how we’d run with it because the gym is pretty. But how lately how it had come to signify not necessarily the interior of the gym, but it’s beautiful people.

These same beautiful people had pitched together to give us a Christmas gift, which is so good I am going to keep it a secret for a little while. I have the card on my desk now and each one of the names in the card is precious. The card thanks us for “creating the best gym ever”.

So the way forward for Artgym is to continue to identify what we mean by #hobartsmostbeautifulgym, to take a creative approach to fitness and to continue to CREATE A GYM!

I received another unique present from Alison and Nigel Brown. A crocheted version of me (I think) complete with green cape, Big “A” for Artgym Girl (a character created by Kate McGough) and orange hair. Kind of wondering if the members were given similar dolls for home with coloured pins for sticking in after hard classes. I think we should have dolls made of some of the other coaches.

To end, Claire Dawson, wearing her sparkly Christmas hat, treated us to a Christmas medley. She is a talent and she shares it generously. —AG/Eilish Kidd