A movement for positive movement

GREEN BAY – Contrary to popular belief, Green Bay’s local athletic community is not exclusive to young high school athletes or professional football players. 

Empowered by Movement works to include seniors and people living with Parkinson’s in this community by teaching and encouraging athletic and rhythmic movement to music to keep people active and engaged with the local community. 

Founder and teacher Lisa Pritzl is one of the only certified teachers in the area.

According to Pritzl, the physical and mental benefits of movement of any kind can be priceless.

“I have a number of participants who are seniors who don’t have a mental or physical disorder, but they have lost their connection to music and movement and community. These folks attend because it gives them that. It gives them this sense of community. It allows them to work on balance,” said Pritzl. 

Participant Jeri Raab said that being a part of Empowered by Movement has drastically improved her life in a variety of ways. 

“I went to a seminar that Aging Resources and Disability put on for seniors learning what your legal rights were. Lisa was the opening act before the seminar,” said Raab. “I thought, well, they serve breakfast so I’ll be alright. I’ll just sit here and eat and let her do her thing. A few minutes into it, I realized most of the room was able to keep up with what she was teaching and I could not. I thought, maybe this isn’t so good. I tried to participate and I only lasted a few minutes. She mentioned that I could go to a class free of charge and see how I liked it. I liked the music part of it so I thought ok, I’ll go.”

Raab said that despite her own reservations about her abilities, Pritzl showed her that anyone was capable of participating. 

“With my physical limitations, I thought I couldn’t do it. I got in here, and here’s all these wonderful people enthused about music. They all have physical limitations and that was not stopping them,” said Raab. 

According to Pritzl, that is the goal of the class. 

“The classes are very adaptable. If you’re living in a wheelchair, or you're living with a walker or a cane, and you find that there’s not many ways to adapt your movement in a thoughtful way, our classes can do that for you,” said Pritzl. “Our class is hybrid. People are there physically in person, and we have a TV screen that is connected to zoom, and that is where our virtual dancers participate. We have connected with people on the west coast, east coast, Canada, Appleton, Milwaukee, and we have some regulars that join us from their homes.”

Noticeable results

Raab said that as a senior, the class gave her not only physical benefits, but renewed her confidence as well. 

“I have always felt respected by Lisa, and that’s not always common as a senior,” added Raab. 

“We talked about some of the values of it and I said that I live alone. I’m very aware that if I fall, that could be the end of living alone. If she could do anything to keep me upright, I was willing to try it,” said Raab. “I’ve been here about three and a half years and I know that my balance is a lot better. Cognitively, there’s just no comparison. When I started class, by the end of it I was done for the day. Now, it’s just part of my Tuesday.”

How it all began

Pritzl said that although dance and music have always been a part of her life, Empowered by Movement only came to her in recent years. 

“I actually started the organization six years ago and it was a major shift from working in a corporate world, working 60-80 hours a week. I finally found something that truly filled my heart and filled my passion and purpose. I discovered this program called Dance with PD. It perfectly aligned with my background. I danced since the age of three, and I knew it was a way to positively impact the community,” said Pritzl. “Within a week, I found that this was the purpose of my life. I was able to take my personal connection to dance, and I knew how it made me feel and I knew how it helped to interact with others in communicating through movement, and I knew that was a way I could impact other folks — especially the senior population and people living with Parkinson’s.”

Breaking through the stigma

Not only accepting a diagnosis of Parkinson’s, but learning to adjust to living with the condition can no doubt provide mental and physical distress to the afflicted, as well as their caregivers. 

JR and Linda Rintelman can attest to the difficulties of these life changes as JR was just diagnosed in February of 2024. 

“It’s certainly been a challenge. There’s been a big change in the last years with seeing him go from someone who can do anything to, now, he has some dementia issues and it’s very difficult to have patience and learn to take care of somebody. For 50 years, he took care of me,” said Linda. 

The Rintelmans found out about Empowered by Movements work with individuals afflicted with Parkinson’s through other classes offered through Western Racquet and Fitness and decided to give it a try. 

“Just right from the beginning in emailing with Lisa, she was so welcoming. We just felt comfortable as soon as we got there,” said Linda. 

“I said that my husband has Parkinson's and she said that I could either drop him off or I could stay. The class is so much fun that I always stay. (JR) can’t always interpret or make his hands and feet do what she’s doing, but it’s still fun and he still moves around and still gets some exercise,” said Linda. 

Pritzl’s kindness and dedication to her class and the people she teaches knows no bounds, according to JR. 

“Lisa brings out the best in everybody. She has really worked with me individually,” said JR. 

“I wish I could get everybody that has Parkinson’s to come into this class.”

Pritzl noted that over the six years she has been working with people living with Parkinson’s, she has seen countless inspiring stories from the people in her classes. 

“One of the physical improvements I’ve seen happen in our class — and I think this is a true testimony to the power of creative movement — is with the people attending who are living with Parkinson’s, you can see the physical symptoms such as gate, instability, tremors, uncontrollable or involuntary movements of the body, known as dyskinesia. When you start to layer in movement that’s thoughtful as far as combining movement with music and rhythm, you start to see those physical symptoms move away. They walk out a different person than they walk in,” said Pritzl. 

What does a class entail?

“One of the things that we have learned over the years is that we don’t use the word dance. It’s more of a connection of music, movement and creative ideas. Neuroplasticity is the ability for us to change our brains. Putting yourself into new experiences that are different for your body or brain can be very powerful. For someone that’s maybe skeptical or hesitant about joining the class, come and try something that’s going to empower you in new ways. This is just another powerful tool that can enhance your life in a very meaningful way,” said Pritzl. 

The adaptability of each class to meet individual needs is part of what makes Empowered by Movement so effective for each participant. 

“Our class starts with a nice easy warm up in our chairs. Then we give our participants the option to stand, and then as we progress they have the option to move around the room. We have participants that will stay seated the entire class and participants that will stand the entire class,” said Pritzl. 

Whether attending the course via Zoom from the comfort of your own home or experiencing the benefits of the course in person, Pritzl said that she strives to reach anyone and everyone who is interested in improving the quality of their life through intentional movement. 

Empowered by Movement offers classes on two days throughout the week — on Tuesdays at Western Racquet and Fitness, and the other on Thursdays at Touchmark, an all-phases-of-living senior facility in Appleton. 

Courses have a suggested registration amount of $55 per month with partial and full scholarships available for people who can pay a portion of the cost each month or can’t afford the fee at all. 

Anyone interested in participating in Empowered by Movement can contact Lisa Pritzl at (920)-737-1140 or at Lisap@empoweredbymovement.org, or can visit empoweredbymovement.org.