Meet the Dancers

Branch Manager at First Home Mortgage 

 Tom Draper, a lifetime resident of the Eastern Shore, comes from generations of entrepreneurs with very strong ties to the local community. Upon graduation from Salisbury University, Tom started his career as a Loan Officer Assistant for First Home Mortgage in Easton and worked his way up to Branch Manager in 2022.

Tom is active in the community serving on Mid Shore Board of Realtors Golf Committee and Easton Affordable Housing Board. Tom and his wife Leigh currently live in Easton. In his free time Tom enjoys spending time with his family, goose hunting, golf and Ravens!

Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics, Washington College

After serving as Assistant, Associate, and Deputy Athletic Director since 2010, Thad Moore was promoted to Director of Athletics in August 2016 following the retirement of Dr. Bryan Matthews. On April 2, 2022, Moore was promoted to Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics at the College.

“Over the last two years, Thad has taken on the critical supervision of Public Safety and our transportation operations and has chaired the Emergency Operations Group as well,” said Sarah Feyerherm, Vice President for Student Affairs at the College. “Combined with his excellent leadership of the operations of varsity athletics, recreation, and intramurals, his new title reflects the scope and quality of his contributions to our campus.”

In an administrative capacity prior to taking over as Director of Athletics, Moore progressively took on a larger role in the department, handling scheduling, operations, department research, and several facility projects, among several other duties. 

Prior to becoming the College's Athletic Director, Moore had served as its head athletic trainer since 2000. He received the Maryland Athletic Trainers Association (MATA) Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award in 2012 and a Service Award from the Mid Atlantic Athletic Trainers' Association (MAATA) a year later. In 2014, he was named the Division III Athletic Trainer of the Year by the College/University Athletic Trainers’ Committee (CUATC) of the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) and received a NATA Service Award. In February of that same year, he was one of four recipients of the College's annual Presidential Distinguished Service Awards. In June 2019, he was inducted into the MATA Hall of Fame. 

Moore, who has been a certified athletic trainer since 1997, earned his B.S. in Physical Education from Salisbury in 1996 and his M.A. in Education with a concentration in Sports Management from Connecticut in 1999. He is presently working on his M.S. in Healthcare Administration.

Prior to his arrival at Washington College, Moore worked as an intern at Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore and as the head athletic trainer at the Mark Mettrick Professional Soccer School. From 1997-2000, he was a graduate assistant athletic trainer at the University of Connecticut, where he worked with the Huskies' football program.

Moore is a member of the National Athletic Trainers Association and the College Athletic Trainers Society. He is also a certified American Red Cross Instructor in first aid, CPR, and AED.

Moore has also served as a lecturer in the Physical Education department, as an advisor to Washington's Student-Athlete Mentor program, and on various committees throughout campus.

  5th and 6th Grade Math Teacher,  Kent School 

BONNIE WILLIAMS is a Chestertown native, graduating from The Gunston School in 2002. Her love for helping others and educating children started on the Chester River while teaching and coaching sailing. This led her to Marymount University, earning a Bachelors in Psychology and Human Services. After living in Baltimore for 7 years, Bonnie and her husband decided to move back to the beautiful Eastern Shore with their young family. Bonnie started administrative work and teaching at Radcliffe Creek School for 3 years before moving to Kent School in 2017. At Kent School she taught in the preschool for one year before being promoted to Director where she enjoyed this position for 5 years. Currently, Bonnie is going into her third year teaching Math in Kent School’s middle school and absolutely loves it. Her philosophy of teaching is to encourage and inspire a love of lifelong learning in her students, no matter the subject, by connecting with their interests and talents outside of the classroom. In addition to teaching at Kent School, Bonnie directs the 8th Grade Musical, assists in directing Chorus and has coached the Kent School girl’s lacrosse team. Outside of school, she has been a volunteer coach for Sho’men Swimming at Washington College. Bonnie enjoys spending time with her husband Matt, their two children, Claire (12), Matthew (10) and their black lab, Charlotte! She would like to say a special thank you to her family and friends for their enthusiastic and unwavering support as well as Tyler and Erika for their guidance, patience and making all dance rehearsals fun! 

 Vice President, Gillespie & Son, Inc. 

 A lifelong resident of Kent County, Todd lives in Worton, Maryland with his wife and three children.  He enjoys skiing, boating and fishing. Todd attended Kent School, graduating in 1985 and later attended High Point University.  He returned home to join the 4th generation of Gillespie and Son, Inc., where is currently President. Todd currently serves on the Board of Kent School.

Executive Director, Shore Rivers

As Executive Director, Isabel leads ShoreRivers’ work to protect Maryland's Eastern Shore waterways through science-based advocacy, restoration, education, and engagement. She has been with ShoreRivers since 2011, serving as the Policy Specialist, Chester Riverkeeper, and Deputy Director before becoming Executive Director in 2021. Isabel received a Master of Environmental Management from Duke University, where she concentrated in coastal environmental management, and a B.S. from Bucknell University with a major in animal behavior.

Isabel is a member of the Board of Directors for Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology and for the Gunston School in Centreville. She lives in Centreville with her husband and three young boys, where dancing is a frequent, although not very coordinated, evening activity.

Agent, Fleetwood Insurance Group

Brett was born and raised on his family’s farm in Galena MD. He spent his years in high school working on the farm, playing basketball, hunting and occasionally dabbling with schoolwork. 

After high school, Brett went south for school to Virginia Wesleyan College, in VA Beach. After being there for 2 years, he was graciously asked not to return. After countless confrontations with the Dean for launching water balloons off rooftops, booby-trapping fellow dorm rooms, pranking classrooms and playing loud music past midnight, he would not return. 

Long story short, he received a bachelor’s degree from  Goldey-Beacom College in DE. After spending countless hours in classrooms and countless dollars on an education, he did not get a real job. He spent 5 years in NYC and another 11 years in Los Angeles working in TV and Film. 

During COVID, Brett moved back to Kent County with his wife, where they settled down and started a family. Brett works as an Agent at Fleetwood Insurance Group as well as co-owning a side business with a good friend, renting luxury restroom trailers.  

Director of DEI/ Performing Arts Department Chair 

Dr. Ryan Asprion, a native of Louisiana, moved to the eastern shore in 2021 to join the Gunston community after successful tenures at two strong independent schools in New Orleans: first as the Band Director at St. Martin’s Episcopal School and then as Music Director at the Stuart Hall School for Boys. He earned his B.M. in Music Education from the University of Mississippi (2002), M.M. in Music Performance from Loyola University of New Orleans (2013) and a Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from Xavier University of Louisiana (2021), summa cum laude. His dissertation study focused on the importance for representation of LGBTQ students and educators within school communities. 

Ryan now serves on the Gunston faculty as the Director of Community & Belonging and Performing Arts Department Chair. He is proud to put this work to practice by supporting and volunteering with the local Delmarva Pride Center and mentoring students to lead awareness programs at Gunston and regional conferences. 

Aside from his administrative duties, Ryan enjoys directing the Gunston Chorale and annual Gunston Players stage production. During his downtime, Ryan loves cooking, hosting friends and converting northern crab steamers to cajun crab boilers! However, his busiest duties are serving as dog dad to his two favorite Samoyed pups, Jude and Mieko .

Rachel Hopkins, a native of Kent and Queen Anne's Counties, graduated from Queen Anne's County High School in 2002. She attended Virginia Tech for her undergraduate degree and received a Master’s in Early Childhood Education from Towson University. In 2007, Rachel accepted a position with Kent County Public Schools. During her tenure as a classroom teacher, she taught kindergarten, first grade, and second grade. In 2015, she was a candidate for Kent County Public Schools Teacher of the Year. Rachel has worked as a Title I Interventionist for the past four years. Title I is a federally funded program that aims to remove barriers preventing students from accessing equitable education. Rachel also volunteers as a tutor for Open Doors Partners in Education. Last year, Rachel began work with the Maryland Initiative for Literacy & Equity (MILE) to address systematic literacy challenges. She has dedicated her career to supporting students and families facing educational inequality and increasing the literacy rates of struggling readers. It is her honor to raise funds and awareness for Horizons, an organization whose work and mission so closely aligns with her life’s work. She has witnessed how Horizons has closed the opportunity gap for many of her students and local children. Horizons provides life-changing opportunities; the program keeps children on track academically, offers enrichment activities, and includes life-saving swimming instruction.

Rachel’s greatest joy comes from raising her children, Eli (10) and Luke (8), alongside her husband, Brad. She also enjoys spending time with friends, being outdoors, gardening, and reading.

Fit with Aundra, Group Fitness & CPT
An avid fitness enthusiast, Aundra has been leading group fitness classes since 2009.
She has pursued multiple group fitness and yoga certifications. She loves the confidence, community, and empowerment that comes with group fitness. She also works
for Maryland Business Roundtable for Education, where she manages a college and career access grant in Kent County Middle and High Schools, helping students in grades 8-12 learn
about their future opportunities. When not teaching a class, Aundra enjoys hiking national parks with her husband.  

Casa Carmen, Manager of Operations
Tyler has been the manager of Casa Carmen wines for 4 years where he has enjoyed getting to know the people of Chestertown. Tyler has an extensive knowledge of wines and the wine-making process. He is an accredited  National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) trainer  and is known to blast music to get his clients'  heart rates up at Orange Theory in Middletown. You will find Tyler on the soccer field, on the dance floor at a salsa club or in the more intimate setting of Casa Carmen--always finding places to have fun and connect with others through movement. 

is a former competitive ballroom dancer who has been instructing since 2012. Seven years ago she started her own dance outreach company called Beyond the Ballroom, which specializes in adaptive dance. She is a certified instructor of wheelchair ballroom dance and dance fitness, pioneered a special abilities category with USA Dance, and coaches an award winning Special Olympics dance team. She’s also experienced in designing dance and fitness programs for seniors, and recently presented at the LifeSpan Elder Care Conference.  

began taking dance lessons with his big sister, Jennifer Tosten, at Elaine’s School of Dance while still a toddler growing up in Chestertown. He has continued learning from Jennifer and today helps her students during their recitals for Jennifer’s School of Dance. John has been a nurse caring for our community over the last twenty years and is the manager of ambulatory informatics for the University of Maryland Medical System. Always smiling, John may very well have the most distinctive laugh on the Eastern Shore. 

JENNIFER TOSTEN is the owner and instructor of Jennifer’s School of Dance in Chestertown. She has taught ballet, jazz, tap, and pointe to students ranging in age from 3 years

old to adults for the past 23 years. Jennifer and her dancers have performed at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom and Epcot, on Broadway, and for many wonderful local events over the years. Jennifer has had the pleasure of performing with celebrity Dancing With the Stars pros Emma Slater and Sasha Farber. Jennifer and her dancers are also getting ready for their annual Holiday show coming up in December to help raise toys for the Kent County Christmas Basket Committee. This annual show has become a local holiday tradition and is very special to Jennifer’s heart! When not dancing Jennifer loves spending time with her husband, Corey and children, Andrew and Emily. She is honored to be a part of the Horizons Dance with the Stars family and hopes everyone has a wonderful evening celebrating a great cause through the power of Dance! 

 Diego Guzman is a recent graduate from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore with a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science. He recently joined the rehabilitation department of Shore Regional Health as a rehab technician in January, 2016. Diego hopes to become a physical therapist one day.

In his free time, Diego teaches salsa dancing and volunteers for local charities, such as Dancing for the Future and Dancing for the Dogs. He is currently a member of semi-professional dance team, Dynamix, 2016 World Amateur Salsa Summit Champions. Diego has been living in Easton, MD since 2004 where he resides with his baby girl Angelica.

 A native to the Kent & Queen Anne’s County area, Minnie found her love for line dancing at the age of 12, when once a week with her Father, she would attend lessons at the VFW
in Fairlee. Minnie started teaching line dance lessons in 2015 and after an 8 year hiatus she is back teaching again! Minnie currently teaches weekly line dance lessons at the Queen Annes Co YMCA as well as the Kent Co Family YMCA hosted by Dancing On The Shore. You can also find her teaching monthly at the Jetty Dock Bar in Kent Island and the American Legion in Centreville. Most recently Minnie and her line dancers could have been seen performing in the Chestertown Tea Party Parade, where they placed 1st place in their division. She is beyond grateful for this opportunity and excited to be back on the dance floor to be a part of this local fundraiser. 

 Jennifer Cox has been a dedicated line dance instructor across Maryland and Delaware for the past 25 years. Her love for diverse music and dance rhythms led her to become a certified Zumba instructor in 2009. Her passion for promoting health and fitness inspired her to obtain certification in 2019 to teach "Staying Active and Independent for Life," a senior exercise class she now teaches at the local senior center. In addition to her teaching, Jennifer is the Senior Care Case Manager at Upper Shore Aging, Inc., balancing a full-time job with her evening dance classes. A Kent County native, Jennifer is also a proud mother of two daughters and a grandmother. She is thrilled to be participating in this year's Horizons Dancing With the Stars fundraiser!