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Jeanne Patterson Mrs. Jeanne Fougerousse-Patterson spent her childhood in the heart of the Midwest on the banks of the Wabash in the sleepy college town of Terre Haute, Indiana. She attended private Christian schools from kindergarten through high school. At age four, she started asking her parents for dance lessons. Jeanne's talent for dance became evident at an early age. She became a protégé of Ernestine Myers-Morrissey, a recognized New York Broadway ballet dancer, who started a dance school in Terre Haute. By high school, Jeanne was an accomplished dancer appearing on local and regional TV. She was a member of a select group to study dance under the internationally renowned Robert Lunnon in Chicago and she became a member of the Allegro American Dance Company. When two positions became available at the Jordan School of Dance at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana, Jeanne auditioned along with 200 other dancers and was one of the two accepted. Jeanne's dance career ended in her sophomore year with an injury. She decided to follow in her father's footsteps and switched majors to education. After graduation, Jeanne married her husband of 37 years, and began teaching elementary education in Indianapolis, Indiana in the same private Christian school program that was such an important part of her life. Jeanne and her husband started a family. Health issues motivated the Patterson's to relocate to the warmer climate in Phoenix. Jeanne continued to teach elementary education in private Christian schools in Phoenix. With the birth of her son, she left teaching to become a full-time mother to her two children. During this time the Patterson's were one of the founding families of New Joy Ministries in Youngtown, AZ. Jeanne became a popular Sunday school teacher with the younger children. Mrs. Patterson grew closer to the Lord as she undertook the highly disciplined five year Women's Bible Study Fellowship program. Also at this time, Mrs. Patterson seized the opportunity to merge two great passions in her life…dance and praise and worship. Jeanne founded and was captain of the Daughters of Praise dance team that developed under the cover of New Joy Ministries. Jeanne utilized her formal dance background and based the dance on Biblical principles and her knowledge of Davidic dance. The team became an integral part of weekly praise and worship at New Joy and gave presentations at other churches throughout the Southwest. As Jeanne's role of a full-time mother ended, she went back to teaching once again preferring to teach in private Christian schools. This time she taught kindergarten at Northwest Christian Academy. Later Mrs. Patterson and three other longtime elementary Christian school teachers helped found New Joy Charter School in Youngtown. AZ. With the birth of her granddaughter, Mrs. Patterson left teaching once again and assumed the role of full-time grandmother. She resumed teaching in the Christian school environment as soon as her granddaughter was old enough to enter preschool. Mrs. Patterson currently teaches 1st Grade at Joy Christian School. She and her family attend Community Church of Joy. She enjoys photography and vacations with her children and granddaughter who all live in Phoenix. |