DOUG LOYER Special to the Times Dr. Kelli Cawley and Brian Anderson entertain with their Afro-Jazz performance on the People’s Bank Theatre stage.

And the winner is ˘ The Strecker Cancer Center.

The Second Annual ‘Dancing with the Docs’ event was held Saturday evening before a sold out crowd of 900 at the People’s Bank Theatre in Marietta. The successful event raised $62,105.00 for the Strecker Cancer Center.

‘Dancing with the Docs’ was a fun and unusual event that featured eight local doctors and their dance partners venturing out of their comfort zones to compete in a dance contest to raise money for a great cause. The event was presented by McDonald’s of Marietta, LLC and had genres ranging from hip hop and disco to rock.

“We have all the cancer center doctors involved,” said Laurie Strahler, owner of McDonalds in Marietta.”This year all of the money goes to the Strecker Cancer Center. We’re very excited!”

“We want to thank the community and our wonderful doctors and incredible instructors,” expressed Strahler. “We also thank all of our sponsors and volunteers. We couldn’t have done it without them.”

“I’m honored to be asked to be Master of Ceremonies for the second year,” said Johnny Wharff of WMOA, who served as Master of Ceremonies. “The idea that half of these people have never danced before makes it interesting.”

Wharff, who kept the audience laughing throughout the evening said the cause touches so many different people. He explained that what we’re trying to do is help people who can’t afford everything.”

The coveted trophy for the event was the ‘Mirrorball Award’ which is presented to the best dancers of the evening. That was decided by a panel of three judges.

This year’s ‘Mirrorball’ was won by Dr. Joseph Zacharias and his dance partner Natalie Mayan.

“Awesome! It feels great to win it, very surprising,” acknowledged Dr. Zacharias. “It’s beyond belief!”

“It’s a shock to win this! There was so much great competition,” added Mayan. “This is an amazing feeling!”

Winning the ‘Fan Favorite Trophy’ for raising the most money was the dance combo of Dr. Devaki Siva and Chris Hall. They raised $14,150 for the event.

The judges for the event were Marietta College President Dr. Bill Ruud, former Ohio Lt. Governor and Marietta Mayor Nancy Hollister and Gel Tracewell of Gel’s Dance Centres.

“This is my second year. I have so much fun just watching the reaction of the audience,” said Hollister. “Laurie Strahler is unbelievable! Doing this two years in a row is phenomenal!

“This is amazing! It’s a night out for everyone,” expressed Tracewell. “It’s enjoyable seeing all the efforts of the doctors and all the practice they put in.”

Ruud said he thought it was a fantastic event for the community and the cancer center, plus it’s a lot of fun.

“It’s exciting to make a difference in the community by bringing the doctors together,” said Brian Anderson, McDonalds of Marietta Office Business Manager. “We’ll see them in such a different light than you would in their office. It’s really fun.”

“This is so far out of my comfort zone, but I’ll do anything for a great cause,” offered Dr. Vik Abhyankar. “The community coming together to raise money for the cancer center is incredible.”

“I’m excited because I get to dance again,” stated LeeAnn Johnson, who partnered with Dr. Abhyankar. “I danced for over twenty years so this is fun for me and for such a great cause.”

LeeAnn Johnson is the wife of U.S. Congressman Bill Johnson who was at the event with their son Nathan, 13. He mentioned that he loves seeing a community come out for an event like this for a good cause.

Nathan Johnson said it was definitely going to be different seeing his mother dance, but was looking forward to it.

“This is nerve-racking. I’ve never done this in my life,” admitted Dr. Shinoj Pattali. “We’ve practiced a lot, but I don’t think anything prepares you for being on a stage with a thousand people watching.”

“I’m excited, this my first year doing this,” said Pattali’s dance partner Cassie Swick of Fleming. “We’ve been practicing since February.”

Ron Henderson works at Marietta Memorial Hospital with several of the doctors that were dancing. He was looking forward to seeing them perform.

“It will be fun to get to see the docs dance,” admitted Henderson, “It looks like they are going to have great crowd.”

Swanna Ruble who attended with Henderson commented that she was excited. She wished her Mom and Dad were there because they like dancing with the stars.

“I’m excited. I’ve never seen this event before,” said Lori Gardner of Graysville. “My daughter was here last year and really enjoyed it. It’s for a very good cause.”

Dancing with the Docs Participants:

¯ Vivek Abhyankar M.D. & LeeAnn Johnson

¯ Kelli Cawley M.D. & Brian Anderson

¯ John Frye D.D.S. & Lyndsay Biehl

¯ Todd Myers M.D. & Amanda Mercer

¯ Shinoj Pattali M.D. & Cassie Swick

¯ Devaki Siva M.D. & Chris Hall

¯ Srini Vasan M.D. & Sue Montera

¯ Joseph Zacharias M.D. & Natalie Mayan