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The Cedar Way Elementary Circus Arts and Tumbling Squad showcased their skills on June 23 at their end-of-year performance, paying tribute to those they had lost.
Cedar Way Elementary School’s multipurpose room was packed with friends and family of the Mountlake Terrace school’s circus and tumbling squad, also known as CCATS. Mixed with joy was sadness. The CCATS team gathered to show their respect for Cedar Way’s school librarian Todd McKnight, 53, and student Jayda Woods-Johnson, 13. Both died in 2024.
For an hour, the children rotated through the performance floor, demonstrating skills such as jump roping — some on pogo sticks – along with ball and stick juggling, backflips, somersaults from springboards, walking on large balance balls, and riding unicycles.
The children’s skill was not only in their acrobatic feats, but also in their ability to move quickly in an organized manner. Every transition between performers was comparable to seasoned veterans, especially when the lights went out.
As the audience’s eyes adjusted to the darkness, the students took their places and – perfectly in time with the music – the room exploded in colorful motion, triggering an audible reaction of wonder from the crowd.
While the lights were off, a slideshow of Woods-Johnson and McKnight celebrating their lives and the impact they had on their community played. On one slide was a fitting quote from E.B. White’s 1952 book Charlotte’s Web. “You have been my friend. That in itself is a tremendous thing.”
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