Issue date: 2/7/08 Section: LIFE

Media Credit: Stan Ascher See them dance for yourself!

By Betsy Stelzer
Staff Writer
NT's step team Steppers for Christ is using hip-hop and motion to bring its message to the masses.
"We are just trying to get people's attention," Steppers for Christ president Dimanche Brewer said. "Stepping is not something you see every day, so I definitely think it's a good way to minister."
Brewer said the group's focus is to share faith, and it ministers by talking during and in-between steps.
"As college kids, we all struggle with who we are and finding our religion," she said. "We just want to let people know, 'You don't have to be perfect. Come to Christ with your imperfections.'"
The group was formed in 1995, branching from NT gospel choir Voices of Praise, Brewer said. Former NT students Robert Wagner, Deke Jones and Kevin Cooper started the group as a way to be a part of Homecoming's Yell Like Hell.
"Everyone involved really liked it and wanted to keep it going," she said.
Steppers for Christ became an official NT organization in 1998 and still participates in Yell Like Hell each year, though the competition is no longer what drives the group.
This semester, Steppers for Christ has nine members, including males, which Brewer said is not typical for their group.
"Right now we have three guys, and I'm confidant that they can add a lot to the group," she said.
Houston freshman Robert Gibson joined the group in August after coming to NT. He stepped in high school and wanted to continue, so when he met Steppers for Christ at a Greek recruitment rally, he decided to join.
The group's step master, Shiloh sophomore Phylicia Bess, is in charge of teaching and creating the steps and making sure everybody knows the individual parts.
"We have about eight steps, and we are trying to retire the old ones and clean up the new ones," she said. "We try to keep it fresh every semester."
The members step to Christian hip-hop artists like Lecrae, Tedashii and Flame. The steps range from 15 seconds to one minute long.
The group competed in a step competition held by one of its founding fathers, Robert Wagner, in November 2007.
The team tied in the final round and had to step off against Texas Christian University. The NT team came out on top, taking home its first trophy.
Brewer said she is planning to hold a Christian talent showcase on April 17 that will feature any artists in the Denton area who want to come out and share their talent.
Though Voices of Praise and Steppers For Christ have not collaborated in the past few years, Brewer said she wants the choir to come to the showcase.




"I'd like for us to start working together again," she said. "I want to get back to Christian unity."
The award-winning step team will perform at the Alliance of Black School Educators' "Tribute to Black History" program on Feb. 18 in the Lyceum as well as a collegiate Praise Extravaganza in Lewisville sponsored by Macedonia Ministries on Feb 23.

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