Claire Steeno

Hawaii Tour

February 2020

Claire Steeno is a Colorado born-and-raised dancer and social worker. She went to Hawaii with the band in February of 2020 and came home just in time for the landscape of live events and gatherings to change due to Covid-19. Originally, her ode was going to include hosting a gathering of wayfaring friends and the broader community to dance together in person, led by Claire. She was then going to capture the dancing in a video and share it with the community, family, and friends. She would share what it means to be connected to friends and community and that it can be done in any way - dance or beyond! 

Since the impact of Covid-19 doesn't allow for gatherings, she shifted and hosted a gathering on Zoom, to connect with her friends from the trip and to share in some movement together. In her video ode to The Wayfaring Band, Grow As We Go, you can see footage from the tour to Hawaii, from the Zoom dance gathering, and shots of the larger community sharing in Claire’s movement. 

The movement was inspired by the cultural relevance of the dance and movement that was seen in Hawaii, and the meaning of the words in the song and how they relate to growing better together rather than siloed. She shared this choreography and some of what she learned on the tour in conversations with her larger community. She learned that expanding your typical group of friends to individuals who might have different experiences from you is a great way to learn and grow as a human, a friend, and a member of a productive and better society.