Lynne Belsky

Co-Founder & Board Member

Since she was young, Lynne wanted to be a doctor like her father, Abraham Chervony, MD. Dr. Chervony took his time with each patient to make sure they felt like they had a friend and an advocate to guide them through their illnesses. Lynne carried these values into her practice as both a Physical Therapist, and now an Internal Medicine practitioner. 

In high school Lynne moved to New York City, where she became a professional dancer with the Joffrey Ballet. She spent 8 exhilarating years learning from master teachers and choreographers and performing in New York and around the country. Through this experience, Dr. Belsky knows firsthand what it is like to be at the top of one’s physical game. When she returned to the North Shore, she attended Northwestern University earning a BS in Physical Therapy. She utilized her dance knowledge to work in PT as an outpatient orthopedics therapist. After having her own 2 children, she spent 2 years working with children with cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy and other impairments to normal movement. She utilized music and dance with these young people in their treatment plan. This kept the sessions happy and encouraging. At 34 she attended Rush Medical College to become a Physician. She has practiced in Highland Park for the last 16 years.

All of her experiences have fostered her concept that what we do in art and exercise can positively impact the quality of ones life and health. She knows, however, that optimal health looks different for each of us, and creates her dance classes accordingly. She loves sharing all of her knowledge and experiences with her dance students at Time to Dance.

Lisa Gold

Co-Founder & Board Member

Lisa Gold has been the Director of North Shore School of Dance since 1989. She spent a majority of her life learning from outstanding teachers who believed in and inspired her.  After graduating with a B.A. in Dance from Barat College, she was hired to teach ballet and modern at the Barat Conservatory of Dance, where she taught for sixteen years.  Lisa recently studied with the Royal Academy of Dance in England, in their Continuing Professional Development program where she earned a Professional Award in Adult Dance Practice. 

Lisa's life goals were influenced by her dance mentors, but also by physical limitations and illness in her immediate family.   She learned how important activity was for both physical and mental health. After dealing with her own illness, Lisa personally felt these challenges. This lead her to want to create a class where cancer survivors could feel 'safe' and discover how dance offers freedom from life's difficulties.

“I’ve always called dance the fountain of youth. It helps people stay young. When they start to dance, people find inside themselves that they’re really not the old person they think they are. The longer they dance, the younger they feel.” —Lisa Gold

Penny Brichta

President

Penny has been involved in dance for many years and is known for leadership in Israeli dance where she teaches weekly sessions in Evanston and periodic camps and workshops around the US.  Since retirement from a career in Corporate Human Resources, Penny turned her part time fitness passion into a second career.  She obtained professional certifications in ACE, Silver Sneakers, and Barre Connect to augment her 12 years as a Jazzercise instructor.  She teaches 6 fitness classes each week, including the Fitness Dance class for TTD.  She is passionate about working with seniors to improve their vitality for an active life. Penny holds a BS and MS from University of Illinois and can apply many of her corporate skills in helping TTD continue to grow and thrive.  

Patricia Tinsley

Secretary

Patricia took her first modern dance class at age 10 and her first ballet class at age 13 and has danced on and off ever since. After several off-years, she found Lynne’s class through a Google search for adult ballet classes. After her first class, she knew she’d found her dance home. She greatly enjoys studying ballet and modern with Lynne and Lisa, and looks forward to studying tap with Lorraine once the world gets back to normal. Patricia holds a BFA in performing arts from Rockford University (dance/theatre double major) and an MA in speech from Northeastern Illinois University and is retired from a corporate communications career. A prolific actress and director, she has a long list of Chicago-area theatre, film and commercial credits, including the happiest acting job in the world: playing Mrs. Santa Claus at Navy Pier! She loves being a member of the TTD dance community and is excited for the opportunity to bring her perspective as a performing artist to her work with the board.

Julia Belsky

Treasurer

After many years of taking dance classes with her mom, Lynne, and from her cousin, Lisa, Julia enthusiastically supported them as they started Time to Dance in 2016. She took ballet classes via Zoom throughout the pandemic and got to know this incredible community. Now, as a board member, Julia is excited to use her extensive non-profit finance and management experience to help Time to Dance continue to grow and become a sustainable, flourishing organization.

Debbie Ehrlich

Debbie traces her dance roots to the Carol Walker Dance Studio where she took modern from Carol. She also studied with Bobbi Neiman-Begley, and Lorraine Chase. She earned both her BA and MA in dance from the University of Iowa. Fluent in French and Dutch, Debbie lived with family members and taught dance in The Netherlands, where she opened her own studio and taught Modern, Ballet, Jazz, and classes for those with disabilities. Upon her return to the US, Debbie put her dance career on hold while studying to become a pediatrician, finding that her niche lay within the Special Needs population.

During a chance meeting with old friends Lisa Gold and Lynne Chervony-Belsky, Debbie learned about their plans to form TTD and teach adult classes. Debbie immediately became part of the TTD family. She says taking TTD classes feels like coming home. She says it’s a friendly, safe environment where one can nurture their soul while improving their memory and health.

Leslie Korengold

Leslie’s home away from home was the Carol Walker Dance studio. She studied modern with Carol Walker, tap with her mother Lorraine Chase, and jazz with Randy Duncan. At Indiana University she enjoyed touring with The African American Dance Company before receiving a BA in English, Creative Writing from Lake Forest College. She became a copywriter for the Sears Catalog, and worked for several advertising agencies before beginning a career as a freelance writer. After giving up dance for many years, Leslie loves being able to take classes through TTD with old and new friends, and is honored to serve on the TTD board of directors. 

Harriette Leibovitz

Harriette began dancing at the age of nine, during her first summer at Jewish Overnight camp. She was very active in Israeli Folk Dance, including performing and community dancing, through her teen-age years. After an interruption of about 20 years, she found Israeli Folk Dance again, and has been active in the community ever since. She also participates regularly in the TTD Dance Fitness classes.

Harriette spent more than 40 years in Corporate Risk Management and Insurance. As part of her various positions, she has managed large portfolios of loss reserves, performing financial analysis and loss development projections. As a member of her professional association’s local Board of Directors, she assumed the role of Treasurer and made a number of changes to streamline and standardize procedures. 

Harriette embraces the mission of TTD in promoting health and vitality to seniors through dance.

Caryn Newburger

Born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, Caryn Newburger returned to her roots after having lived in Austin, Texas, for over forty years. A retired English professor, Caryn was settling in to her new surrounds, but something was missing. A lifelong student of dance, Caryn was looking for an adult ballet class in the area, and what she found was so much more. Caryn says she feels as if she won the lottery. At Time to Dance, not only has she found excellent ballet classes geared to the physical limitations of aging dance students and the opportunity to expand her dancing to include modern and tap, but as a bonus, she has found a community of warm, friendly people. Caryn was so impressed with Time to Dance’s quality programming and mission that she immediately offered her services to the organization as a writer, and that ultimately led to an opportunity to join the board. In addition to her work on the Time to Dance board, Caryn also serves as secretary on the board of Performa/Dance, a contemporary ballet, performance-based company in Austin, Texas. Caryn is excited to be able to utilize her skills and experience to help Time to Dance continue to thrive.

Carol Walker

With the help of Carol Eisenschiml, the American Legion in Highwood, and an imaginative realtor, Carol Walker found an empty church at 107 Highwood Ave and thereby founded her studio. In 1971 she signed a lease and created the Carol Walker Dance Studio Ltd. Both founders of Time to Dance and other Time to Dance board members and students took classes there. Lorraine Chase, Bobbi Neiman, Barbara Ruhman, and Walker were the first teaching faculty.

From 1984 to 2006, Walker was Dean of Dance and Dean of the School of the Arts at Purchase College in NY. She has been Dean Emerita, Purchase College, School of the Arts since 2006. In 2012, Walker retired from Purchase to found and direct the Carol K. Walker Global Dance LLC to carry on with international dance schools’ and organizations’ programs. In 2017 Hunter College in NYC invited Walker to be Chair of Dance for 2 years—though she stayed in the role for 3-and-a-half years.

Throughout, Walker stayed in touch with the teachers and students from her original studio, which has since changed names to become The North School of Dance. It is celebrating over 50 consistent years of dance teaching and performing, currently under the expert leadership of Lisa Gold. Walker now takes Ballet with Lynne and Modern with Lisa on Zoom from her home in Texas. Walker is able to continue her career in dance and education by serving on the Board of Directors of Time to Dance. She finds it rewarding, fun, and a brilliant cause.

Lorraine Chase

President Emeritus

Lorraine Chase, inspired by Shirley Temple and supported by her mother, found her love of tap dancing and performing at a very young age. Later in life she moved to Highland Park and met Carol Walker, who gave her the opportunity to teach classes at her newly opened dance studio. This began Lorraine’s 25-year experience with the North Shore School of Dance, which she is delighted to continue through her involvement with TTD. She looks forward to bringing dance therapy into the lives of seniors and offering the physical and spiritual opportunity that is brings. "Movement to music is truly food for healing!"