For Immediate Release
Scott Becher
scott@bechergroup.com
(608)513-0213

April 13, 2012
Fundraising Event to Benefit UW Health Burn Center
Celebrity fitness guru Billy Blanks, the creator of the Tae Bo® Fitness will be the headliner for this year’s Reborn Through Fire fitness event, which benefits the UW Health Burn Center on May 4 & 5 in Middleton and Verona. The event is being coordinated locally by Verona burn survivor Maria Flores and Mathiam Mbow, owner and head instructor of Kicks Unlimited in Middleton. Maria sustained second and third degree burns over 21% over her body in a 2009 household cooking accident that left her permanently disfigured.
Flores’ own medical care cost exceeded $100,000, not including her lost wages and resulted in over six weeks of time in the hospital. She described her experience as very personal, “After several weeks in the UW Burn Center I took up Tae-Bo in an attempt to find myself again. I worked with Master Billy Blanks for several years and today I can honestly say that Tae-Bo saved my life. Billy gave me all the support and encouragement to be a better person physically and mentally.”
Billy Blanks is the creator of Tae Bo® Fitness, the revolutionary total body fitness system that has helped millions of people around the world get in shape.”I am excited to come back to Wisconsin and looking forward to teaching Tae Bo classes in support of the burn center, ” Billy Blanks said. From first being discovered by singer-dancer Paula Abdul to more recent celebrities such as Charlotte Ross of “NYPD Blue”, Melissa Reeves of “Days of our Lives”, actress Alicia Coppola, actor and country music star Scott Reeves, Stephanie La Grossa of “Survivor”, Kendra Todd of “The Apprentice”, Trista and Ryan Sutter from “The Bachelorette”, and former Philadelphia Eagles star Randall Cunningham, they have all found the true benefits of Tae Bo® Fitness and BootCampTM. Actor Lou Diamond Phillips says that he gets cut more quickly in Billy’s classes: “I have not seen faster results than through Tae Bo® Fitness or Boot CampTM.”
Countless other celebrities are also believers, including Pamela Anderson, Justine Bateman, Catherine Bell, Valerie Bertinelli, Neve Campbell, Rae Dawn Chong, Rebecca De Mornay, Viveca Fox, Goldie Hawn, Queen Latifah, Emmanuel Lewis, Ryan O’Neal, Lisa Rinna, Lela Rochon, Jack Scalia, Connie Selleca, Brooke Shields, Sinbad and Shannon Tweed. Athletes seeking to stay in top physical shape have also flocked to the studio, including Wayne Gretzky, Bruce Jenner, Magic Johnson and Shaquille O’Neal. Blanks has also acted in over 18 movies including Kiss the Girls, The Last Boy Scout, Bloodfist, Lionheart, Talons of the Eagle, Back in Action,Stand Alone, Balance of Power and The King of the Kickboxers and has appeared numerous episodic television series including “Sabrina, the Teenage Witch,” “The Parkers,” “Suddenly Susan,” “ER,” “Melrose Place,” “Martial Law,” “Street Justice” and “Spenser: For Hire.”
Kicks Unlimited Middleton and event organizers hope to raise $10,000 for the UW Health Burn Center from this event and a related raffle. Mathiam Mbow, Owner/Head Instructor, Kicks Unlimited Middleton said-“The opportunity to work with Billy Blanks, a true world class fitness instructor shouldn’t be missed, it’s the only time he is going to be in Wisconsin this year. By taking one or two hours of his unique instructional time, your own personal fitness regimen is going to be stronger, faster and better for your overall training, guaranteed.”
May 4- Kicks Unlimited Middleton-2831 Parmenter Street, Middleton- both performances already sold out
Registration starts at 5:15 pm, first one hour class begins at 5:30 pm and a second class begins at 7 pm. An autograph and photo session with Billy Blanks will immediately follow each class.
May 5-Verona Middle School- 740 North Main Street, Verona
Registration starts at 8:15 am, first one hour class begins at 9 am and a second class begins at 11 am. An autograph and photo session with Billy Blanks will immediately follow each class.
Advance tickets are $20 and maybe purchased by phone at 608-836-5660 or online at the Kicks Unlimited Middleton website: www.kicks4middleton.com
Tickets at the door are $25.
A uniquely designed official event t-shirts is also available in a variety of sizes for both men and women for $15.
Billy Blanks will also be available for media interviews before the event
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