Have you ever wanted to learn gymnastics? Teresa Middents opened her first gym on Oct. 2011. Salute Gymnastics is now located downtown on 314 Walnut street. Middents has six employees, five high school students and one adult. The gym is open after school till 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday. She offers at least two open gyms each month. Children age two and up are able to attend Salute’s. Middents helps students one on one.

Salute Gymnastics has a very successful competition team. Middents places her trophies along the wall of her gym. She mostly has middle school students on this team. They compete on the weekends all year round.

The competitive team had a home meet on April 2 and 3, held at the Salute gym with  200 kids attending. Jene Zarbano placed 2 on vault, 3 on high bar, 4 on pommel horse, and 4 on floor. Middents said they had a great outcome, with her level 3 and 4 teams placing first. The level 2 team placed second. On April 15, 16, and 17, 13 Salute students attended the Xcel Regionals (USA gymnastics) in St. Paul Minnesota.

Middents is most excited for the State competition on April 30 and May 1. The meet will be held at Salute’s gym, with 124 competing. The Salute studio will have 33 girls and 10 boys in this competition. Middents said “being a gymnast means you have the strength to hold on and the courage to let go.”

Middents realized that Atlantic didn’t have anything like gymnastics. She wanted to give the kids an opportunity to try something new. Middents brought some of her equipment from her old gym to her new gym. New spring floors were purchased and a balance beam from Canada. Middents said “Having more space will let the kids increase their level in gymnastics.”