Erika was a competitive gymnast for 6 years. She started out at a gym based at the Kiwanis Club of Kendall, which then became a Boys and Girls Club of Miami. The artistic gymnastics gym broke off from the Boys and Girls Club organization, formed its own non-profit corporation and became Miami Artistic Gymnastics on Bird Road.
She first started as an “Elite Tot” with Coach Norlan Perez, now co-owner of Florida Gymnastics Training Center in Miami, FL. She then competed Levels 5 & 6 with Coach Scot Perry, now owner of The Flip Factory in Pensacola, FL. By the time she competed in Optional Levels 7 & 8, she was half of a team of 2 gymnasts in her level in her gym – one of the downsides of being part of a small team. Before leaving the competitive world of gymnastics for the flashy world of theater, she represented the state of Florida with her floor routine at the Regional Competition in Mississippi. After hearing that the sports caster announcing her competition had publicly dubbed her “more of a dancer than a gymnast,” she decided her run with all-around gymnastics was over and turned her focus to theater at her magnet arts middle school. As you can see from some of these early pictures, this may not have been an unexpected move.
Erika Diane 