Television star, influencer, and dancer, Whitney Way Thore is set to visit Kentucky Wesleyan College Oct. 24 for a series of on-campus events and an evening speech.
Thore is the star of her own television show, titled, My Big Fat Fabulous Life, and is the founder of the “No Body Shame Campaign,” that encourages individuals to embrace all beauties of life.
Recently, she launched a new dance app for electronic devices that allows people from all over the world to learn new dances every day. The app will be on full display at 2:30 p.m. when she teaches several of the dances to students at Kentucky Wesleyan.
Thore has been a dancer for the majority of her life, but it wasn’t until she was diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), an illness that caused her to gain weight, that she discovered her newest passion. That passion would be encouraging individuals of all shapes and sizes to discover the value of dancing and to be the person they wish to be.
Shortly after her diagnosis, Thore fell into depression, largely because of the large amounts of body shaming she encountered. That, paired with her own self-doubt, left her to believe that she couldn’t begin dancing again until she was able to lose weight.
After years of that mindset, she decided it was time for a change. From that point on, she not only accepted her body, but she also embraced it and began dancing again. So motivated, she posted videos of her dancing on youTube that went viral in a short amount of time. This encouraged The Learning Channel (TLC) to reach out to her with a television offer.
Through her efforts on television and other endeavors, Thore continues to inspire individuals, while also discouraging others from the practice of body shaming.
Thore will conclude the evening with a speech and a meet and greet at 7 p.m for students, faculty and staff.
