Episode 15

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Published on:

11th Nov 2025

Dancing with Dallas Flashers: A Nonprofit Bringing Joy and Community Through Flash Mobs

In this episode of The NonProfit Nook, host Wendy Kidd interviews Niki and Bob Calabrese, the Executive Director and Tech Director of Dallas Flashers, respectively. The Dallas Flashers is a nonprofit organization that organizes flash mobs to bring joy and mental health benefits to its participants and audiences. Niki shares insights on the diverse group of individuals involved in the flash mobs and how the organization unexpectedly ventured into the mental health sector. Bob discusses his technical role in the organization. The podcast also delves into the success stories of participants, the importance of community involvement, and the various non-dancing roles that help support the flash mobs. The episode concludes with a call for more support and volunteers to help the Dallas Flashers continue their mission of spreading joy through dance.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dallas-flashers-2a0a41382/ 

https://www.instagram.com/dallas.flashers/ 

https://www.facebook.com/DallasFlashersFans 

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https://thenonprofitnook.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@BossLevelEngaged

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00:00 Introduction to the NonProfit Nook

01:40 Meet Nikki Calabrese: A Lifetime of Service

02:57 Introducing Bob Calabrese: The Musical Tech Director

04:37 The Birth of Dallas Flashers

06:07 Flash Mob 101: What and How

11:52 Leadership and Vision: The Dream Session

19:00 Who Should Join Dallas Flashers?

22:05 The Joy of Flash Mobs

22:28 Mental Health Benefits

25:39 Success Stories

29:16 Personal Growth and Challenges

31:00 Favorite Aspects of the Group

35:49 Support and Participation

38:18 How to Get Involved

40:40 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Mentioned in this episode:

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Transcript
Dallas Flashers:

it's really cool to see all of these different needs being met.

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I mean, we also have, like, we have

men and women who come out that are

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going through the transition from like

a rough divorce and they just need

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some peace and some fun in their life.

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And so they come out on the other

end with something fun to do

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and find, they find joy in that.

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Um, I've gotten a lot of.

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The board really has gotten

a lot of feedback from these

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people saying, I need this group.

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This group is incredible

for my mental health.

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I didn't, and we didn't know we

were getting into that journey.

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We thought we were just doing this silly

little dance group and then we were

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gonna like have some fun and like, you

know, surprise some people in the public.

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It was probably about a year

ago now that I go, we are in

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the mental health industry.

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Wendy: Welcome to The NonProfit

Nook, the podcast for nonprofit

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leaders, board members, and community

change makers who want to build

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stronger, smarter organizations.

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I'm your host, Wendy Kidd, a longtime

business owner and nonprofit leader,

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and I'm here to bring you real talk,

real tools and real stories to help

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you thrive in the nonprofit world.

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I'll be talking with

local nonprofit leaders.

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Community change makers and experts

in everything from board development

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to fundraising and digital tools,

sharing real stories and simple

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strategies you can actually use,

because running a nonprofit is hard,

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but you don't have to do it alone.

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Let's get started.

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Hi everyone.

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Welcome back to The NonProfit Nook.

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Today I am thrilled to welcome

Nikki Calabrese, the executive

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director of Dallas Flashers, and

someone who's been finding creative

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ways to serve and shine in her

community practically her whole life.

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Nikki's been volunteering for over 13

years, giving her time to organizations

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ranging from free health clinics

and the police department to her

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church and other community causes.

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But truth be told, her entrepreneurial

spirits started even earlier when

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she was just eight years old.

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She launched her first business an on

the go lunch company called On a Roll.

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she and her parents would

make and sell subs, chips, and

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sodas to local dealerships.

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That early spark of creativity

only grew over the years.

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She's built several ventures from

Baby Cakes, a couture cupcakery,

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to Souvenir, her family photography

business to an editing company, all

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while pursuing a career in education

as a certified teacher and education

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manager for Head Start in New York.

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Now as executive director of Dallas

Flashers, Nikki brings together that

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same blend of innovation, compassion,

and hands-on experience to lead with

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heart and inspire others to get involved.

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Welcome, Ms.

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Nikki.

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Dallas Flashers: Thank you.

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That was very

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Wendy: I try to be fancy for you

guys and, and I can't of course,

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miss your wonderful husband.

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Uh, we are joined by Bob

Calabrese, Nikki's husband,

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born in Buffalo, New York.

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Bob has been playing bass guitar since the

age of 12, as well as guitar and mandolin.

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Since then, he has recorded

six albums with his bands

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and two as a studio musician.

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He has won several music awards

and has played thousands of gigs.

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He has been in the automotive

industry for the last 20 years.

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For the last 10 years, he has been

with Ewing Automotive and Plano as

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their client relations director.

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He also serves as a music director

and mentor at his church and plays in

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a nineties cover band called 90mph.

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His latest venture with the Dallas

Flashers adds tech director to his

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resume, a role he has served in the

last two years since its inception.

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Welcome, Bob.

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Dallas Flashers: Thank you.

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Happy to be here.

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She's even got the CAE She does.

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I

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Wendy: You I'm gonna go fancy if you give

me the option, so I'm gonna absolutely

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Dallas Flashers: the regular.

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All the regular people say Calabrese,

but you took it to another level.

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It it helps when you do this.

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When you say it.

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Yeah.

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Wendy: the gesture.

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I didn't even think about that.

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You guys are so impressive.

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I didn't know you did half the

things you did until you gave me

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your bios, which I just love so much.

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Dallas Flashers: Yeah.

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Mm-hmm.

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Yeah.

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Wendy: I to have you guys on

because of course, Dallas Flashers.

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I love Dallas Flashers.

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Who doesn't love Dallas

Flashers once you hear about it.

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We had to tell people about this

joyful, joyful, compassion, um, filled

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that you have built and have just

exploded on the scene in McKinney.

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So I had to

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Dallas Flashers: Yeah,

it's been a good time.

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Thank you.

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Thanks for having us.

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Wendy: me how your organization got

started and when you got started.

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Dallas Flashers: So back in November

of:

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online about let's do a flash mob.

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'cause personally I've always, I

grew up in the nineties and early two

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thousands and there were all those

viral videos that were coming out.

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It was really a popular thing, but.

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I never saw one.

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Like in real life I only saw

the videos on like MySpace,

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you know?

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And so,

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yeah, it was like always

someone else doing it.

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And so I never saw one.

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I never got invited to be in one.

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And I was like, you know, I'm getting old.

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I would like to make this happen.

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Um, so we got a little group

together and we attempted a.

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A test run, if you will,

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back in November of 23.

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And it went well, it went great.

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It also went horribly.

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Um, for a funny reason actually.

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We went to the Stone Briar Mall in Frisco.

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We were, we gathered up about, you know,

10 or 15 people just to see could we

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like put this together and actually get

people to show up and like, make it work.

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And, uh, we went up to the food court.

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And we attempted to do what's

known as a freeze mob, which is a

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very simple form of a flash mob.

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Are you familiar with that?

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Should we describe what a, some

people don't know what a flash

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mob is at this day and age.

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A flash mob is, um, it's when a, a.

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A, a group of people get together and

they rehearse ahead of time and plan

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a day and time to show up at a certain

place, usually a public place, and

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then they break into song or dance

or both, um, at the drop of a dime.

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And the whole reason is for the surprise

element for the public just to bring

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smiles to people's faces for the

allure, for the artistic expression.

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And it's just all around

a good time for everybody.

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So.

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That's what a flash mob is, specifically.

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A freeze mob is when you show up,

there's no singing or dancing.

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You just simply on cue go into

a frozen motion like a statue.

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So it's not a frozen motion at all.

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It's not a motion at all.

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It's a frozen position.

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Um, and you just hold it.

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Wendy: Okay.

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I've seen videos of these too, but I

didn't realize there was a different name.

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That makes perfect sense.

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Dallas Flashers: Yeah.

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So, um, we attempted this and the first

person went off, and what we didn't do

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well, we learned quickly, is that when

you plan a mob, you need to be close

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together or else nobody knows that you're

all related and doing the same thing.

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Wendy: I could see that.

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Dallas Flashers: And what happened

was the first person went, gave the

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cue, which was a sneeze by the way.

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We did.

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It was a sneeze and freeze.

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She sneezed, she froze.

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I sneezed.

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I froze, and my choice of

freezing, unfortunately.

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I chose to use my cup.

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I had bought an iced tea in the

food court as like a prop to act

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like a regular mall goer, and I

froze with the drink in my mouth,

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and then the next person sneezed

and froze and so on and so forth.

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But we were so spread out that nobody

saw that I was related to the first

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person or the person behind me.

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And unfortunately I

scared a lot of people.

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I had, uh, some people come up to

me, some very concerned mall goers

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thinking that I was having a stroke

and I really commit to character when

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I'm given a role and I wouldn't break

it to tell them what was going on.

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So they just kept like,

ma'am, ma'am, are you okay?

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And I just kept frozen and so my

poor husband had to come and diffuse.

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The problem and let them in on the fact

that we were, take a look around ladies.

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We are doing a freeze mob right now.

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And they were so, they were mad.

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Mad.

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Yeah.

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They were so mad.

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So they were so mad.

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Yeah.

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The, because we, they felt tricked.

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I think they were.

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'cause they were so concerned.

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And here we are messing around

playing games in the mall instead

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of, you know, being serious.

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So

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we learned like, okay, we

need to be closer together.

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We quickly wrapped it back

up and went downstairs.

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We did it again.

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It went off without a hitch.

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So

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the time we left, we got two under

our belt and they went great.

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But that's how it all started,

was back at the mall on a rainy

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Saturday afternoon in November.

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So.

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Wendy: All

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Dallas Flashers: And the rest is history.

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We've done 21 mobs since

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Wendy: That's awesome.

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In just two years.

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Wow.

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That's really fast.

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is.

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Dallas Flashers: We're just

coming up on our anniversary.

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Mm-hmm.

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Wendy: that you could start a flash mob?

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What made you want to do this instead

of just joining another nonprofit

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that might do this or group?

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I don't know of

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Dallas Flashers: There, there.

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Exactly.

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That's exactly why I had no idea

that anybody else was doing it.

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And I, like I said, I kind of got sick of.

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Not being in a flash mob.

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So decided I'll make this happen.

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And we did.

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Um, we got some people together, we

got some different talents together,

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and I, I am not a dancer per se.

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I like to dance.

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S you know, spontaneously,

I like to dance at weddings.

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I'll dance in the house.

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I'll dance in public if you ask me to, but

I'm not, like, I've never been trained.

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I didn't do dance as a little girl.

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I don't have any kind of history in

dance whatsoever except, you know,

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in college, at the club hanging out.

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But besides that, I

don't have this history.

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So we needed a choreographer and we

needed some people who understood.

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Um.

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It's how to teach people

how to dance, you know?

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Um, but I've got a lot of strong

admin skills and so this sort

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of group needs that balance.

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My black and white and logical

thinking, my organization, my time

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management, and all of those things

when you're doing something so

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creative And so, um, expressive.

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You need someone who's on the other

side of things, on the other side of the

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spectrum who can hold down the details and

make sure things are planned and everybody

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has the information that they need.

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And so that's where I'm strong and I've

sought out the talent in our group.

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We have so many talented, diverse

people in our group who do love to

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dance and they have done it before.

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And, um.

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Together.

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We come up with awesome

choreography and we teach it to

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the group of people who shows up.

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And it's beautiful.

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It's, it's a great mix of people.

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Mm-hmm.

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So, I I

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I, I like to say that Nikki has GSD after

her name, because she gets stuff done.

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Oh, Um, so the, the, the fact,

the fact that they gave you the

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g version of that abbreviation,

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the, the fact that.

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Wendy: to use the real version, you can.

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Dallas Flashers: The fact that she, um,

kind of came up with this from scratch

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and was able to organize, you know, large

groups of people into, you know, 21 mobs

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at this point doesn't surprise me at all.

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Wendy: Clearly

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Dallas Flashers: yeah,

it's been really cool.

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Yeah.

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Wendy: stuff

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Dallas Flashers: Yes, exactly.

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Yeah,

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Wendy: So is, is the leadership of your

group kind of the traditional format where

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you have a board and you're the executive

director, obviously, and then you have all

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these wonderful committees and whatnot?

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Or is it really just more focused on

leadership that can help with the dances?

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Dallas Flashers: Yes to both.

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We are certainly growing

in our leadership.

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Um, the, the way that we do things.

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When we first started, I

didn't know what I was doing.

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Um.

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Bob gets roped into just about

everything I do one way or

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another and, and vice versa.

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Yeah.

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And so his skillset lent

itself very well to what we do.

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He's very talented in

technological things and audio.

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And he's the one who set

up this whole microphone.

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I don't, I would have no idea how to

set all this stuff up right now, but

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he, he knows how to make sound work.

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Yeah.

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And so when you're, um, you know.

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When you're about to blast a song

remotely in public, you need somebody

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who can push the buttons right.

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And make sure stuff goes

off without a hitch.

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And this is the guy,

so, so he's on the team.

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Um, we also have another board member.

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Her name is Kat Reno, and she does

a phenomenal job helping me out,

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making sure, uh, I know where I am

and what I'm supposed to be doing.

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Um, so she's another

clipboard carrier like me.

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Yeah.

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We like to call ourselves

the, the clipboard ladies.

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And, um, she is a another

GSD type personality.

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Besides that.

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We don't have anybody officially,

um, titled, if you will.

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And so, uh, we recently started

something called the Vision Commission,

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and this is really fun in my opinion.

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We just started, we literally just

had our first meeting a couple of

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weeks ago and, uh, it was born out

of, we did for the second year.

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Now in 2024.

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And in 2025, we put together what we

call Dream Session, and that's when we

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invite all of our members into one room.

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For a couple of hours.

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We set them up sort of, um, if you're

familiar with like centers in a, in a

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elementary classroom, we've got a center

for what we call the money center and

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we call the next one Mobs and we've got

five or six recruitments different Yeah.

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Uh, titles of the centers.

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And they, in a fun way, we make this fun.

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This sounds, I'm giving a very.

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Basic description of it, but we have

them sort of cycle through the centers

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as small groups, three or four people in

a group, and their job is to just dump

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every idea that they've ever thought

of that they can think of in the next

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five minutes and put sticky notes on

these boards, and then process to the

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next station into do the same thing.

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So over the course of 30 to 45 minutes.

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We came up with the first time, 133 ideas,

and this time we came up with 167 ideas.

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And what it does is it allows

the membership to become

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part of the leadership.

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Um, it allows them to fill us in on

who their connections are and where

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do they see us going, and what are

some of the ideas that they have.

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So it's not just this top down.

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Model.

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Um, I truly believe that this team

effort is why we're successful.

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And so I bring them in sort of as

shareholders to kind of help guide us.

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And so from that dream session,

we thought, you know what?

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Last year was great.

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We got 133 ideas, and I believe I I,

with the help of many other people,

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um, think we brought to life 34, 30

something, six or 37, like somewhere

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in the high thirties of the ideas.

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Well, wouldn't it be great if this year

with 166 ideas we could come up with,

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or we could, we could, uh, achieve 50 or

60 of them by giving it to a committee.

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So that's what we did.

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Instead of, you know, Nikki taking

care of and delegating, uh, what

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gets done off of the list, we have

installed this vision commission.

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And their job is to take a

look at all of these ideas.

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Um, we came up with, uh, along with the

board, we came up with the low hanging

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fruit, if you will, the ones that would

be the easiest to achieve, first of

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all, just to get some forward momentum.

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And then we're gonna have, sort of

in a project style, we're gonna come

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up with what are the next things

we're gonna work on as a group.

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And there'll be things I'll grab off the

tree and do myself because it's more of an

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elect, executive director type of an idea.

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But there's gonna be a ton of things

that they're gonna be able to do

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on their own individually and as a

committee that's going to allow them

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to have more, um, like I said, more

ownership and just more skin in the game.

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And, um, they're embracing it.

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Everybody loves the idea.

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So we're gonna go with that

model and see what comes of that.

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And maybe eventually we'll get some more

committees that get born out of that.

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We're, we're running pretty thin.

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We're running this pretty big show

on a pretty thin leadership scale, so

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someday it might be bigger, but, uh,

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now, no.

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Wendy: just gonna tell you this now.

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I know you've sent me a video or I

saw it on your Facebook or something

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where you guys were doing this

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Dallas Flashers: Oh yeah.

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Wendy: understand it like I kind of did.

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But your explanation of it,

I'm like, this is genius.

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'cause this is such a great way

to get feedback from your group,

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people that you are serving.

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Dallas Flashers: Exactly.

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Mm-hmm.

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Wendy: the ideas and the experience

of others, especially because then

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you can turn back around and say,

Hey, can somebody help me with this?

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Who came up with this idea?

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'cause this is genius.

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I, I am, love this.

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I think other people should do this too.

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I think it would break up a little

bit of the monotony of gathering

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ideas for strategic planning.

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So kudos girl.

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I mean,

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Dallas Flashers: thanks.

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Wendy: but it's amazing.

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Dallas Flashers: Well, we were

starting off with a, a fee, a survey.

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I would give a survey out every time

after we finished a mob, just so I could

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be like, how can we make this better?

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But you know, if you get a

mob of 30 people, you get 10

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people who fill out the form.

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It is not that in depth of questions.

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'cause I try to make it accessible so

they can achieve it in 30, 60 seconds.

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Um, not take up too much time so you

don't get a lot of depth and then

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you give them two hours and you give

them Chick-fil-A sponsors you and you

379

:

get Target to sponsor your snacks.

380

:

Well now we're talking about some real

serious ideas that can come of that.

381

:

So.

382

:

Wendy: it actually kind of curtails the,

um, should I put this in a nice way?

383

:

The meeting absorption of ideas.

384

:

When you sit down and you have

these conversations and everybody

385

:

feels like they need to hash it out.

386

:

think

387

:

where you can collect their ideas

without having to have discussion

388

:

Dallas Flashers: exactly.

389

:

Yes.

390

:

Yeah.

391

:

There's, there's no

Yeah, no hashing at all.

392

:

And there there's, there are no nos.

393

:

There's no bad ideas.

394

:

Yeah.

395

:

You come up with an idea, you put it

on the board because that idea might

396

:

spark another idea, which sparks another

idea, which is the idea that we need.

397

:

Wendy: fantastic.

398

:

Okay, cool.

399

:

Well, so tell me

400

:

Dallas Flashers: You should

come to the next one.

401

:

Wendy: I'm just telling you

right now, I'm going to be there.

402

:

It's gonna be

403

:

Dallas Flashers: Okay.

404

:

Sounds good.

405

:

Wendy: who should join your group,

because it sounds like you have a lot

406

:

of people, 'cause you've had 21 of

407

:

Dallas Flashers: Oh yes.

408

:

Wendy: What does that kind of look like?

409

:

Dallas Flashers: Okay.

410

:

Everybody should join.

411

:

And when I say that I am not, I'm

not saying that as the executive

412

:

director, as a proud person being

like, oh, everybody should come.

413

:

This is great.

414

:

Literally, I can't think of a

person this group doesn't serve.

415

:

Is is the truth?

416

:

The diversity that I've seen just

come naturally, this organic.

417

:

Um, all of these people who are coming

together from different walks of life

418

:

to completely different industries.

419

:

I can't even begin to tell you the di the

diversity of people who come to dance with

420

:

us because there are career paths and all,

all the things that they do are just on

421

:

this spectrum that I, it makes me scratch

my head like, how did we all end up in the

422

:

same room wanting to do the same thing?

423

:

It's insane and it's also so beautiful.

424

:

I love it.

425

:

Everyone's looking for something

joyful to do and this is it.

426

:

So we get a lot of people who

are like, oh, you don't want me.

427

:

I don't know how to dance.

428

:

Oh no, we definitely want you because

we don't want this to look professional.

429

:

I mean, we're not out

there trying to look messy.

430

:

We do a really good job of teaching

people the routines and making sure

431

:

everybody knows timing and spacing and

where they're supposed to be, and keeping

432

:

it simple so that anyone can do it.

433

:

Yeah, it's accessible, but.

434

:

I don't want this to look

like a performance group.

435

:

I don't want this to look like we've

been, you know, in a dance troupe and

436

:

taking dance lessons for all of our life.

437

:

I want it to look homegrown.

438

:

I want it to look like someone in

the crowd who thinks it looks fun, is

439

:

comfortable jumping in and joining us, and

that's the goal every time, to be honest.

440

:

The underlying goal is how many

people can we get to join us?

441

:

So if we're all polished and perfect.

442

:

That's not great.

443

:

So we want those people who

are like, eh, try and teach me.

444

:

See if you can do it.

445

:

We like the challenge, and I

don't know that we've ever lost

446

:

anybody because they didn't feel

like the choreo was accessible.

447

:

So I get.

448

:

I get a lot of moms, a lot of the

moms out there who, especially the

449

:

moms who've been momming for a while

and maybe a little piece of their

450

:

identity has gone away on pause.

451

:

Um, we see a lot of those ladies

coming out and taking part in

452

:

something that's completely separate

from anything their family does.

453

:

Not because they don't love their family,

but because everybody needs a break

454

:

from what they do 24 hours a day, right?

455

:

And so they'll come out, they'll

enjoy themselves for a couple

456

:

of hours during practice.

457

:

They'll come to the mob, they'll

do something exhilarating,

458

:

and then they go home happier.

459

:

They go home with more spirit.

460

:

Um, we also get families who are just

looking for some really good, clean fun.

461

:

There's, there's no droop.

462

:

There's no jerks in our group, like.

463

:

Everything that we do is on the up and up.

464

:

There's no drama.

465

:

I've not run into any gossip.

466

:

Like everyone's really fun.

467

:

It is incredible.

468

:

Yeah.

469

:

It turns out that if you wanna do

a flash mob, you are a top-notch

470

:

Wendy: I love that.

471

:

Dallas Flashers: Just,

472

:

Wendy: What a great litmus test.

473

:

Dallas Flashers: I, I,

474

:

yeah.

475

:

Um, so those of you out there

who don't wanna do a flash

476

:

mob, we're looking at you,

477

:

Wendy: judging

478

:

Dallas Flashers: but yeah.

479

:

We're judging you, we know better.

480

:

But, but it's really cool to see all

of these different needs being met.

481

:

I mean, we also have, like, we have

men and women who come out that are

482

:

going through the transition from like

a rough divorce and they just need

483

:

some peace and some fun in their life.

484

:

And so they come out on the other

end with something fun to do

485

:

and find, they find joy in that.

486

:

Um, I've gotten a lot of.

487

:

The board really has gotten

a lot of feedback from these

488

:

people saying, I need this group.

489

:

This group is incredible

for my mental health.

490

:

I didn't, and we didn't know we

were getting into that journey.

491

:

We thought we were just doing this silly

little dance group and then we were

492

:

gonna like have some fun and like, you

know, surprise some people in the public.

493

:

It was probably about a year

ago now that I go, we are in

494

:

the mental health industry.

495

:

I had no clue.

496

:

Wendy: first I was like, oh,

she's cute, but now I'm like,

497

:

Dallas Flashers: Yes.

498

:

Wendy: this a real

499

:

Dallas Flashers: Same.

500

:

Wendy: it

501

:

Dallas Flashers: Yeah.

502

:

Wendy: is.

503

:

a time when we are so di

divisive right now, right.

504

:

It

505

:

Dallas Flashers: Yeah.

506

:

Yes.

507

:

Wendy: but who couldn't just come and

enjoy some music and have a good time

508

:

Dallas Flashers: Mm-hmm.

509

:

Wendy: for the Yes.

510

:

Dallas Flashers: Because we don't get into

politics and we don't get into religion,

511

:

and we don't get into any of that stuff.

512

:

It's just everyone's

here and there's kids.

513

:

We have tons of kids who participate by

themselves and with their family members.

514

:

So everyone just knows to keep it clean.

515

:

Mm-hmm.

516

:

And so every, there's no, yeah, it's,

it's a really good time because of that.

517

:

Um, but yeah, I mean, there's really, I

can't think of, I can't think of anybody

518

:

who can't be served in this group.

519

:

And who can't serve in this group

because it goes both ways truly.

520

:

Wendy: does.

521

:

And we all, as humans benefit

when we serve others, we

522

:

Dallas Flashers: Mm-hmm.

523

:

Wendy: ourselves too, right?

524

:

Dallas Flashers: Yeah, absolutely.

525

:

If you're doing it right, and, and

really we have all different abilities.

526

:

There are people in our group who

come from all different walks of

527

:

life, like I was saying earlier.

528

:

Um, all different abilities.

529

:

And we haven't found anybody who

wants to be in our group that we

530

:

haven't been able to accommodate.

531

:

Okay.

532

:

Um, because that's the mission.

533

:

We want everyone who wants to be

in a flash mob to be in a flash

534

:

mob, and we will make it happen.

535

:

We will, um, we'll figure

out a way to make it work.

536

:

Our, our youngest dancer.

537

:

Yeah.

538

:

Well, so Nick Nikki's rule is

if you're smiling, you're right.

539

:

So as long as you're up there smiling and

having a good time, you're, you're right.

540

:

Um, our youngest dancer is six six and our

541

:

Wendy: Wow.

542

:

80 years of joy.

543

:

Dallas Flashers: Yeah.

544

:

And we, yeah.

545

:

Yeah.

546

:

Yeah.

547

:

I mean, we have people with limited

mobility, people who have limited

548

:

hearing, people who have limited sight.

549

:

I mean, there's, there's, there's

all sorts of different people

550

:

in our group, and everyone just

jumps in and supports them.

551

:

I don't have to say, Hey, can you make

sure she knows, blah, blah, blah, or Can

552

:

you make sure he's turn, I don't have to

do any of that, because we all, mm-hmm.

553

:

I, I, I turn around and she's helping

him, and he's helping her, and it's.

554

:

It's just beautiful.

555

:

Wendy: so tell me, 'cause I always ask

this question, I always ask people tell me

556

:

some of their success stories, and I feel

like there's a couple here that you keep

557

:

alluding to but you haven't gotten to yet.

558

:

So tell me your success stories.

559

:

What are your favorite ones?

560

:

Dallas Flashers: um,

561

:

we have a dancer who came to me, oh

maybe in April of:

562

:

could tell she knew what she was doing.

563

:

And I, I remember thinking to

myself during practice, like,

564

:

where did this lady come from?

565

:

Because usually we were pretty new

at that time and uh, it was usually

566

:

like word of mouth that people were

hearing about us and, and she didn't

567

:

come connected to anybody, so she

just showed up from a Facebook group.

568

:

And so I thought that

was kind of brave, right?

569

:

And she said after practice she came

up to me and she said, I just want

570

:

you to know I've been watching you.

571

:

And I am like, oh, okay.

572

:

Wendy: You or a bad thing, right?

573

:

Dallas Flashers: Yeah.

574

:

And I could tell she was a fellow

Italian too, so I was like, uhoh,

575

:

uh, she goes, she said, um,

I've been watching you, I've

576

:

been lurking for a while.

577

:

I wanted to make sure you

weren't like human traffickers.

578

:

And, um, that you guys were

like, serious about this.

579

:

I'm like, we're serious and

we don't human traffic anyone.

580

:

And um.

581

:

Yes, she said.

582

:

So I've just been watching in

the group to see how things

583

:

went, and I was really impressed.

584

:

I could see you, you put a lot of

time and commitment into what you

585

:

guys do, and, and I do that too.

586

:

Um, I just didn't wanna mess around with,

you know, something that was flimsy.

587

:

She said, I can't believe, like,

I can't believe what you're able

588

:

to pull off in an hour, the amount

of organization that you have.

589

:

So she just went on and on

about how she was so impressed.

590

:

Well, she went on to dance.

591

:

Um, that one practice was

serving two separate mobs.

592

:

We were doing a back-to-back,

um, Cinco de Mayo mob.

593

:

And, um, after she completed both mobs,

she, um, came up to me and she said, I

594

:

can't tell you how much this group has

impacted my ability to be mentally stable.

595

:

You know, she's, she's just a

normal lady who does a lot of stuff.

596

:

And she said, when I, when I leave

my house excited to come here.

597

:

My husband, it, it's

almost like, you know.

598

:

He, they're sad to see her go,

but they know when she comes home,

599

:

she's going to be so much happier.

600

:

And so, um, it's like this bittersweet

thing for the her family to, to

601

:

miss, like, to be missing her, but

also to know what mommy comes home.

602

:

Like she's gonna be in a better mood.

603

:

She's gonna have more, more, um, with the

exercise, she's gonna have a little bit

604

:

more stamina and like all the things that

she can do her job at home better now.

605

:

And so she said, I can't, I can't

tell you how much I'm so thankful

606

:

for this group and I'm never leaving.

607

:

I'm like, please don't.

608

:

Yeah.

609

:

So when you hear stuff like that,

that's when you start to consider,

610

:

like, I don't think I had used the words

mental health industry when she TA was

611

:

talking to me about this back in May.

612

:

It took me a few months before a few more

people came forward similarly and kind

613

:

of came out of, um, you know, I've been

dealing with cancer, I've been dealing

614

:

with divorce, I've been dealing just.

615

:

I don't wanna say everyday things

'cause those things are, are a

616

:

little bit more outstanding than

ev than common everyday things.

617

:

But we are all dealing

with something like that.

618

:

And I just, I had no idea that these,

these success stories were gonna be born

619

:

from something that I thought was a silly

little activity that we were doing and,

620

:

you know, probably wouldn't do very long.

621

:

And here we are just, I mean, I

don't see any end in the future, so.

622

:

Wendy: Wow.

623

:

Dallas Flashers: But at, at the same

time too, you also found a lot of

624

:

mental health benefits for yourself.

625

:

Yes, absolutely.

626

:

I, I have, um, always struggled with,

xiety, um, coming out of like:

627

:

I was.

628

:

I was really depressed about, you

know, my life just wasn't unfolding

629

:

the way I had expected it to, and I was

looking for some more opportunities.

630

:

And so when this came up and I thought,

wow, I could really use my skillset

631

:

in a way that would be beneficial,

um, and was able to put that to work.

632

:

Boy does that, do some that

does something for you.

633

:

Um, and, and yeah, I, I just began to see.

634

:

This unfolding of who I really

was inside and not apologizing for

635

:

it, and people accepting who I was

for that and not rejecting that.

636

:

And so I was like, wow,

this is really cool.

637

:

This is for me and it's for you.

638

:

Um, so I felt the same way.

639

:

They do.

640

:

I just thought I was the

only one and I wasn't.

641

:

It's, it's still almost after every single

mob we come home and she is in disbelief.

642

:

She's like, I can't believe these people.

643

:

What, like what I do?

644

:

Yeah.

645

:

I, it just, it's, it's shocking to me

that I came up with something and I

646

:

continue doing this thing that people keep

signing up for and I'm like, they love it.

647

:

They really love it.

648

:

It's so cool.

649

:

Wendy: who doesn't wanna be

around you like I ever since

650

:

feel that way.

651

:

So

652

:

Dallas Flashers: You're sweet.

653

:

Wendy: you're a

654

:

Dallas Flashers: I agree.

655

:

Sometimes, sometimes my

sarcasm will scare you away.

656

:

But not you.

657

:

You're strong.

658

:

Wendy,

659

:

Wendy: sarcasm is my love language.

660

:

Yes, for sure.

661

:

For sure.

662

:

okay, so tell me, each of you, what's

your favorite thing to do in this group?

663

:

What's the favorite

thing about doing this?

664

:

Dallas Flashers: you wanna go first?

665

:

You want me to go first?

666

:

Yeah.

667

:

Uh, so I.

668

:

I think for me it's the preparation for,

uh, rehearsals and the, the mob itself.

669

:

I mean.

670

:

Uh, I guess it's everything that I do.

671

:

So, uh, a lot of times we'll do mashups,

um, or like splice a song together.

672

:

So getting to work, you know, in a couple

programs to, you know, figure out how

673

:

these songs are gonna mesh together is a

really fun challenge that I like doing.

674

:

And then I really like the events

that we do that are big enough

675

:

to where we're working with.

676

:

Uh, a sound guy.

677

:

Uh, I've had the opportunity

to work with a couple.

678

:

Uh, my favorite DJ Neil,

shout out for, for DJ Neil.

679

:

Oh, Celina.

680

:

Uh, from Salina.

681

:

Yeah.

682

:

Um, when you get a good sound guy or

like a good DJ and, you know, 'cause

683

:

we'll do meetings, we'll do meetings

with these guys ahead of time so they

684

:

know what to, uh, what to expect.

685

:

We'll send you the file, here's what

you need to say, and then I just go

686

:

there and hang out with them and make

sure that they press go on time and then

687

:

just get to watch this thing happen.

688

:

So I think that's the funnest part for me.

689

:

Wendy: part of that job.

690

:

Dallas Flashers: Yeah,

I got the easy part.

691

:

Wendy: go and watch.

692

:

Yeah.

693

:

Dallas Flashers: Yeah.

694

:

When she asked me to be part of

the flash mob, I said I'll do

695

:

all the technical stuff in the

696

:

Wendy: Done

697

:

Dallas Flashers: Tries to

get him to dance, everybody.

698

:

And it does not work.

699

:

Nope.

700

:

I'll tell you a secret.

701

:

I'll tell you a secret.

702

:

You will find Bob Calabrese

dancing through at my house to

703

:

the mob choreo to the songs.

704

:

Yeah.

705

:

He will, but he won't do

it out outside the house.

706

:

So, no, I did get us,

707

:

but there, there is footage out

there too for Nikki's birthday.

708

:

A couple years ago I got us a

couple's hip hop dance lessons.

709

:

Oh yes.

710

:

So we, we did private lessons.

711

:

We did like six of 'em.

712

:

And you know what, guess

who was better at it?

713

:

Oh, come on.

714

:

Wendy: I love it.

715

:

So.

716

:

Dallas Flashers: I'll, I'll admit it.

717

:

I'll admit it.

718

:

He did a great job.

719

:

I, because that's, that's a perfect

example of what I said almost

720

:

first thing out the door was I

don't take dance lessons very well.

721

:

Like I'm not a dancer, I'm not a

sophisticated, he was loving following

722

:

the directions of this dance instructor.

723

:

Yeah.

724

:

I just wanted to freaking dance.

725

:

I had follow, follow rules.

726

:

I think you the rules also, I think

you were also watching me a lot.

727

:

Yeah, that's true.

728

:

Wendy: You're like the, the Phoebe

in the dance class of friends you

729

:

have you seen that show, that episode

730

:

Dallas Flashers: No.

731

:

Wendy: a

732

:

Dallas Flashers: Mm-hmm.

733

:

Wendy: where a dance?

734

:

Well, it's a dance exercise class,

but she's just doing her own thing.

735

:

She's not even paying attention to

what the instructor's telling her.

736

:

Dallas Flashers: Yeah.

737

:

I mean, I, I desperately want to follow

your directions, but my brain can't

738

:

do what I look, see in the mirror.

739

:

I just, I need to be just move.

740

:

Wendy: I can understand that.

741

:

Dallas Flashers: And he was nailing it.

742

:

He was nailing it.

743

:

Yeah.

744

:

So I was.

745

:

Wendy: favorite part of your job?

746

:

Um.

747

:

Dallas Flashers: Um, my initial

instinct is to say encouraging

748

:

people to be brave, but that's kind

of like a very generic response.

749

:

Specifically, I, uh, I think I

love crowning our mob masters.

750

:

Oh.

751

:

Every, every mob we have a, we

select one of our performers

752

:

who has committed fully and.

753

:

A lot of times above the rest.

754

:

Um, which is usually hard 'cause

we always have a, we always have

755

:

a big handful of people who are,

you know, going above and beyond.

756

:

Um, but you can only be mob master

once, so sometimes that helps me.

757

:

So, so I get to, I get the honor

of deciding, you know, who's gonna

758

:

get the award and we have this,

we should have brought the crown.

759

:

Yeah.

760

:

Could have started this

off with the Crown, Wendy.

761

:

Um.

762

:

It is totally handmade and ridiculous.

763

:

Yeah.

764

:

Uh, from like Joanne Fabric's

materials and be jeweled to the

765

:

nines, but you get the glory of

wearing this mob master crown for you.

766

:

Get a little, get a little plaque, 30 or

60 seconds and a plaque and, um, we just

767

:

get to honor you in front of the group.

768

:

And everyone's so encouraging

and supportive that.

769

:

They love guessing who it is.

770

:

'cause I'll, I'll go down and I'll give

clues until I'll go from very generic

771

:

to very specific to see if anybody

can guess along the way who it is.

772

:

And they love guessing.

773

:

And usually by the end,

everyone knows who it is.

774

:

Um, so that's a really fun part of the,

of the job because it just highlights

775

:

another human for being great, you know?

776

:

And they get to be in the

spotlight for a minute.

777

:

It's really cool.

778

:

Wendy: gonna have to send me a

picture of the mob crown because

779

:

that's gotta go on social media.

780

:

Dallas Flashers: Okay.

781

:

Okay,

782

:

Wendy: that's

783

:

Dallas Flashers: sure.

784

:

Wendy: Um, okay, so tell me what

do you wish people understood

785

:

more about your organization?

786

:

I.

787

:

Dallas Flashers: Oh, I wish that people

knew how much support we could use, um,

788

:

because like I, we both kind of pointed

out this isn't just a group for dancers.

789

:

Um, we need help in all different

aspects, as do most nonprofits out there.

790

:

It's not just.

791

:

Uh, you know, when you're a food

bank, you don't just need food.

792

:

You need volunteers to do this.

793

:

You need people to run and do that.

794

:

You need a whole, all sorts of skill

sets, and it's not different for us.

795

:

We, yeah, we need performers, we need

people willing to dance, but we also need

796

:

people who are willing to help with the

camera because I'll tell you, we've got

797

:

goblins in our cameras and I will set that

sucker up perfectly and walk away from it.

798

:

And it just does something different.

799

:

Um, or I have a husband come and cheer

his wife on, or a kid come and cheer

800

:

could stand right in front of it.

801

:

His hu Yeah.

802

:

And just stand right in front of it.

803

:

Cheering.

804

:

I'm like, no.

805

:

And so, uh, we need sign holders

people to hold the signs.

806

:

Yeah.

807

:

We need people to pull the wagons.

808

:

We need people to make the

phone calls and, and, you know,

809

:

do some of the committee work.

810

:

It's not just dancing.

811

:

It's, there's a lot that leads

up to the dancing a lot, almost.

812

:

It's almost like a wedding, Wendy.

813

:

I know you can relate to that, where you

do sometimes 12, 15 months of, of planning

814

:

it just, you just pour everything out into

the planning and it's over in eight hours.

815

:

Where this, you know, we

do like several months.

816

:

I, I need about six to eight weeks

before I can, um, execute a mob, pull

817

:

off a mob successfully, typically.

818

:

Uh, and it's over in four minutes, so.

819

:

It, it's over quickly.

820

:

So the, the buildup is really where

all the heavy lifting is being done.

821

:

And then nailing it is where the

group comes in, and then there's, you

822

:

know, still four or five days of work

left afterwards with follow up with

823

:

clients and posting things and editing

the videos and all of that stuff.

824

:

So we need, we need technical help and

we need, um, all sorts of different

825

:

things to make this machine run.

826

:

It's not just can you

dance or can you sing?

827

:

Um, and when people think flash

mobs, they think that's the only

828

:

way they could possibly contribute,

even if they love the idea, but they

829

:

don't consider themselves a dancer.

830

:

They could still contribute

to the flash mob and, and do

831

:

this really cool thing with us.

832

:

Wendy: can people know what

these opportunities are?

833

:

How do you promote these?

834

:

How can they reach out to you and,

and you up on this and help out?

835

:

Dallas Flashers: The easiest

way is, is we're on Link tree.

836

:

Um, that's where everything

kind of folds out of for us.

837

:

We've got, um, a few

different Facebook presences.

838

:

One of them is a public fan page group

that we highly encourage everybody to

839

:

follow so that they can see when our,

our finished products are put out.

840

:

Um, but we also have a private group where

you have to sign an NDA to be part of it

841

:

because that's where we give all of our.

842

:

Secret information.

843

:

It's where, um, you have to answer a

questionnaire to get and sign the NDA so

844

:

that when you join, you are ready to go.

845

:

You're ready to know where we're gonna

be, when we're gonna be there, because we

846

:

can't give that information to the public.

847

:

It just kind of depends on what

level of commitment you want.

848

:

Do you wanna just come, uh, do you wanna

see where we are and, and support us?

849

:

Well, then the fan page is for you.

850

:

Um.

851

:

But unfortunately, unless you

join the group, you're not gonna

852

:

know where we're gonna pop up.

853

:

So the fan page is really just

to follow what we're doing.

854

:

But we also have, um, a YouTube

channel where we post everything.

855

:

So you could always just search for the

Dallas Flashers in a, in an a YouTube

856

:

search, and you'll pull up, well, about

21 videos of us doing different mobs,

857

:

different places, different cities, um,

'cause we've gotten to partner with.

858

:

We've gotten to partner with

so many local community groups.

859

:

Yeah, it's been really a joy.

860

:

Um, so yeah, I, there's, there's

a bunch of different ways.

861

:

We don't currently have a website.

862

:

We, another way you could help us.

863

:

We need a website.

864

:

Um, we, we have the funds set, set

aside to be able to achieve that goal.

865

:

We just haven't been able to find anybody.

866

:

Um.

867

:

Who understands our vision well

enough to execute this for us.

868

:

So that's another easy grab.

869

:

And social media of course, gosh, who

doesn't need help with social media,

870

:

Wendy: sure.

871

:

All right, well cool.

872

:

Well, I will make sure to link to all

of that in the show notes so everyone

873

:

Dallas Flashers: Awesome.

874

:

Thank you.

875

:

Wendy: of Dallas Flashers and

bring some joy into their lives.

876

:

Dallas Flashers: Thank you.

877

:

Yes.

878

:

Wendy: guys coming on and talking more

about this and more about your process

879

:

so that people really understand

more about you and what your goals

880

:

are, but also how you work and how.

881

:

You really do serve

everyone in the community.

882

:

It's not just the fully able bodied

person who has experience in dance.

883

:

So

884

:

Dallas Flashers: Mm-hmm.

885

:

Wendy: much work you are doing.

886

:

Is there anything else that you want to

highlight before we sign off for the day?

887

:

I.

888

:

Dallas Flashers: I don't know.

889

:

Is there, I don't know.

890

:

I don't think so.

891

:

Wendy, I think you've

covered a lot of ground here.

892

:

Thank you so much for giving

us a, a platform to speak about

893

:

the Dallas Flashers because we,

we absolutely love this group.

894

:

Mm-hmm.

895

:

Wendy: thank you guys so much for being on

the podcast, and that's it for today guys.

896

:

Thanks for joining us

on The NonProfit Nook.

897

:

Thanks for listening

to The NonProfit Nook.

898

:

We're building better nonprofits together.

899

:

If you found today's episode

helpful, please subscribe, leave

900

:

a review, and share it with other

nonprofit leaders who need support.

901

:

Follow The NonProfit Nook on social

media and sign up for our email

902

:

list for extra tips and updates.

903

:

You can also visit the

thenonprofitnook.com

904

:

to see the show notes and leave a comment

telling me what topics you want next.

905

:

Your feedback shapes the show.

906

:

See you next time.

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About the Podcast

The NonProfit Nook
Tools, Tips & Real Talk for Changemakers
Welcome to The NonProfit Nook — the podcast for nonprofit leaders, board members, staff, and community champions who want to strengthen their organizations and make a bigger impact... without burning out in the process.

I’m Wendy Kidd—business owner for over 20 years and nonprofit leader for just as long. I created this show because I know how overwhelming it can be to lead a nonprofit. Most of us didn’t get into this work thinking we’d be running a business—we just wanted to help people. But the truth is, running a nonprofit *is* running a business, and I’m here to help make that part easier.

Each week on The NonProfit Nook, you’ll get real talk and real tools.
We’ll dive into the nuts and bolts of nonprofit management—strategic planning, budgeting, board engagement, donor communication, volunteer recruitment, and more. No fluff—just practical advice and conversations that help you work smarter and lead with confidence.

You’ll also hear:
- Stories from inspiring North Texas nonprofits and the local heroes behind them
- Tips from experts on marketing, digital tools, DEI, nonprofit culture, and sustainable leadership
- Real conversations about burnout, boundaries, time management, and self-care—because leadership shouldn’t feel lonely

Whether you're leading a nonprofit, supporting one, or just passionate about the mission, The NonProfit Nook will give you the tools, encouragement, and inspiration you need to thrive.

Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform, leave a review to support the show, and follow us on social media @thenonprofitnook for more nonprofit insights, stories, and resources.

Let’s make nonprofit life a little easier—and a lot more impactful.

About your host

Profile picture for Wendy Kidd

Wendy Kidd

Wendy Kidd is a seasoned event planner, nonprofit leader, and small business consultant with over 20 years of experience helping organizations thrive. As the host of The NonProfit Nook, she draws on her deep knowledge of running a business, fundraising, volunteer engagement, and community building to share practical strategies and inspiring stories with nonprofit leaders.

Passionate about equipping nonprofit professionals with the tools they need to create lasting change, Wendy brings an approachable, encouraging style to every episode—making complex topics simple and actionable.