Mattituck Irish dance studio advocates for animals

This animal rescue isn’t just like any other.

With kitten yoga, car shows and — perhaps surprisingly — Irish step dancing, North Fork Country Kids Animal Rescue is a unique project. 

The North Fork Country Kids is a not-for-profit volunteer organization whose mission is to protect and preserve animal life. They focus specifically on the feral cat population, with the mainstay of “TNR,” or trap, neuter, return. Dogs, chickens and ducks are welcome, as well.

Virginia Scutter runs the rescue itself and leads a “female empowerment” group called the Rescue Vixens, who volunteer for the organization. The Vixens dress up in pin-up 1940s gear and take pictures for publicity at the Modern Snack Bar in Aquebogue. Selling calendars with these photos, the North Fork Country Kids uses 100% of the profit to fund the rescue and pay the animals’ veterinary bills. This year is the calendar’s 10-year anniversary.

The rescue recently held its second annual two-day car show at the end of July. The fundraiser was a huge hit for the group and included a cruise day for cars to come hang out, over 40 judge’s awards for the cars, a pin-up contest and radio coverage. The car show combined with merchandise sales raised over $10,000 for the rescue. Ms. Scutter received a proclamation from Sen. Anthony Palumbo for her efforts.

Where pin-up meets Irish dancing lies in the Scutter family’s love of the art and passion to keep it going in the area after Vernon Dance Academy in Mattituck closed. Their daughter had danced there since age 4, and Sara Helene had taught classes and private lessons in the studio, so they partnered up to “save the school.” 

As an Irish dancer for over 20 years, having competed and coached at a high level and while running her own studio in Connecticut, Ms. Helene is directing and teaching the Irish dance classes at the new Gaelic Grooves in Mattituck, picking up where the old studio left off in the same space. 

While pondering the possibility of using the studio to promote the rescue, Ms. Scutter said she remembers her husband turning to her and saying, “you mean, like stepping for paws?” 

Thus, the motto Stepping for Paws was coined and the new Gaelic Grooves studio became the family’s way to “continue keeping the Irish step alive on the North Fork, while advocating for homeless and neglected animals.”

The current beginning stages of Stepping for Paws include Ms. Helene teaching classes Wednesdays. Commuting from Connecticut where her young kids go to school, she hopes to find a more regular dance instructor to fill her shoes so that she can develop more programming for the studio and focus on private lessons. 

Ms. Helene outlined the short-term goals of getting a more permanent class schedule open to all levels in place, while garnering “enough interest and kiddos to keep the doors open.” Yoga, swing dancing, and fiddle classes will be added to the studio rotation as well. She also seeks to build the community and family atmosphere that will keep the studio running. Ms. Scutter shares the belief that “as a community, the only way things get moved along and happen is when you speak up and you work together.”

Ms. Scutter remarked, “the fulfillment and the volunteerism, really does build character. And I think that’s what we’re helping to do, to build character, continue this love… dancing at events, being part of parades, and just showcasing who we are and why we’re different,” speaking to the mission of the studio.

“We’re different because we have a mission that is a little bit, you know, beyond the dance floor.”

Reach out to Sara Helene at 860-966-3335 or Virginia Scutter at 631-655-8538 if interested in getting involved in attending classes or teaching at the studio. Follow @gaelicgroovesnorthfork for more information.