Twelve-year-old Katie Maypa will be gracing the streets of Hamilton with her fellow Filipino dancers on Heritage Day.

The Bermudian-born, Mount Saint Agnes Academy student loves to perform and has been doing so since the age of three.

Under her belt, Katie holds the experience of performing cultural dances of the Philippines as well as ballet, tap and jazz.

Katie is in the seventh grade (M1) and is the youngest of all the Filipino dancers by as much as ten to thirty years.

She admitted that sometimes the age difference does cause awkwardness within the group, though that does not overshadow her initial motive to dance.

After participating with the group in the 2007 Heritage Day parade, she will once again be reunited with them for this year's celebration. As a result of accepting an invitation to join the group from her cousin, Rochelle Santos, 21, she has had a lot of fun.

It is no surprise that Katie's favourite aspect of being in the group is the dance experience at large.

Likewise, performing on Heritage Day has always been an aspiration of hers, yet she has predominantly been a spectator; therefore she considers her cultural dancing duties to be a great opportunity.

When it comes to this year's showcase especially, Katie is enthusiastic about the group's new costumes, which are long, cool dresses in blue, white and red, colours of the Philippine flag.

She is also excited about the fans that will embellish the dance.

These pink and yellow fans will be used to create the appearance of a flower during the performance. Dancing is not the only thing Katie will be looking forward to on May 25th, but also the togetherness that Heritage Day encourages.

Being a proud member of the Filipino community, Katie is excited to be a representative of her culture in next week's Heritage Day parade.