St. Clair County Dance Academy Remembers Ballerina as "Very Patient" Ballet Teacher

BELLEVILLE, IL – The eyes, ears, parents and teachers of Expressions Academy of Dance celebrated the life of a beloved ballerina with a candlelight vigil.

Raffaella Stroik, 23, disappeared on Monday. His body was found in the water at Mark Twain Lake State Park around 9:40 am Wednesday near the 107 launching ramp. Stroik lived in St. Louis but was originally from South Bend, Indiana. She played with the St. Louis Ballet.

Investigators said that a private jet pilot had located what he thought was a person in the water and had informed the authorities. Members of the Water Patrol Division of the Missouri State Highway Patrol have recovered Stroik's body. The police do not believe that Stroik's death was false.

"She has always come with open arms and is very welcoming and now she is completely crazy," said Jala Stancil, 15, who had taken ballet classes at Stroik.

Stroik was in the academy only for about a year but quickly became a favorite among many students, their parents and fellow teachers.

"She turned a lot of our dancers into affectionate ballet where, for many of them, ballet was not even their favorite," said Becky Vitale, co-director of the academy.

The academy celebrated the life of the professional ballerina with a candlelight vigil and writing liked messages on the wall of the studio where she taught.

Her students fondly remembered their teacher as happy, calm, elegant and beautiful.

"We hope you dance among the stars," Vitale said during the vigil.

"She was patient with us," said Stancil, "it was a blessing to have it here."

Their tears and emotions accurately reflected how much Rafaella was loved and will be missed forever.

Bishop Joseph Simon of the Cathedral Basilica issued a statement in which he stated:

"The clergy and parishioners of the Basilica-Cathedral of St. Louis offer their sincere condolences to the family of Raffaella Stroik, Raffaella was part of his congregation in the center-west, often attending mass at the Basilica-Cathedral and participating in the Christi's Young Adult Group Raffaella was a dynamic young Catholic woman whose presence we will miss, that she rest in peace. "

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