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34 MARCH 2 0 1 7 Gym-azing 27-14 23RD AVE., ASTORIA GYM-AZING.COM T ina Mavrelis-Charalambous was born in Greece, but her family immigrated to the United States and settled in Astoria when she was 1 year old. Now, she’s a vital part of the Astoria community as the proud owner of Gym-azing on 23rd Avenue. A mother of three, Mavrelis-Charalambous saw the need for a business like Gym-azing in western Queens. “I understood the need in Astoria for a child-friendly, clean space where children and their caregivers felt it was a second home,” she said. The idea of opening a child-focused business for play and fitness sprouted in 2009, and Gym-azing opened its doors in 2010. Seven years later, Mavrelis-Charalambous has had much success with a variety of classes and programs for children of all ages, ranging from babies to teenagers. “For the younger ages we have the programs Music Together, SocRoc and Toddler Ballet,” she said. “For the walking toddlers, we have a fun and educational program Messy Art and Story Time followed by free open play.” There are even options for the older children including ballet, jazz, tap, bootcamp, capoeira and the jampacked hip-hop classes. “Our hip-hop team goes to state competition and does great,” Mavrelis- Charalambous said. Gym-azing also hosts birthday parties, where they take care of the whole kit and caboodle, including invitations, theme decorations, a bounce house, face painting, a bubble machine, animal balloons, activities and dancing. Walking by the colorful Gym-azing storefront, one can see that whatever the business is doing seems to be working as classes are usually full and much fun is being had by all. Mavrelis- Charalambous stays connected to the community “via social media, advertising, word-of-mouth recommendations and our five-star reviews on Yelp,” she said. Check out their website for the variety of parties and classes they offer. Photos courtesy of Tina Mavrelis-Charalambous


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