Roxy & Matt Oliver

Roxy & Matt Oliver

Ages: Roxy 41, Matt 42

Roxy and Matt Oliver have been boosting hearts and helping others destress since the launch of their local Zumba program – Fountain of Youth Fitness.

The couple moved to Fort McMurray shortly after their second son’s birthday in 2007, when Matt landed a job with Suncor Energy. With a young family to care for, Roxy decided to stay at home. By 2011, the boys had grown older, and she was ambitious to start leading a more active life.

“I stumbled across Zumba fitness. I was overweight and not a dancer, but I fell in love with the program and the community around these classes,” she shared.

With Roxy as the program’s brainchild and Matt as her number one motivator, the two high school sweethearts from High Level, Alberta, opened up the doors of the local Zumba community to Fort McMurray youth and launched the program in 2012.

“It creates friendships and confidence, and the families that I have met through the years have become family. It’s amazing watching the kids grow within the program and take the skills that they learn into their everyday lives,” Roxy explained.

Since then, over 350 students have taken part in the fun and fast-moving, aerobic-style workout. Today, both of them are certified Zumba instructors and offer classes to all ages, as well as host classes at Oranj Fitness.

“I helped out with Zumba kids’ classes for a couple of years before finally taking my Zumba instructor training in 2015,” Matt explained. “After the Wildfire, we hosted a Welcome Home fundraiser in support of the local Fort McMurray Fire Department, then eventually found our way into the Oranj Fitness family.”

Working together has modified success for the Olivers. But, as Matt explains, it’s not their success in the programs and classes that they are most proud of.

“More than anything, we try to take the approach of helping everyone to succeed,” he shared. “Be it the Zumba kids learning to be little leaders themselves, the adult Zumba participants to be a little less self-conscious - and leave it all on the dance floor - or even with peers and teaching them tools that help me to succeed, so they can succeed themselves.”