LAFAYETTE PARISH — Sally Hebert has been dancing for as long as she can remember, and as she nears 90 years old, she shows no signs of slowing down. “It's just I don’t know, I just always loved to dance, even as a teenager… that’s what we did — we went wherever we could go to dance. My friends were the same, they liked to dance,” she said with a smile.
That love for movement followed her into marriage and family life. “My husband and I both were interested in just healthy stuff,” she recalled. The two even trained in yoga together. “We went to workshops together and I did the same training and everything, but he was the teacher,” she said.
Hebert describes those shared passions as some of her most cherished memories — which made it all the more difficult when illness began to take him away. When she lost him, she was in her early sixties — young enough to start a whole new chapter, even if it didn’t feel that way at the time. “He got cancer… he died at 68. I was only 63. I didn’t realize at the time how young that was, but my kids are that old now,” Hebert said.
Instead of slowing down, she found new ways to keep her body and mind active. Many of her friends from her own age group have since passed away, but she hasn’t been left without a support system. “A lot of my friends are not here anymore… but I have these wonderful 70-year-old friends who love to dance and they keep me going. I go out with them,” she said.
Hebert now shares her passion for movement as a yoga instructor at the Camélia House. Her students range in age and experience level, but they all benefit from her philosophy of staying active. “I think it was the good eating, the never stopping moving, and doing things that make me happy,” she explained. “You just really have to take care of yourself, you have to take care of yourself first because if you don’t and you’re not healthy you can’t take care of your family, children or whatever.”
For her, yoga is more than just a series of poses — it’s a way to nourish the body and the soul. “Well it’s physical, it’s mental, and it’s spiritual,” she said.
As she prepares to celebrate her 90th birthday, Hebert is reflecting on what it means to grow older while staying independent. “I’m so grateful, I can live; I live alone, I take care of myself, I can do pretty much whatever I want. I don’t do what I don't want so I have that choice now,” she said.
Whether she’s out dancing with friends or guiding a class through mindful stretches, Hebert’s outlook remains the same: keep moving, stay positive, and embrace the joy that comes with doing what you love.
