Imprint

I’m an American writer and arts educator based in Ohio with German ancestry in my bloodline and show tunes in my head. This site is my corner of the internet to talk about dance, theatre, education, and whatever else demands a spotlight, with the hope that readers from Cleveland to Cologne might eventually stumble across it.

My great-grandfather Becker immigrated from Germany to Cleveland between World War I and World War II. Family lore says he opened the first motorcycle shop in the city. During the Depression of the 1930s, when money was scarce and cars were out of reach for many, that little shop stayed busy enough that he could help feed his own family and the neighbors on his block. His sons later fought on the side of the Allies in World War II. That history makes me a true American not just by birth, but by heritage—and, at the same time, a true German by heritage, if not by passport.

I’ve even dated a dual citizen German in New York who didn’t like to talk about World War II at all; in America, we tend to talk about it constantly, and in parts of Europe people approach it differently. Either way, it is part of my family’s story. My great-uncles and grandfathers fought in it or served because of it. That legacy convinces me that we can all get along—and that if any of us could live even one day inside someone else’s perspective, racism, bullying, and a lot of cruelty would lose its grip.

The technical side of this site lives with Jimdo, a German company that hosts this website. Jimdo is a separate, third-party provider and not part of Jim Becker, Jim Becker Personal Training, LLC, or any other project under my name. If Jimdo collects technical data (cookies, IP addresses, analytics), that happens under their rules, not mine. I’m here to share ideas and stories; your choice to visit is entirely your own.

Any photo credits on this site are generated by third site providers. All images on this site are owned by Jim Becker, all rights reserved.