Emily Elizabeth Nussdorder

March 31, 1965 – July 14, 2026

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Born and raised near Media, PA, resident of Mount Airy, PA

We have lost a dreamer, a dancer, a true force, a ray of sunshine, an enchanted being, a playful spirit who brought joy and hope into this world. Our dear friend, sister, and colleague Emily Nussdorfer, MA, LPC, BC-DMT, passed away on July 14th

from this earth after a one-and-a-half-year battle with ovarian cancer.

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A graduate from the dance/movement therapy master’s program at MCP Hahnemann in 2001 and previously a dance/theater teaching artist in New York City (Living Theatre, Art Start program), Pennsylvania, and Hawaii, Emily had a passion for the expressive arts, a zest for life, a deep connection to nature, animals (particularly horses and cats), and trees, and a gift of understanding and caring for others with a deep commitment to social justice. Her special dedication was to help women heal from traumatic life experiences. Emily provided dance/movement therapy and counseling services to diverse populations of all ages for over 20 years, working in school settings, in-patient

psychiatric facilities, and in private practice with a specialty in trauma (she was certified in EMDR, IFS, and F-TREM). In 2003, with the support of the Family Planning Council and DHS of Philadelphia, she launched the Girls on the Move® program

that included dance and drama therapy-based curricula to foster empowerment and leadership skills in underserved, adjudicated, adolescent African American and Latina girls living in low-income Philadelphia communities. She founded the non-

profit Moving Creations to develop this work further over the following 10 years, supported by a team of multicultural artists. Girls on the Move® served over 100 girls and earned much acclaim. In 2008, the culminating performance of one of the

groups won an award at the Wingspan Arts Film Festival at the Lincoln Center in New York City. Emily published a chapter entitled Dance as Internal Alchemy, the Healing Power of Expressive Movement which featured stages of her program in Jill Chonody’s book “Community Art, Creative Approaches to Practice” (2014). Between 2006 and 2016, she developed specialized movement-based workshops (e.g. Crystal Dancing, Dancing with Nature, Dancing with the Goddess, Mudra Dancing & the Light Alignments) to empower participants in community and educational settings. Emily supervised graduate students and was an EMDR consultant. When not serving others, she loved to travel, paint, dance, ride horseback, write, sing, and play music. She was a deeply spiritual person with profound reverence for natureand the unseen, always believing in the good in others. She had been working on and finishing writing a children’s book, a journey tale filled with magic, wonder and metaphors including a dragon and the lady in blue. We will do our best to get this book out, which is what she wanted.

 

Emily was beloved by so many!!! During her cancer journey she raised over $75,000 to help finance unmet medical expenses and her community continuously rallied around her. Until her passing, Emily was especially cared for by a core group of 16

women whom she affectionately called her “village.” She is survived by her two sisters, one brother, two nieces, one nephew, and two grandnieces and her beloved cat Shakti, as well as many soul sisters and close friends.

 

Some of the many words that have been used by friends and clients to describe this one of a kind human are “vibrant,” “transformative,” “fiery and passionate,” “light and pure,” “a joyful and free spirit,” “a full-of-life force,” “stardust spreading magic,” “a creative, life affirming and universal spirit,” “a gem of a person,” “a forever shining, genuine, and radiant soul,” “a powerhouse of creativity,” “a kind, gentle, and nurturing spirit,” “a visionary healer” who “created safe places without judgment, surrounded with love,” and “a light finder.”

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We miss her so dearly! Ciao Bella, our dear soul sister, until we meet again, dancing and laughing!

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More information about Emily can be found on her website Life Dance with Emily.

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