NORTHAMPTON, Pa. — Tiffany Patterson says her life has always revolved around music.
"Everything that I have loved and grew up doing has been surrounded by music,” said Patterson, a professional dancer and choreographer for rapper/dancer M.C. Hammer, best known for his 1990 hit "U Can't Touch This."
And it was a 2007 call to choreograph a soul/Motown show performance in Bethlehem that brought Patterson, a Los Angeles native, to the Lehigh Valley, where she met the love of her life.
"We had an hour and a half conversation in the car ride and we just talked like we knew each other forever."Tiffany Patterson
Dennis Saunders, a professional driver, was hired to pick her up in Philadelphia and take her to Musikfest — the nation's largest free music festival.
Musikfest each year produces millions of memories for attendees, and Patterson and Saunders are among couples who found love at the massive music festival in Bethlehem.
Musikfest concludes its 41st year today, Sunday, Aug. 11.
"We had an hour and a half conversation in the car ride and we just talked like we knew each other forever,” Patterson said.
“Then I didn't see him for three days, and then he came back over to see all the work we had done, and we exchanged numbers, and I went back to Cali after that.
"And we courted for a whole year and then after that, we were inseparable.”
Dancing through diagnosis
Eighteen years later, Patterson is a resident of Northampton, just a short distance away from the festival that brought her and Saunders together.
Patterson and Saunders' bond only grew stronger over the years and recently was tested when the pair was faced with a health crisis.
“Music will get you and carry you through anything."Tiffany Patterson
“In April of 2023 I got diagnosed with ovarian cancer. It was one of the scariest things of my life," Patterson said. "I had never had surgery, never been in that hospital, always been fit.
"We just took the diagnosis head on, early detection. We prayed together. We have a motto, ‘If you pray together, you stay together.’"
Patterson said her relationship with Saunders was her rock through treatments. Under the care of Lehigh Valley Topper Cancer Institute and with the love of her doting husband, Patterson beat cancer.
"I may have lost my hair, but I have not lost my love for life and people,” she said.
She also was recognized this spring among Lehigh Valley Health Network's Champions at their Champion's Gala.
Now, as the couple celebrates 18 years together, they said they are reminded every August of how Musikfest brought them together.
“Music will get you and carry you through anything,” Patterson said with a smile.
