EAST LONGMEADOW – Pioneer Gymnastics is celebrating more than 50 years in business.

The gymnastics center was founded in 1966 and was located in Springfield before moving to 45 Maple St. in East Longmeadow during the 1970s.

Danielle McKinnon, who has owned Pioneer Gymnastics for the past 12 years, told Reminder Publications she grew up doing gymnastics at the location. She first started taking gymnastics at the age of 4 or 5.

“I had the same coach, [Leo Leger], the whole time I was here – he was the owner, and once I returned home from college I started working part-time for him and then it turned into me taking over the business for him,” she explained.

She added the gymnastic center’s mission is to “inspire, unlock, and enable every child’s potential” by giving students an individualized experience.

“It’s really important that every child, no matter what their ability, leaves here feeling good about themselves and with a smile on their face and is learning something fun,” McKinnon noted.

She added she has a lot of happy memories from when she was a child taking gymnastic classes at the center.

“Gymnastics for me was a huge part of my life and I have a lot of happy memories from being here,” she noted. “And I hope that I can take those experiences and let other children experience that. Gymnastics is a great sport. If it’s something that you’re going to pursue, like I did, for your whole life, it’s also a great foundation athletically for children to get into.”

She added she learned time management skills and met lifelong friends growing up taking gymnastics.

The classes and programs offered at Pioneer Gymnastics include gymnastics for younger ages ranging from 12 months to 5 years old and up, and for student ages 10 years and older, tumbling for cheerleaders and cheer teams, taekwondo classes, summer camps, team gymnastics, and school vacation camps.

McKinnon said the center started offering taekwondo a couple of years after she took over the business.

“It’s been growing and it’s been great,” she added. “It’s something that fits in with the gymnastics and it also gives boys something other than gymnastics to do.”

There have been numerous renovations during the past 12 years, she said. The center continues to invest in new equipment and renovations year after year.

“Since I took over it’s been totally renovated from top to bottom, but we’re continuously trying to make it better,” McKinnon noted.