Utah Scottish Highland dancers, trained in Taylorsville,travel to Boston and Scotland to compete
Oct 08, 2024 10:28AM ● By Carl Fauver
When the two older girls weren’t busy in Scottish Highland dance competitions, the Hollowell family spent time seeing sights and relatives in Scotland. (Photo courtesy Annie Hollowell)
The Taylorsville-based Crane School of Highland Dance has produced a national champion this year – following in the footsteps of Utah’s only other national champion:
her instructor.
Dr. Kelsey Deklerk opened her dance studio in 2012, the same year she moved to Taylorsville – three years after graduating from West Jordan High School. Her credentials for opening up shop are impressive, if not staggering. From 2004 to 2008, Deklerk was a national champion Scottish Highland dancer, 4 out of
5 years.
Our state had never had another national champion – before or since Deklerk’s dominance – until this year.
“I had five dancers qualify for the national finals in Boston this year,” Deklerk said. “They were all confident and performed very well. And Jay won her age 9 and under age group. She’s Utah’s second national champion.”
“Jay” would be Jacqueline Ritchie, who placed 5th in nationals a year ago before earning the top honor on July 20.
“It made me feel really happy (to win the national title) because it was only my second (U.S. finals) competition,” Ritchie said. “I feel like I did a good job. I’m proud of myself.”
Her mom, Lynee Ritchie reacted… well… just about how you’d expect.
“Oh, I was bawling; as it started looking like (winning the national championship) could be a reality, I was crying with excitement for her,” Lynee Ritchie said. “They tried to hand her the big trophy and she made a face at the judges like ‘I’m not sure I can hold that.’ Later, when we were walking through the Boston airport, we had to carry the trophy because it wouldn’t fit in a suitcase. People were looking at us – and we just pointed at Jay to tell them ‘She won it.’ It was a lot of fun. She was excited.”
To qualify for the national finals, Deklerk’s students had to place in the top three, in their age group, at a regional competition. The seven-state Utah region includes dancers from: Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming.
Dancer Madison Greenwood, 16, qualified for nationals from Deklerk’s school, but did not place in the top six in Boston.
Caroline Hollowell placed sixth in nationals in the same age bracket as Ritchie. This was her first time to compete in the U.S. championship.
Dancer Mauri Gunn finished fifth in the age 12-13 national competition. A year ago, at the national finals in Portland, Gunn
placed third.
Finally, Jane Hollowell (Caroline’s older sister) finished second in nationals this year, matching the second place finish she earned a year ago.
“I am so proud of how all my girls performed at nationals,” Deklerk concluded. “They’ve grown so much through dance. They know how to be gracious whether winning or losing and how to interact well with their competitors. They’ve learned dedication and perseverance. They’re stronger physically and have grown mentally. I’m happy for all of them.”
In all of her previous years operating the Crane School of Highland Dance, the national finals marked the end of their dance “season.” After some time off, the girls normally start to learn new dance steps in the fall and begin a new year of competition after the holidays. But this year was different – at least for some of
her girls.
“I have never had any of my students compete at the Highland Dance World Championships until now,” Deklerk said. “But this year, three of them, and their families, flew to Scotland to compete.”
Those three were national champion Jacqueline Ritchie and sisters Jane and Caroline Hollowell. The entourage also included both sets of parents and assorted siblings.
For the Hollowell family, the competition was new; but the trek was something they’ve done before.
“My husband Raymond was born and raised in Scotland and I met him while on a 6-month study abroad program there,” Annie Hollowell explained. “So, we have taken all four of our children to Scotland before. We visit Raymond’s mother and stepdad… his brother and his wife and kids. His grandmother is also still alive. They all live very close to
each other.”
Raymond and Annie met in 2009 and were married, here in Utah, in 2010.
“My husband was 25 when he moved to the states,” she added. “His Scottish heritage is very important to him. That’s why we’ve traveled over there frequently. It’s also why we encouraged our girls to get involved in Highland dancing. We didn’t know at the time their dancing would become such an important part of our lives. But it’s become a big deal for the girls and has blossomed into a wonderful thing for our whole family.”
Lynee Ritchie and her husband had also been to Scotland before, on vacation; but this would be the first visit for Jacqueline and her two younger sisters.
“We had already decided we were going to make the trip to the world finals in Scotland, even before Jay won the national championship,” Ritchie said. “Girls cannot actually compete for a world championship until age 12. But they do have competitions for the younger girls. We thought this would be a good experience for her – to give her confidence that she can compete against dancers from anywhere.”
When they weren’t busy at dance competitions, the two families found time to vacation together for part of their time in Scotland. On Jacqueline’s 10th birthday (Sept. 2) the families were together on a boat tour of Loch Ness. They may not have seen “Nessie,” but they did tour a medieval attraction on its shores, Urquhart Castle.
In her age 10 category, Jane Hollowell placed sixth in the Scottish Highland Dance world finals. She was the only one of Deklerk’s students to return from Europe with a trophy.
“Honestly, I was surprised I placed because my group was very hard,” Jane said. “I was proud of how I did. Dancing makes me happy because I get to make new friends. My goal is to be a national champion and to become a dance teacher and judge.”
Younger sister Caroline Hollowell says Scottish Highland dancing “Makes me feel strong and happy. Like my sister, I want to be a world champion and a dance teacher one day.”
By the way, the entire country of Scotland is barely more than a third the size of Utah: 30,997 square miles compared to 84,889. So, seeing most or all of the country in a relatively short time is not too difficult – except, perhaps, for one distinct challenge.
“We rented a car for the whole trip; but there was no way I was going to drive on the wrong side of the road,” Lynee Ritchie concluded. “And sitting on the right side of the car to drive? No way! But my husband drives like a pro – so we were fine.”
Anyone interested in learning more about Highland dance – or possibly enrolling a student – can contact Kelsey Deklerk at craneschoolofhighlanddance.com or (801) 837-2269. λ