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Visit in sidehalton.com for m ore coverage Irish dancers to compete at 'Olympics' of dance Fourteen dancers from the Goggin-Car- roll School of Irish Dance in Oakville will be competing at the World Irish Dance Cham­ pionships in Glasgow later this month. More than 4,000 dancers and 20,000 fami­ ly and friends will descend on Glasgow for the competition. Dancers will be coming from the United States, Mexico, Ireland, Great Britain, Europe, Australia, New Zea­ land, South Africa and across Canada. They'll showcase years of hard work, perse­ verance, tenacity, artistry and athleticism at the "Olympics" of Irish dance. The local dancers will be dancing in pubs and seniors homes around Oakville on St. Patrick's Day. D a n c e r b io s : Lauren Pope, 16, has been dancing at Goggin-Carroll since the age of five. Her older cousin Siobhan O'Brien's love for the sport sparked her interest in Irish dance. During her dance career she has competed all over Eastern Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. in many major competitions such as the Eastern Canadian Irish Dance Champi­ onships, the North American Irish Dance Championships and the Great Britain Irish Dance Championships. Lauren placed in the top five in her age group this year at the Eastern Canadian Championships earning the chance to go to the World Irish Dance Championships in Glasgow. She owes a lot of her success to her teachers Barb Goggin, Ryan Carroll, Lauren Giannone, Rebecca Stewart, Janet Tosh and Brittany Silla for never giving up on her and for all the sup­ port. Lauren is currently a Grade 11 student at St. Ignatius of Loyola in Oakville. Sophie Prevost, 17, began her Irish Dance career 11 years ago. She has qualified for Worlds consistently for the past five years. Sophie is thrilled to be representing Gog­ gin-Carroll at this year's world champion­ ships. Jack Kukolic, 15, did his first competition at age eight. He has competed at both Cana­ dian and North American nationals, in solo and team competitions, and this is his fourth appearance at the Worlds. When he's not dancing, he enjoys hockey, theatre, pho­ tography and cinematography. He hopes to be a photographer or cinematographer one day. Brenna Allore, 17, is a Grade 12 student at Holy Trinity Catholic High School in Oak­ ville. She began dancing when she was sev­ en, following in the footsteps of her two old­ er sisters. As a team dancer, Brenna has multiple golds. As a solo dancer, she med­ alled for the second consecutive year at the Eastern Canadian Irish Dance Champion­ ships in November 2017. Brenna will be at­ tending her second world championships. Rachel Hennessy, 15, started dancing with the Goggin-Carroll School of Irish Dance at the age of seven, competing at her first Eastern Canadian Championship at the age of nine. She loves to compete in team events, having won the North American Mixed Team title in Rhode Island in 2015 along with many Eastern Canadian Region­ al titles. She has also competed internation­ ally. Ava Vickers, 13, is in Grade 8. Ava began Irish dancing at the age of seven with the • See SIX, page 54 N ik k i W e s le y P h o to g ra p h y Fourteen dancers from The Goggin-Carroll School of Irish Dance in Oakville will be competing in March at the World Irish Dance Championships in Glasgow: front row, Ava Vickers, Amy Zenker and Abby Hennessy; middle row, Catherine Hoare, Rachel Hennessy and Brynna McVittie; back row, Lauren Pope, Gavin McCarthy-Willoughby, Sophie Prevost, Jack Kukolic and Brenna Allore. Not pictured are Josh Vilim, Jameson Kukolic and Emily Hambly. B e a t cash e m e rg e n c ie s w ith a C ash A d v a n c e . Available in-store, online, and wherever you're reading this ad. For details, visit us at: 2 4 6 0 N e y a g a w a B l v d 9 0 5 - 2 5 7 - 1 9 1 7 1 9 8 S p e e r s R d 9 0 5 - 3 3 8 - 6 0 0 0 We can help. MONEY MART® is a registered service mark of National Money Mart Company. © 2015 National Money Mart Company. All rights reserved. CLmis M a t United Way Halton & Hamilton C e C e f r r a U n g O u r J o u r n e y J in 'Evening of C elebration Th an k you fo r raising Game.'Changer Sponsors-'; Contributing Sponsors VIP-Reception Sponsor Supporting Sponsor Burlington I Halton Hills I Hamilton I Milton I O akvill £3 | O akville B eaver | Thursday, M arch 8, 2018 insidehalton.com Beat cash emergencies with a Cash Advance. Thank you for raising