Honoring Our Utah West Coast Swing Legacy: The Heart Behind UPLIFT – West Coast Swing with Meaning, a 4th Friday Social

There are moments in life when something familiar suddenly feels new again, like a song you’ve heard a hundred times but only now understand. West Coast Swing has been that melody in my life for nearly three decades. From the first day I walked into a social dance, nervous and unsure of myself, to the years I spent competing, training, and later teaching… this dance has been a quiet thread woven through every chapter of my story.

But lately, I’ve been feeling a shift, a pull toward something deeper, something more connected, something that reflects the way dance has healed my nervous system, opened my heart, and brought me back to myself again and again.

That shift is what sparked the creation of UPLIFT – West Coast Swing with Meaning, Dance to Uplift’s new monthly social launching January 23rd at Gio Danceworld in Pleasant Grove. But before I share the “what,” I want to share the “why.”

Because the story of UPLIFT didn’t begin with me.

It began long before any of us walked onto a dance floor.

It began with the beautiful roots of West Coast Swing in Utah.

And honoring those roots, honoring the people, the legacy, the love, is at the heart of this new chapter.

The Quiet Power of Coming Home to Your Body

If you’ve followed my work for any length of time, you know this: I believe deeply in the healing power of movement. Dance is art, yes, but it is also therapy. It’s nervous system regulation. It’s breathwork. It’s connection without words. It’s the moment your body remembers it’s safe to soften, to play, to feel joy again.

For many of us, especially women in their 30s, 40s, 50s, and beyond, dance becomes a doorway back to ourselves. Back to passion. Back to connection. Back to the parts of us that became quiet because life asked us to survive, not breathe.

West Coast Swing has held me through some of the hardest seasons of my life. It taught me to trust. To listen. To be present. To love my body as it is today, not the version I thought I had to be.

So when I dreamed of creating a dance space of my own, I knew it had to be something more than just steps and patterns.

It had to be meaningful.

Intentional.

Healing.

Uplifting.

And I wanted that space to honor the roots that made all of this possible.

Honoring the Utah West Coast Swing Legacy

Utah has a rich and beautiful West Coast Swing history, one built on passion, consistency, and the willingness of ordinary people to show up week after week, year after year. What we have today didn’t appear out of nowhere. It grew through decades of dedication, leadership, and love.

In 1987, Pam Genovesi took her first West Coast Swing lesson from Ken Box, setting into motion a community none of them could yet imagine.

By 1988, Vicki Bos was stepping into leadership roles in community education classes, quietly nurturing something that would soon take root.

In 1989, Pam began teaching West Coast Swing, and Vicki began expanding social dance at BYU. What started as simple curiosity became a movement.

Throughout the early 1990s, Utah dancers started attending WSDC events. Sonja and Scott Morgan began competing and bringing home titles. Momentum was building.

By 1994, Pam was hosting West Coast Swing Tuesdays at the Westerner, an event that, through several venue changes, eventually found its home at the MAC, where it remained for more than 17 years.

By the mid-1990s, Pam Genovesi was expanding opportunities for dancers by hosting UCWDC events in Utah, which introduced Bryan and Michelle Ackerman to country dance, an experience that would spark the beginning of their long and impactful dance journey.

In 1997, the Fire and Ice Dance Team was born under the direction of Bryan and Michelle Ackerman. Over time, the team and many of its individual members would go on to earn more than 25 world titles, bringing national recognition to Utah’s dancers. Along with bringing out Robert Royston to train dancers.

From 1997 to 2004, dancers such as Jeremy Burgess, Shalay Branch Andrus, Matt and Camie Webb, Melanie Wirfs, Lance Gerber, Bill Wright, and Dan and Emily Harshberger danced with Fire and Ice, helping strengthen Utah’s presence in the national swing community.

In 2002–2003, new leadership emerged as Alan Smith launched another swing club, serving as President with Lance Gerber as Vice President. Around the same time, Jim Minty began hosting workshops attended by dancers like Sherri Rice, Sherry Zemlick, Pam Genovesi, Ellen Lindsay, Melanie Wirfs, Martin King, Lance Gerber, and Dan Beasley, further expanding training and education.

By 2003, Dan Beasley stepped into the role of Swing Club President, helping guide the community through its next phase of growth.

Between 2002 and 2008, Spring Fling became a beloved annual event coordinated by Bill and Ella Hazelwood, Layne and Julie Linford, and George Bradley, later carried on by Ellen Lindsay, Wally, and Julie Workman, each adding their own love and leadership to the tradition.

In 2004, Dan Beesley and Lance Gerber launched the Friday West Coast Swing dance, which soon moved to the MAC in SLC.

Between 2004 and 2008, Pam also hosted an Invitational event, supported later by Dan, Lance, B.J., and Eryn Woolston, keeping the community engaged and inspired.

By 2006, Kirk Gamble had moved to Utah and begun teaching at the Apollo before relocating his classes to the Westerner. Shortly after, he and Aimee began competing in the UCWDC circuit, earning multiple first overall world titles and bringing even greater visibility to Utah’s dancers.

In that same year, B.J. Woolston took over Lance’s portion at the MAC, while, with the support of Kirk and Aimee and Social Dance Connection, Shalay Branch Andrus began hosting Workshop Weekends, bringing in pros like Stephanie McHenry Batista to elevate and inspire the local dance community.

By October 2008, Kim Leung stepped into Dan’s role at the MAC, marking the beginning of Smooth Swing SLC with B.J. Woolston as President, followed by leaders like Shalay Branch Andrus, Adrianna Tolley, and eventually Matt Webb.

In 2009, DanceUtah emerged, along with a new Saturday night West Coast Swing dance, Westify, adding yet another space for dancers to gather and grow. WESTIFY also hosted many local events with the help of Charice Montgomery, Kim Leung, James Cook, Ed and Mindy Halladay, Shalay Branch Andrus, and more.

Throughout 2009, Smooth Swing, with the help of the club and Mindy and Ed Halladay, brought in professional dancers such as Terry Roseborough, Kara, Miguel DeSouza, and Yeni for workshop weekends, each one expanding the community’s skill and connection, and more.

By 2010, Kirk and Aimee had moved their classes from the Westerner to Ballroom Utah, continuing their influence in shaping the next generation of dancers.

Throughout 2010 - 2012, Shalay Branch Andrus hosted professional dancers Wendy Miller, John Lindo, Jessica Cox McCurdy, Ben Morris, and Melissa Rutz, ushering in a season rich with training, inspiration, and growth.

Later, the dance was expanded to Utah County through a dance run in Provo by James Cook (I believe around 2013).

Then, in the years that followed, Good Vibes was born, a space created with so much heart by Matt and Camie Webb. Their studio became a home for countless dancers and a catalyst for growth in Utah County. They also brought JT Swing Teams to Utah, opening the door for local dancers to train with one of the most influential team programs on the West Coast Swing scene. Their work added a new level of inspiration, community, and opportunity to the Utah dance scene.

During these years, Kim Leung created three T's hosted at BallroomUtah.

Each one adding depth, life, and warmth to a community that has now spanned generations.

This community grew because people cared.

Because they believed in the power of partner dance.

Because they believed in creating a place where people could belong.

And even though our styles, studios, and techniques have evolved, one thing has never changed:

The heart of Utah’s West Coast Swing community has always been connection.

The leaders who came before us carried that heart.

We dance today because of them.

And we are standing on a foundation built with love.

Why UPLIFT? Why Now?

Over the past few years, especially as I’ve deepened my work in somatic healing, breathwork, and nervous system regulation. I’ve realized how much dance mirrors life.

When we learn to follow better, we often learn to trust more.

When we learn to lead with clarity, we often learn to communicate better.

When we learn to breathe through connection, we learn to soften the parts of us that’ve been holding on too tightly.

This is what Dance to Uplift is built on.

For a long time, I truly believed my role in this community would stay centered around my classes and one-on-one instruction, helping individuals and couples grow through dance, working with the nervous system, and guiding people back into their bodies with intention and meaning. That felt like my lane, my calling, my contribution.

And then came the unexpected announcement from my dear friends, Matt and Camie Webb, about the closure of Good Vibes.

It shook me more than I anticipated.

Not just because of the loss of a beloved space, but because it made me pause and truly sit with my why.

Why I teach.

Why I show up.

Why connection matters so deeply to me.

Why dance has been such a healing force in my life.

Their announcement opened something in me, a clarity I didn’t see coming. It reminded me that spaces like these matter. They shape people. They bring strangers together. They help us heal. And with Good Vibes closing, I felt a quiet but undeniable nudge that now was the time for me to create a space where the dancers in my classes could continue growing, practicing, and meeting the beautiful humans who make up this Utah community.

So bringing the heart of Dance to Uplift into a social setting felt like the natural next step.

Not to replace what has ever been, and certainly not to compete with anyone, but to add to the fabric of what this community has built for nearly four decades.

To honor the legacy, not rewrite it.

To continue the heartbeat, not overshadow it.

To offer a space of meaning, intention, and connection, not just movement.

That’s how UPLIFT – West Coast Swing with Meaning was born.

A space that feels safe, grounded, joyful, and deeply connected.

A social that welcomes brand-new dancers and seasoned competitors alike.

A night built on gratitude for where we’ve been and excitement for where we’re going.

What UPLIFT Will Be

UPLIFT is more than a dance; it’s an experience.

Here’s what you can expect:

1. A Grounded, Connection-Focused Lesson

Each month begins with a lesson designed not just to teach technique, but to teach presence, listening, and connection. This month’s theme:

“Level Up Your Connection,” A lesson blending connection tools, body awareness, and the foundations of West Coast Swing.

2. Music that Feels Like a Conversation

With seasoned DJ Westie Kim curating the playlist, the room will feel both energizing and safe. Music that supports connection, playfulness, and flow.

3. A Welcoming Community

Whether you’re brand new or returning after years away, you belong here. There is space for you. Your energy matters. Your presence makes the dance richer.

4. A Space Designed for Meaning

Every month has an intention. A theme.Something to anchor you into the deeper layers of dance and connection.

5. A Tribute to Our Roots

We wouldn’t be here without the leaders who came before us.

UPLIFT is created in their honor.

With reverence.

With gratitude.

With love.

A Note of Gratitude

To every person who has taught a class, DJed a night, opened a venue, hosted a workshop, trained a competitor, encouraged a beginner, organized an event, or kept this dance alive when life got busy:

Thank you.

Your dedication built the very community UPLIFT now joins.

We carry your legacy forward with so much respect and appreciation.

UPLIFT Launch Details

Opening NightFriday, January 23rd

Gio Danceworld – Pleasant Grove, UT

8:00 PM — “Level Up Your Connection” Lesson w/ Shalay Andrus

9:00–12:00 — Social Dancing

DJ: Westie Kim

$12 Social Only$10 preregistered via Venmo @DanceToUplift

$15 Lesson + Social

Hosted with love by Dance to Uplift.

UPLIFT – West Coast Swing with Meaning is launching to honor our roots, celebrate Utah’s rich West Coast Swing legacy, and create a space where dance becomes healing, joyful, intentional, and connected. This new social is built on gratitude, especially for the leaders who shaped this community long before today.

Ready to Dance With Us?

If your heart is craving more connection…

If you’re ready to rebuild confidence through movement…

If you’ve been longing for a dance space grounded in meaning…

Join us for opening night.

Let’s honor the past, celebrate the present, and uplift one another into a new chapter of West Coast Swing in Utah County.

Your body is ready. Your heart is ready. And this community is ready to welcome you.

Live in Love. Move with Meaning. Play Passionately.

Shalay