Hannah Davis, Bethany Slovensky and Jaylee Sweazea spent a combined total of 39 years as members of Janet’s Dance Studio.
But all of that is coming to an end for the Montgomery County residents as they are spending their final year at the Mexico dance studio.
“This is like my home,” Slovensky said. “I’ve been here every week for the past 16 years. I don’t even know what to do now. They’re just like my family.”
On the evening of Feb. 28, Slovensky, Davis and Sweazea were among eight seniors who had their final dance practice at Janet’s. At the end of practice, Slovensky hugged a very emotional classmate named Samantha Martin, who has been Slovensky’s tumbling teammate for eight years.
“I hugged Sam when she was crying,” Slovensky said. “That makes it all worth it. I liked to know that I touched someone like they touched me.”
Slovensky, Davis and Sweazea are members of a dance studio that offers dance classes for boys and girls ages 3-18. Janet Graham is the owner/teacher of the studio, which was founded in 1980.
Sweazea said for anyone who is interested in dancing, Janet’s Dance Studio is the best place to go to.
“I would say if they want a dedicated and supportive family, they should come here,” Sweazea said.
Davis has been a member of Janet’s for eight years. She said she learned how to do many kinds of dances such as tap, jazz and lyrical during her time at the studio.
“It teaches a lot of different stuff like life skills,” Davis said. “It’s not just dancing. It’s like a part of you.”
Sweazea and Davis are seniors at Montgomery County High School, while Slovensky is a senior at Wellsville-Middletown. Sweazea lives in Montgomery City, Davis lives in Bellflower and Slovensky resides in New Florence.
“It’s pretty cool saying that I get to dance all the way in Mexico coming from Montgomery,” Sweazea said.
On Feb. 12, Davis and Sweazea did a performance with several other members of Janet’s at halftime of the Montgomery County girls basketball game against Elsberry at MCHS.
“It was interesting to do our last halftime performance at our own school,” Sweazea said.
Slovensky joined Janet’s Dance Studio when she was 3 years old. She said Graham has been very helpful to her during her 16 years at the studio.
“She raised me,” Slovensky said. “She was like my second mom. She’s my biggest role model. I think I’m the way I am because of Miss Janet and I’m truly thankful for her.”
Slovensky said her time at the studio definitely helped succeed in sports at W-M. She earned seven all-state medals in track, received four all-Eastern Missouri Conference awards in basketball and made three trips to the state cross country meet.
“I think I’m a good athlete because of dance,” Slovensky said. “It helped me through everything.”
Sweazea has been a member at Janet’s for 15 years. She participated in a dance studio in Fulton before joining Janet’s.
“I’ve been doing this for so many years that it kind of grew with me,” Sweazea said. “I can’t imagine myself without it.”
Davis was participating in a dance studio in Vandalia for three years before joining Janet’s in 2016.
“Jaylee and I go to the same school and she was like, ‘You should come here.’ And I did,” Davis said. “Honestly, I dedicated all of my Mondays and Wednesdays to it and sometimes Sundays. Now that I’m done, I’m kind of like, ‘Oh, now those days are free of the week. I don’t have a reason to come up here anymore.’”
Davis, Slovensky and Sweazea will do their last performance at 7 p.m. on March 8 at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. on March 9 at Missouri Military Academy.
Davis said the best part about being a member of Janet’s Dance Studio is doing recitals.
“At recitals, you kind of forget about everything and you just put it all out on the stage,” Davis said. “Then, you have the adrenaline rush of the crowd cheering for you. It’s kind of like your own moment on stage.”
Next year, Slovensky will head to State Fair Community College to compete in track, Sweazea will attend the University of Central Missouri and major in nursing and Davis will go to Moberly Area Community College.
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