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Tough season coming up The whispering starts as soon as Jennifer Blackburn arrives at any Highland Dancing competition. Oh no, Jennifer's here," cry the other competitors in the always- smiling 11 year old's class. They know how good Jennifer is. They've seen how straight her back is, how high she can jump, how well she executes all the de- manding Highland dances, every- thing from the sword dance, to the seann triubhas, the Irish jig, and the Blue Bonnet. With only four years of instruc- tion under her belt, Jennifer has become a force to be reckoned with. Her Jarents' Port Perry home overflows with trophies. She has more gold medals than she can count. No wonder her competitors cringe whenever they see Jennifer coming. In April 1987, the Star featured Jennifer in a front page story, de- tailling her awards as a dancer in the Beginner and Novice classes. In her first competition as a No- vice, Jennifer won a gold medal. Jennifer has come a long way since then, but she's still win- ning. Last autumn she finished her ca- reer in the Advanced Intermediate class and for the first time, she competed in the extremely de- manding Open class for her age group. Her debut Open class competi- tion was at Dundurn Castle in Ha- milton. She was first in her class with four gold medals, and was gues spec 3 AL 3 noe 800%, 5.108815 ages ne woos Le a fr 5 sos eR OT pot S 30078 hod 1 oder CENTRAL PAINT & WALLPAPER 295 RITSON ROAD SOUTH, OSHAWA 434-3939 -- it named Dancer of the Day. Since the last Star article, Jenni- fer has won at least 68 gold med- als--maybe more, because she's lost count. She takes lessons at Gillian's Highland Dancing School in Osh- was, practises up to two hours each day and competes nearly eve- ry weekend of the year. This summer will be an espe- cially tough one for Jennifer. The Open class is judged mercilessly and in order to win, dancers must . look and dance their very best. Her mom Marion, herself a for- mer Highland dancer in Edin- burgh, Scotland, says, "It's very demanding. Once they're into the Open class, the judges get very, very picky." It Jennifer wins the Ontario championships being held in June, she will represent Ontario in the Inter-Provincial contest, an an- nual Canada wide competition be- ing held this year in New Brun- swick. If Jennifer does extremely well in the Inter-Provincial, she could be named Canadian rep, which would mean she would represent Canada at the world famous tattoo REDWOOD -- PINE -- FIR VINYL -- ALUMINUM ines Looe FA *DISCOUNT PRICES* RR4, UXBRIDGE Durham No. 23, just s. of 47 (a16) 852-7722 held in Scotland. That was Jennifer's dream in 1987, and it still is today. Marion Blackburn says her chances of competing in Scotland are slim, but "She may shock us. I don't know." Jennifer agrees "It would be a (eep shock," if she went to Scot- But she's fairly confident that if she doesn't make it to Scotland this year, she'll make it the next. Although it might sound like winning 1s everything to this ar- ticulate young lady, it isn't. She is known for taking a loss with good humour and dignity. "A loss is a loss, and a win is a win," she shrugged, smiling. "You can always try again." Winning is easier when her fa- ther is around. Jennifer claims, "My Dad's my good-luck charm." An extremely busy person, Jen- More wins for Highland Dancer nifer gets good grades at Immacu- late &oncoption Catholic School and also enjoys singing. She is studying voice with Grace Hast- ings of Port Perry. Her favourite singer is Whitney Houston and Jennifer imitates her every chance she gets. She has also sung O Canada at the Scugog Arena for the opening of a few hockey games, and frank- ly admits the MoJacks players are "cute." * She was thrilled when all the team members gave her a hockey stick with their autographs on it. The stick is kept with the rest of her most treasured possessions- -photograph albums loaded with snapshots of her dancing, Whitney - Houston recordings, and, of course, her many trophies. If Jennifer keeps up the way she is going, there will be many more. So what's an award-winning Highland Dancer doing with a hockey stick? Jennifer Blackburn, one of Onta- rio"s top dancers, Is also a devoted ModJacks fan. Once In a while she sings O Canada at MoJacks games and the guys must think she's pretty good be- cause they autographed a hockey stick and present- ed it to her--now it Is one of Jennifer's most prized possessions. -- = 'VALUABLE COUPON: -- -- -- -VALUABLE COUPON ~ -- -- VALUABLE COUPON- -- ~ LIMITED TIME OFFER 1.00 rr MEDIUM 3 Items or More SQUARE BOY PIZZA Coupon not Valid With Any Other Offer 2 LIMITED TIME OFFER |. 900 LARGE 3 Items or More SQUARE BOY PIZZA Coupon not Valid 9 With Any Other Offer \' LIMITED TIME OFFER 2.00 0rr EXTRA LARGE 3 Items or More SQUARE BOY PIZZA Coupon not Valid With Any Other Offer ) J JS SIE THR GEE GEE NS WE ID GN SES GED GNF WE aE aE ee Ie N =e) 80 WATER STREET PORT PERRY, ONT. 985-8448 FREE DELIVERY ON PIZZA (IN TOWN ONLY) BE GENEROUS WHEN YOU SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL Building Fund JACK BEAL INCOME TAX Guaranteed Returns from $16. LAKE SCUGOG LUMBER - UPSTAIRS OFFICE - Mon.-Fri. 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM EXCEPT THURSDAY 285-3688