#wikiproject

I decided to update an existing page that was actually created for an old mentor of mine Shirley Larkin. Mrs. Larkin was one of my personal idols growing up and an amazing woman. She started Larkin Dance Studio as a high school student and created a business that has endured nearly 70 years. It has always been amazing to me that in a time when women were not necessarily going out and starting businesses she did just that with her special combination of talent, innovation and dedication.

I danced at Larkin Dance Studio from the ages of 2-18 and the lessons I learned from Mrs. Larkin and her studio made me the person I am today. When we first got started with this project I was hunting to find a woman who was significant to me in some way whose Wiki page could use some more information. I came across Mrs. Larkin’s page in the search and it became very important to me to try to convey (within the bounds of Wikipedia sourcing and opinion rules) just how amazing and inspiring she was.

Using a variety of newspaper and magazine articles as my sources I added content to her page mainly focusing on the legacy she created in the form of her studio and every student who was lucky enough to grow up “Dancing the Larkin Way”. Before I added anything to the page it was really more of a shell of her accomplishments and impact, but I believe that my additions add more to the narrative of her life and the wide-reaching effect she had. My main goals were to show

1.     The impact she had the studio community

2.     The wide reaching legacy she created that has benefited thousands of kids throughout the years

I added a paragraph on her reputation as the “Matriarch of Dance” which I thought really captured the first goal of my revisions. This was a woman who is well known to have created one of the first successful studio structures for competitive dance, as we know it today. Her legacy is what makes her special.

 Another important addition was the quote from Darryl Fink, the producer of one of the largest studio dance competitions in the nation. In an article for the Pioneer Press he called her “A legend in children’s dance” which helped accomplish my second goal of the edit. The final addition that I thought was particularly significant was on the success of the studio and more importantly it’s success in raising dancers who truly love what they do and choose to pursue their passions after leaving Larkin.

 “The studio is known to be very successful and after graduation many Larkin dancers continue their passion for dance by pursuing professional careers, college dance teams, or teaching/ coaching among other things.”