RILEY OLSON - Key Persons
Ms. Aimee grew up in Dallas Center where she danced at an young age, and then switched over to tumbling recreationally and competitively. During high school, she participated in soccer, cheerleading, and competitive tumbling where she competed at the state and national levels winning numerous titles. Aimee worked for Grimes Superstars when it was first established in Grimes teaching tumbling and cheerleading. Ms. Aimee recently moved back to Dallas Center with her husband and two children, Daniel and Kaia where she is a stay at home mom. She is very excited to be back teaching tumbling and cheerleading!
Ashlee started dancing when she was 3 years old and began competing when she was 8 years old. During her dance career, Ashlee performed in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, competed at the Dance Worlds twice, and was a UDA National Champion in 2017. Her favorite styles of dance to compete in are tap, jazz, and pom. Ashlee is a student at Grand View University and is majoring in Communication Media Practice and Spanish for Business Professionals. She is also on the dance team at Grand View and loves competing at the collegiate level. During her free time, Ashlee enjoys spending time with her friends and family and practicing her photography skills around the Des Moines area.
Ms. Kelsy started dancing at the age of 3, tumbling at the age of 4, twirling baton at the age of 10 and cheering at the age of 11. She enjoyed competing with her teams in each, as well as competing as a soloist. Kelsy is a national champion with her former dance and baton teams, a national champion soloist in baton, as well as a 2-time junior Olympic gold medalist for baton. Kelsy graduated from DMACC with an AA degree and Grand View University with a Bachelors in Psychology. While attending GVU she was a part of the dance team and often performed fire baton routines at football games. Kelsy is now working towards her Masters in Forensic Psychology. Kelsy lives in Lamoni and loves spending time with her 4 dogs Bella, Freya, Chloe and Trixie, as well as her horses, Rio and Lucky.
Miss. Lettie joined the Grimes family as the office manager in 2014. She graduated with both an Associate degree from DMACC as well as her Bachelor's from Iowa State University in Horticulture but decided that once her daughters were born, she would find a job that allowed her to spend as much time with them as possible. As luck would have it, they both have settled into the studio as both recreational and company dancers. Lettie is happily married and loves being mom to Emma and Carly. Miss. Lettie is proud to not only manage the office duties here but also be considered a friend, confidant, and bonus mom to many of the dancers.
Lorainna Nedved has been a dancer since the age of three. She was raised in her local studio in Exira, Iowa and danced on her high school team. During high school she not only performed with the All Iowa Honor Drill Team for 3 years, but also performed the Outback Bowl and Citrus Bowl halftime and pre- game shows. While studying dance at Iowa State University and taking part in many dance, theatre and musical productions both as a performer and choreographer she met her future husband and soon after the moved to Des Moines. That is when she began teaching for the Superstars in both their Norwalk and Grimes locations. Lorainna has taught everything from tap to jazz, to hip hop to cheerleading, tumbling and everything in between. She was the director for the Grimes Superstars Competition Team since its birth in 2004. When it was time to start a family she retired from coaching cheer to focus solely on teaching dance and spending more time with family. She has continued to run the Competition Dance program and in 2018 became the Studio Director for the Grimes Superstars. When the ownership group of the Superstars was ready to retire there was no question as to whether or not Lorainna would take over the studio. Owning and running a studio had been her dream since high school and she was not going to let the opportunity slip away. Lorainna takes extra care of her students not only in their dance paths but in their paths to becoming successful young adults. Her passion for teaching has led her to also share her love and knowledge of dance as the Coach for the DCG Varsity Dance Team and Choreographer for the Urbandale Community Theatre. She has done choreography for many high school cheer teams, dance teams, show choirs and national level pageants but has always put the Superstars first. She is excited to continue to teach and help her students become the best dancers and individuals that they can be. Teaching them not only dance but sportsmanship, teamwork, dedication, responsibility and confidence in themselves.
Ms. Jenny Zimmerman earned a B.A. in Business Management with a Minor in Dance from the University of Northern Iowa. During her time there, she was a member of the Orchesis Dance Company and Young People's Dance Theatre. She is a certified Pilates Instructor and has her State of Iowa Coaching Certification and Substitute Teaching Authorization. She has been with Grimes Superstars since they opened, and owned the studio from 2007-2013 until she moved to Missouri and then Arizona, following her husband's career path. Ms. Jenny is so happy to be back in Iowa and at the Superstars! Ms. Jenny lives in Ankeny with her husband Matt and their three daughters - Ella, Olive, and Izzy.
Ms. Sami fell in love with dance at the age of three when she started with Just For Kix in Mason City Iowa. Sami danced for the Mohawk Danzers at Mason City High School and also in community college for the NIACC Trojan Dance Team. She competed for five years at the ISDTA competition, winning several awards including judges choice for hip hop in 2016. Sami's journey with dance has taught her determination, patience, team work and the importance of being coachable. Her experience with dance and the relationships she has created through the dance community has truly shaped the person she is today. She graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with a degree in Marketing and minor in Entrepreneurship. When Sami is not in the studio she loves to spend time with her family, try new restaurants and go for walks with her dog Sophie. She is excited to start sharing her passion for dance with the students at BPDA!
Ms. Sarah grew up nearby in Pella, Iowa where she began dancing at three years old and continued at her studio all the way through high school. During her high school years Sarah danced on the Pella Community Schools dance team, Forté, competing both as a member of the team and as a soloist at the ISDTA competitions. Her experience in the studio and on dance team helped grow her technique and expanded her exposure to different genres of dance. Following high school, Sarah took her passion for dance with her as she began college at Northwestern in Orange City, IA. At Northwestern, she competed with their dance team at the NAIA level, eventually becoming a captain and choreographer for the team. Sarah graduated from Northwestern in 2020 with a degree in both Spanish and athletic training. Along with her experience as a dancer, Sarah has experience as a dance teacher at studios in the Orange City and Pella areas. Recently, Sarah moved to Grimes, where she lives with her husband and she will begin graduate school at Drake University in the fall.