GREENVILLE — Drew Lovejoy of Greenville, a ninth-grade student in Ohio Connections Academy (OCA) placed first in his age group in the 2010 All Ireland Irish Dance Championships two weeks ago in Ireland.

Drew, who celebrated his 15th birthday on Feb. 28, competed against Irish dances from all over the world and was named All Ireland champion for boys ages 14 and 15.

The son of Andee and Donald Goldberg of Greenville and Terrance Lovejoy of Georgia, the teen is currently ranked sixth in the world in Irish dancing and is the top Irish dancer in North America. He has been competing internationally for four years.

He is featured in the March issue of Irish Dancing and Culture Magazine.

Drew has been dancing for eight years and is a member of the McGing Irish Dancers out of Cincinnati.

His dance accomplishments include: Mid-America Oireachtas, first place in 2009 and 2007, second place in 2008 and third place in 2006; NANs, 11th place in 2007; World, sixth place in 2009 and 13th place in 2008; and All-Irelands, seventh place in 2009.

According to the magazine article in which he was featured, his biggest disappointment in dancing was in 2008 when he broke a bone in his foot and was in a boot for 10 weeks.

“I came back but only had about a month to learn a new reel, new hornpipe and new set,” he said. “At the time, I was disappointed that I dropped to second, but looking back, I realize that I did my very best that day.”

His goal, he said, is to be in the top 3 at the All-Irelands and Worlds.

“We were prepared for third, fourth or fifth, but we’ll take the win,” Andee remarked on her son’s recent accomplishment. “He’s never been in the top five before, but has been sixth.”

Why does he like Irish dancing? “I like competing and I make a lot of friends all over the world,” he replied. “I love the culture and Irish music. “

His favorite dance is the hornpipe, but noted he loves the speed of the reel.

Drew said he became interested in Irish dance when invited by a friend to a competition.

“I told Mom that’s what I want to do,” he recalled saying.

And, she was okay with that.

Andee said when Drew was young she got tired of watching Disney movies, so she bought some Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire movies, which he still finds himself watching.

“I always liked dancing,” said Andee, who herself was a competitive figure skater and cheerleader.

In three weeks, Drew and his mother will be leaving once again, this time to Scotland where he will compete in the world championship.

Drew competes individually most of the time, but does perform with an eight-person team at regionals and may do so at the All-American.

He gets in a lot of competition time in the summer, and sometimes has two on a weekend.

“We travel almost every weekend,” said Andee, who has been battling an illness for almost four years. “Now we put our money on major trips, two or three times a year.”

The family opted to go with the virtual academy because of all the traveling they do.

“We looked into other options and found the virtual school with Connections Academy,” Andee said . “He can school on weekends and evenings. He’s a straight-A student.”

His favorite subjects are math and history.

“He’s very political,” Andee offered.

“As a student in OCA, Drew can attend classes and complete and submit assignments anywhere there is an Internet connection,” said Heidi May, a spokesperson for the school. ” The flexibility of virtual learning enables Drew to get a quality public school education, while training for multiple hours every day and traveling around the world for competitions. In addition to Drew, more and more elite amateur athletes are turning to virtual public schools, which they (and their families) prefer to tutors or practicing at 4 a.m. before the start of a traditional public school day.”

“I am the first one from our academy that won the All-Ireland championship,” said Drew, who is almost 14 students who qualified from the OCA. “I’m the first bi-racial, Jewish Irish dancing champion. I’m the third North American to win the cup since 1764.”

Angela Tank, school outreach manager visiting the Goldberg house this week told Drew, “We are very excited and very proud. The teachers are very proud of you.”

His dancing, Tank said, gives Drew credit for physical education.

“Our whole life revolves around Drew,” said his mother. “I was a single parent working two or three jobs so he could dance. This is his love,…his passion. I get a lot of joy from watching him.”

She and husband Donald attended the same synagogue and married in 2004. The Goldbergs have lived in Greenville for six years, moving here for his job as a chemist at BASF.

The family considers other people as a part of Drew’s team; his trainer; podiatrist; and his four dance teachers.

“He’s on stage by himself, but we consider it a team effort,” Andee said.

The teen works out three days a week under the guidance of T.J. Paulus of Snap Fitness to work on his endurance, stamina and strength.

“I push myself so far to go faster on the tread mill and I put more weights on my legs,” Drew said.

“T.J. is an amazing mentor in the nutritional aspect,” Andee said. “T.J. has a lot of words of wisdom.

Dr. Rob Maher of Greenville takes care of Drew’s feet, ankles and toes.

“They treat him like an elite athlete,” Andee said. “We’re fortunate to have him and T.J.”

Drew attends dance class in Cincinnati at least four days a week and sometimes five or six days as a major competition nears. His teachers are Mary McGing, Terry Gillan, Christine Carey Steele and Sarah McGing.

While his mother goes with him abroad (six times a year for competitions), Drew’s father goes to some of the performances and also supports him.

“We refer to it as a three-parenting team,” said Andee. “Drew is a very disciplined kid. He doesn’t have much of a life outside of dance. This is purely his dream. It the same thing as raising an Olympian.”

His plan after graduation is to dance professionally for three to five years, then pay his own way through college and medical school. He wants to be a pediatrician, and has had that dream since about the age of 5 or 6 when he started playing with the doctor’s kit his mother had when a child.

“He loves kids and wants to work with kids,” Andee said.

“I love to travel,” said Drew, who would like to join a riverdance or Lord of the Dance troupes. “If I could, I would do it my whole life and everyday.”

“I’m surprised he stuck with it this long,” Andee said. “He played football and basketball. We talked about commitment when he wanted to start dancing, but I never thought he’d stay in it this long. There is something that comes over him when he’s on stage.”

Drew, who was born in Boston, is hoping to return there in 2011 when the U.S. Nationals are held there. He will be a senior.

The Goldbergs are trying to find sponsors to cover $10,000, a portion of their annual expenses. That includes the cost of international flights, lodging and transportation while abroad.

The family will cover the other costs, which include Drew’s costumes and tuition.

“Some people have donated hotel points and frequent flyer miles to us,” she said. “I have applied for a Darke County Center for the Arts grant and a grant from the Ohio Performing Arts. We also have fundraisers, and Drew has received $500 from his teachers.

If people would like to donate to his travel expenses, checks can be made payable to Drew Lovejoy and can be mailed to him at P.O. Box 21, Greenville, Ohio 45331