FLEMING ISLAND – When Josef Smith was paired with professional dancer Julie Korsog for the Rotary Club Clay Can Dance, he told her he had never danced before.

“But he said he if he was going to do it, he was going to try his hardest,” she said. “He told me he didn’t know how to dance, so I decided to throw a lot at him.”

With less than two months to learn, Korsog gave Smith incorporated homework with their twice-a-week lessons ahead of the competition at Sullivan Hall on Saturday, April 11.

The result was a resounding performance to Ike and Tina Turner’s “Proud Mary” that stirred some to stand and cheer – and prompted all three professional judges to issue perfect scores of 10.

“One team absolutely was clearly the best: Josef and Julie,” said judge Shelia Wishard.

Their routine started slowly. They methodically moved across the dance floor in black clothing during the soulful opening of the song. But when the song suddenly shifted to an intense, high-energy pace, Smith and Korsog peeled their top layer of clothing to reveal sparkling pink. Better yet, their jive routine and energy moves matched their outfits.

“Josef was awesome,” Korsog said.

The key to their success was YouTube videos, she said. There wasn’t enough time to teach and re-teach all the moves necessary to perfect the routine, she said. So, she gave him a list of videos to watch and practice at home.

Apparently, the member and President-Elect of the Green Cove Springs club was a good student.

“You were smiling the whole time, even when you walked over here you didn’t really look like you were breathing hard,” Wishard said. “There was a lot of energy. The fact that you had a costume change really worked out well for me. I have to say that was a 10.”

The Rotary Clubs from Orange Park Sunrise, Sunset, Noon, Green Cove Springs and Fleming Island combined for the dance competition to raise money to support the Clay County District School’s Career Technical Education Scholarship programs. The event also included a silent auction and dinner prepared by the CTE culinary class from Ridgeview High.

The event had 12 stars in total, including: Thomas Schwarz, Erica Humbert, Teresa Scott, Jeremiah Aut, Susana Bentley, Talitha Chestnut, Jenielle Holderfield, Dr. Susan Legutko and Raeanne McCarty, from the five clubs and professionals from Fred Astaire Dance Studios, Dance Center International and Absolute Dance Studio. Other professional dancers included William and Anne Brand, Sho Rich, Stanislaw, Michael Singleton and Tatiana Alekseev.

Josie Schiazza and Aleks Alekseev also scored a perfect 30 from the three judges while dancing to a montage of “Grease” songs. The judges, however, picked Smith and Korsog in a tiebreaker.