Danish import
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When Jeanette Eilskov Karnil Geslison came to Brigham Young University almost 22 years ago, it was with the intention of staying for one year and then returning to her native Denmark. But somewhere along the way life happened and plans changed. To this day, she still lives in Provo – even teaching, in fact, for the same BYU Folk Dance program she once studied in.
"I came to the [United] States as an international student from Denmark in 1987," Sister Geslison said. "I was just going to come for a year and take dance classes.
"I'm a dancer, and I got involved in the folk dance program [at BYU] and loved it and thought, 'Oh, I'd really want to be part of the touring group.' But I realized I couldn't do that if I was just going to stay for one year. I thought, 'If I decide I'm going to stay a second year, maybe I'll have a chance.' So I decided I was going to come back for a second year, and that second year I was accepted into the touring group."
Danish roots
The Church background of Sister Geslison's family is uniquely interesting. Both her parents are converts. Her father, Eddie Karnil, was an actor who changed his name from Sorenson to Karnil because he sought a surname that sounded neither too Danish nor too common. He met Ida Eilskov during the production of a play that he acted in and in which she sang in the choir. Brother Karnil converted to the Church and then shared the gospel with Ida. They subsequently married.
With all her family still in Denmark, Sister Geslison travels there frequently and remains close to her Danish roots.
"I was just there a couple of months ago for my grandmother's 90th birthday," she said. "We try to go back and forth to visit as much as possible."
Change of plans
During the summer before her third year at BYU, Sister Geslison met her husband, Mark Geslison, during a folk dance tour of Russia, Holland and England.
"He played in the folk music ensemble," she said. "We met each other at that time, and the rest is history."
After marriage the Geslisons stayed close to BYU, where Brother Geslison is now the director of the university's folk music program. Sister Geslison, who earned bachelor's and master's degrees in dance, teaches folk dance part-time at her alma mater.
"I teach Irish Dance, I teach Hungarian Dance, I teach different world dance classes where we study different cultural dance forms," she said. "Christmas Around the World – I'm very much involved in the annual production. It's a lot of fun!"
The Geslisons have three children, the oldest of whom will matriculate into BYU this fall. And after more than two decades stateside, Sister Geslison remains the only member of her family to emigrate from Denmark. So much time has passed since she moved away from Denmark that to her it just about feels like she has two homelands.
"I've been here for 22 years almost," she said. "It's been a while, so I feel at home here too now. But it's always good to go home and visit."
