Fundraiser For Beverly Dance Studio Owner Questioned

UPDATE: Click here read the latest on this story, including Candy Dennis denying the allegations.

BEVERLY, MA -- A news site has raised questions about a Beverly dance studio owner who raised money through a GoFundMe page for treatments for cerebellar degeneration that were not covered by her insurance carrier. In a multi-part series, Turtle Boy Sports claims the GoFundMe page was taken down after it started questioning Candy Dennis about screenshots taken from her social media accounts showing trips and purchases made on shopping excursions.

Dennis told Patch she is being targeted in a smear campaign.

Turtle Boy Sports claims it spoke with "dozens" of clients and former employees who said Dennis showed no symptoms of the rare disease, which include a wide-legged, unsteady, lurching walk, tremors and slowed and slurred speech. The Massachusetts-focused gossip blog has promised to publish Dennis's rebuttal later this week.

The series of blog posts also question the dance studio's business practices. Last month Turtle Boy Sports ran a similar series of article questioning the business tactics of Beverly resident Greg Bates and his North Shore Eats Facebook group.

For more on this story, see Turtle Boy Sports. Subscribe to Beverly Patch for more local news and real-time alerts.

Photo by Turtle Boy Sports.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).