Soon after the 2023-2024 Dance year started at Carolina Dance Academy, a young lady walked through the doors of the studio and wanted information on classes. Dixie Elliot, owner and operator of Carolina Dance Academy, gave her the information that was available at the time. About a week went by and the young lady appeared in the doorway of the studio again, to register herself for classes. She is fifteen years old and works at a local fast food restaurant, paying her own monthly dance tuition.
So she began dancing classes. On Nov. 30, while taking up money for tickets to the Christmas show, the young lady handed Elliot fifty dollars worth of coins wrapped neatly and taped together in sheets of white paper to pay for her family to come see her perform. The money in the envelope consisted of quarters, dimes and nickels.
“I made a facebook post bragging about this child, simply because I admire her tenacity and am so impressed,” said Elliott. Elliott is unsure why the child is paying for her own tuition, “It may be as simple as she wants to do it on her own, I really do not know her story, but I think it is awesome that she wants to do it herself. I am just in awe that a teenager in today’s world would be so committed and determined.”
What Elliott woke up to the next morning shocked her. “The post was shared and one lady went so far as to suggest rewarding this child for her determination by donating money. I use the word rewarding because this young lady is clearly rocking life and didn’t need our help, but in less than twenty four hours, close to $1600.00 had been donated, which will cover her tuition and costumes until she graduates. Anything remaining will be put into a scholarship fund for the next child who either needs help or to be rewarded,” Elliot explained.
“Unfortunately, dance is seen as not a need but a want, although I would beg to differ. It saddens me every year, the number of kids that want to take class but simply cannot. I always say that if I could teach for free I would, but that is just not reality.”
“I truly feel the greatest part of this story, besides of course her being such a sweet and amazing kid, is the fact that the community jumped in and saw the same things I did,” said Elliot The Facebook post was shared from my original post over 32 times and then shared even more from those shares. I had people reaching out to me from all over Clarendon, Sumter, and Florence counties as well as from North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and even Maryland! Most people sent in anywhere from ten to twenty dollars and our largest gift was three hundred dollars! I am still in awe!”
“My husband says that I live in a “rainbow and roses” world that isn’t reality because all I see is the good in people, but I’m telling you, the rainbow and roses world does exist and its epicenter is right here in Manning, South Carolina,” Elliot said.
