Junior shaggers
Ellen Taylor learned how to dance The Carolina Shag when she was only nine years old. She says the music continues to bring her joy and inspires her to dance, and she has not stopped yet.
Taylor recalls how she was introduced to The Carolina Shag. “At the age of nine, my mother remarried. My stepfather, “Pop” Drawdy, recreation director of Fairfield County and later the Recreation Director for the State of South Carolina, was one of the greatest blessings of my life.
“After school, my afternoons were spent at the recreation center. My favorite thing to do was hang around the juke box and watch the older teens dance. My love of the music grew during this time. The older guys would dance with me and I loved it.
“Dance and music became part of my life at an early age. It was my way of expressing my emotions without having to say anything, and it remains the same even today. As many have expressed through these past years, it is a lifestyle and will be a part of my life always.
Ellen Taylor with her grandson, Colby Taylor, who is a junior shagger
“I traveled with Pop attending recreation meetings around the state and met many families involved with the shag such as Billy Jeffers, recreation director ( now deceased), one of Pop’s best friends. Billy and his wife, Wanda, became members of the Beach Shaggers Hall of Fame in 1984. How ironic that I was honored to be select- ed to the BSHOF in 1986 two years later.”
Taylor’s story and commitment to dancing The Carolina Shag throughout her life have inspired many. She is known as the “Queen of Shag” and “First Lady of Shag” by many of her peers.
Taylor has received much recognition for her talent, including being inducted into Beach Shaggers Hall of Fame, the Living Legends, National Living Legends, and the South Carolina Shaggers Hall of Fame. She is sought after as a shag dance instructor and learned how to formally teach others how to dance The Carolina Shag even when she naturally developed excellent skill without formal dance education herself.
JoJo Putnam and Ellen Taylor on the front of Sandlapper magazine
Foster McKinney, treasurer of the S. O. S., wrote the following in her honor in The Carefree Times: 2016 Fall Migration Edition: “Her look is intent as though she can gaze into your eyes and see your soul… She charms you with her smile and regales you with her stunning talent. The dance calls her, puts her in a constant state of motion, always reaching for the stars. Not for her star, but for the stars of others… She is unassuming and prefers to stay out of the limelight. But when it comes time to dance, the limelight finds her. Her life is a wonderful occasion, and believe me, she rises to it.”
One of Taylor’s greatest contributions to the future of The Carolina Shag is her support of the development of the “Junior S.O.S.” and her desire to pass on the love of The Carolina Shag to the next generation of children who want to learn but whose families need financial assistance to support them.
In 2007, she founded The Ellen Taylor Foundation for Junior Shaggers. The organization was incorporated as a SC 501-(c)3 in 2008. Its mission statement reads as follows: “The Ellen Taylor Foundation for Junior Shaggers is a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to financial assistance in the education, preservation, and promotion of the Shag, the state dance of South Carolina.” The foundation provides assistance for young people to travel and pay for lodging and participation in Junior S.O.S. events and to participate in competitions and classes.
One of the most popular projects of the Ellen Taylor Foundation for Junior Shaggers is the Shoe Project. Every year, S.O.S. adult members are asked to donate their used dancing shoes for the junior dancers. The shoes are collected and sorted and put on display for junior dancers at major S.O.S. events. There are always more than enough shoes provided for the young dancers.
Taylor, now age 78, says dancing “keeps her young in heart, young in mind, and young in spirit.” She is an active member the S.O.S. and attends all of their events; although, she has had to reduce her teaching hours in recent years. To support the work of The Ellen Taylor Foundation for Junior Shaggers, visit www.ellentaylorfoundation.org. Donations can be mailed to Ellen Taylor, P. O. Box 4051, North Myrtle Beach, SC 29597.
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