Meet the stars of Dancing with the Stars of Darlington County
Welcome to the runup to the 2019 edition of Darlington County’s Dancing with the Stars, an annual event that benefits the Pee Dee Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Assault. The event will be held Thursday, Jan. 31, at 7:30 p.m. at Center Theater in Hartsville.
For the next several weeks, we’ll be introducing couples who will be taking part in the event. You can go to the Pee Dee Coalition’s website (www.DWTSofDC.com) to vote your favorite couple for the People’s Choice Award.
This week’s featured couples:
Greg McDonald (Professional) and Lauren Wint (Celebrity). Dance style: hip hop. Decade: 1980s. Choreographer: Brenda Cranford.
Vera DuBose (Professional) and Eric Tucker (Celebrity). Dance style: waltz. Decade: 1990s. Choreographer: Vera DuBose.
Sponsors for this year’s event are: Dr. Orville H. Dyce with Black Creek Medical, Carolina Bank, West Oil Company, Steve Roos with Ashcraft Studio, Fitness World Gyms, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate – Segars Realty, Hartsville Family Dentistry, Sonoco Products Company, Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated, Hodge Ethridge Insurance and Financial Service – Nationwide Insurance, McLean Marechal Insurance and Financial Service – Nationwide Insurance, Duke Energy, Edwin Haenni, Curry and Debbie Dawkins, the Kiwanis Club of Hartsville, Darlington Family Pharmacy, Burry Bookstore, Wesley United Methodist Church, Coker College, First Citizens Bank, Wanda and Terry Hassler, Coble Wealth Management LLC.
Dr. Dyce with Black Creek Medical is presenting this year’s show.
Celebrity dancer Lauren Wint was born and raised in Hartsville. After college, she moved several places, but none were quite as special, so that is why she moved home a few years ago. Wint has served on what was once the Hartsville Downtown Development Association as an event coordinator, as well as on several committees.
Greg McDonald and Lauren Wint. Photo by Steve Roos
Currently, she is a marketing specialist at WFXB FoxTV in Florence, and part-time children’s director at First Baptist Church in Hartsville. In her free time, you can find her practicing with her praise and worship team for Sunday morning worship, or in downtown Hartsville with her girls, shopping or “re-investing” in the town’s retail community. Wint is honored to be a part of this year’s Dancing with the Stars because she finds it important to instill the value of God’s love in her children at FBC.
The Pee Dee Coalition is a foundation that helps protect individuals and children in harm’s way and remind them they are worthy of a better and safer life. Any part she can play in helping further that mission, she does with a happy heart, much love and her self-proclaimed “clumsy” feet.
Professional dancer Greg McDonald is an operations management gatekeeper/PCL at Sonoco. He was born and raised in Hartsville to Ernestine and the late Pastor Nathan McDonald. McDonald graduated from Hartsville High School and Florence-Darlington Technical College, where he obtained a certification in electronics/heating and air.
He also studied at Coker College. At 23, he was hired at Sonoco, where he has worked for the past 30 years. He has also been a gospel radio announcer for the past 23 years and is business owner of McDonald Tree Services. McDonald is father of four children and grandfather to four grandchildren.
He is involved in church and family events, and enjoys making memorable moments. Known best for his alias, his Sonoco family refers to him as Big Mac. Fans of gospel radio know the radio personality as Chris Allen the Preacher’s Son. He chose to participate in Dancing with the Stars because the event brings awareness of domestic and sexual assault. He believes these types of abuses are gravely underrepresented and victims often go unnoticed until it is too late.
Celebrity dancer Eric Tucker is operations manager at the new waterpark built in Hartsville, Neptune Island. He has been in the waterpark industry for 18 years. Tucker is excited to be a part of Hartsville’s family and is doing all he can to make Neptune Island a success.
Vera DuBose and Eric Tucker. Photo by Steve Roos
He prides himself on ensuring the safety of guests while providing them with a facility where they can make lasting memories with friends and family. During his free time, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Stephanie, promoting compassion, fitness and good health through the vegan lifestyle and traveling. He is a strong believer in respect and equal treatment for all, so being able to raise money to support the Pee Dee Coalition against Domestic and Sexual Assault is an honor for him.
Professional dancer Vera DuBose is a local costume designer, illustration artist and ICU nurse. She has worked on multiple stage productions for Coker College and the University of South Carolina, where she also received her Master’s of Fine Arts degree. Internships have allowed her to work with the New York City Ballet Costume Shop and the National Opera House of Hamburg, Germany.
She runs her own Etsy store, is a vendor at the Seersuckergypsy and works at McLeod Regional Medical Center. She has danced all her life. She pursued a professional career as a dancer but eventually had to change plans because of hip issues.
Since then, she discovered her love for Latin and Ballroom dancing, and has competed for several years in Germany with her dance partner, Chris Scharte, and in several Latin dance teams. After being involved as a choreographer and dancer for DWTS of Darlington County three years in a row, she is honored to be part of this fundraiser again.
