Meet the Dancers!
By Jana E. Pye, Editor, editor@newsandpress.net
The 4th Annual Dancing with the Stars of Darlington County fundraising event for Pee Dee Coalition Pee Dee Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Assault will be held on Thursday, January 26, 2017 at the Center Theater in Hartsville, and the dance team pairs have been hard at work perfecting their routine. Each local celebrity is paired with a professional dancer, and the pair will compete for the winner of the event. The People’s Choice Award winner from votes purchased by fans before and during the event. The public is invited to vote for their favorite couple for the People’s Choice Award at the DWTS website www.darlingtoncountydancingwiththestars.com.
The event is a major fundraising effort to raise money for Pee Dee Coalition to assist victims of domestic abuse and sexual assault.
Sponsors for the event are: Curry and Debbie Dawkins, West Oil, Hartsville Family Dentistry, North Industrial Machine, St. Luke United Methodist Church, Kiwanis Club of Hartsville, and Raceway Ford and Chevrolet.
The first in the series introducing the pairs are the dance teams of:
• Shantella Harris (Professional) & Ashley Shelley (Celebrity). Their dance style is Cha Cha, choreographer is Shantella Harris
• Jennifer Hemingway (Pro) & Ben Gore (Celebrity). Their dance style is Cha Cha; choreographer is Caleb Roberts.
Shantella Harris (Professional) & Ashley Shelley (Celebrity). Their dance style is Cha Cha, choreographer is Shantella Harris
Photo by Steve Roos
Shantella Harris (Professional) & Ashley Shelley (Celebrity). Their dance style is Cha Cha, choreographer is Shantella Harris.
Shantella Harris is a lifelong resident of Florence where she lives with her husband Herbert, and their children, Miya age 9, Sean age 5, and Robyn age 4. Shantella loves to travel and be outdoors, and is learning to ride a motorcycle. She is the owner and creative director of Driven by Dance Studio in Quinby, S.C. Shantella is a certified dance instructor with over 20 years as both dancer and dance instructor ranging from African, Ballet, Jazz, Modern, and Liturgical Dance. Shantella is honored to be a part of an event with such a meaningful cause.
Ashley Shelley is a resident of Florence. He is married to Marshall, with two children he does believe are his. Ashley has worked with the Florence Police Department as a Criminal Investigator since 2009. He says he’s boring – but we don’t believe it.
Jennifer Hemingway (Pro) & Ben Gore (Celebrity). Their dance style is Cha Cha; choreographer is Caleb Roberts.
Photo by Steve Roos
Jennifer Hemingway (Pro) & Ben Gore (Celebrity). Their dance style is Cha Cha; choreographer is Caleb Roberts.
A Hartsville native, Ben Gore has always been active in community service. He has served in the following civic clubs: Past President of The Sertoma Club, Past President of Hartsville Cotillion Club, Past President of Town and Country Dance Club, and currently serves as President of Prestwood Country Club as well as the General Manager. Ben was co-chairman of the first Black Creek Ducks Unlimited Banquet in Hartsville, and was a past member of the Hartsville Lion’s Club. Ben Gore was employed by Sonoco Products for 41 years, working in three different divisions: Transportation, Consumer Products and IPD. His job responsibilities included sales, operations, and product development.
Ben has been married for 44 years to Jada Williams Gore. The couple attend St. Luke United Methodist Church, and have two married children: Bebe (Jeff) Chapman and Bennett (Ann Stanton) Gore, and one nine year old granddaughter, Virginia Anne Chapman. Bebe is a retailer in a downtown Hartsville business and Bennett is a practicing attorney in Columbia, S.C. Virginia Anna attends Carolina Elementary and enjoys gymnastics and following the Clemson Tigers.
Ben’s hobbies include fishing, fishing, fishing and following the Clemson Tigers. He says it is a privilege to be able to participate in the Dancing with the Stars of Darlington County. “With the proceeds going to such a worth cause, it is truly a genuine honor to have this opportunity to be instrumental in giving back to our community, especially helping our children.”
Jennifer Hemingway is a Supervisor at Sonoco, a Francis Marion University graduate, and a former dancer with Bobbie Rick’s School of Dance.
Choreographer Caleb Roberts graduated from South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities, and continued his training at N.C. School of Arts under Ethan Stiefel. After training at NCSA, he moved on to dance with The Boston Ballet and Cincinnati Ballet as a professional. Caleb is now a Guest Principal dancer for companies such as Lincoln Nebraska Ballet, Savannah Ballet, and CMFA. He also runs and owns a pre-professional ballet studio in Hartsville called The Studio. Caleb is happily married to his beautiful wife, Axia Mercedez Roberts, and they have a 18 month baby girl named Aila Marie Roberts.