Jean’s Golden Girls unifies seniors through dance
Pauline Hall (right) laughs with another member of Jean's Golden Girls during their dance practice on June 15, 2015 in Provo. Jean's Golden Girls have performed all over the world including in Madison Square Gardens and on a cruise line. SAMMY JO HESTER, The Daily Herald
Members of Jean's Golden Girls practice backstage at the Marriott Center for Hope of America on April 15, 2015. Under the direction of Jean Dixon Elliott, the Golden Girls perform dances to hits like "These Boots Were Made for Walkin'" and "Dear Future Husband." SAMMY JO HESTER, The Daily Herald
Members of Jean's Golden Girls perform onstage at the Marriott Center for Hope of America on April 15, 2015. Under the direction of Jean Dixon Elliott, the Golden Girls perform dances to hits like "These Boots were Made for Walkin'" and "Dear Future Husband." SAMMY JO HESTER, The Daily Herald
Members of Jean's Golden Girls walk through the tunnel backstage at Marriott Center for Hope of America on April 15, 2015. Under the direction of Jean Dixon Elliott, the Golden Girls perform dances to hits like "These Boots Were Made for Walkin'" and "Dear Future Husband." SAMMY JO HESTER, The Daily Herald
Dorothy Chenchick works on her moves during their dance practice on May 18, 2015 at a studio at Jean's home in Provo. At 91, Dorothy is the oldest member of the group. Jean's Golden Girls have performed all over the world including in Madison Square Gardens and on a cruise line. SAMMY JO HESTER, The Daily Herald
Fourteen years ago, Linda Miller, now 74, was getting ready to retire when she went to a basketball game that changed her life.
“I saw them during half-time and I knew I wanted to join the Golden Girls when I retired,” said Miller.
Jean’s Golden Girls is a senior citizen dance troupe for women ages 50-91 based in Provo. It began nearly 18 years ago as an exercise class for 13 women shortly after Jean Dixon Elliott, the director, suffered a life-changing knee injury and needed to get healthy again. Soon thereafter, they were asked to perform at a church function.
“That’s all it took was performing one time and we took off,” said Elliott.
After the church event, the girls were asked to perform at a Christmas party then a senior center and now they have performances scheduled nearly every weekend during basketball season, including trips to stadiums like Madison Square Garden.
The Golden Girls’ performance resume lists other locations such as the Grand Ole Opry, Branson, Missouri, “America’s Got Talent,” a music video with hit artist Alex Boye, and basketball halftime shows for places like the Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Clippers, and many more.
The group has even performed internationally on a cruise line and had their own stage at the Salt Lake City Olympics.
Their intricate dances to songs like “These Boots Were Made for Walkin'” and “Dear Future Husband” have made them notorious as a crowd pleaser, no matter what stage they are on, especially when 83-year-old Shirley Cox brings down the house and ends the show with her signature splits.
“When they start, the ladies just want the exercise and don’t want to perform,” Elliott said laughing. “Soon they are in love with it and want to be in the front row.”
The hundred women who make up Jean’s Golden Girls each come with their own unique story and they are at many different stages in their life. While some join for the exercise, others joined to fill a void from being widowed or divorced. Others are retired and some go to practice after their work.
No matter where they come from, the women are unified through dance under the direction of Elliott. Her dance history includes movies, large theater productions and decades of teaching children and drill teams to dance. Now she spends most hours of her day devoted to her Golden Girls.
“She doesn’t care about your skill level,” said Golden Girl Deann Mitchell. “She makes us all feel good about ourselves even if we have never danced before.” Mitchell has been with the Golden Girls for 12 years.
For other girls like Miller, Elliott has made her feel like a star.
Miller grew up dancing in her kitchen while making breakfast for her children, a memory her children never let her forget.
“As a young girl I always wanted to be a star and I waited and waited to be discovered and it didn’t happen,” she said. “After five kids, 25 grandkids and finding Jean’s Golden Girls, I’m a star in my family’s eyes.”
Miller dances with the Golden Girls four times a week, a regimen that she attributes to saving her life after her battle with breast cancer and melanoma, then heart and kidney failure.
During her downtime, Miller counted the days until she could step back into the studio with her Golden Girls. After her recovery, her doctor’s advice was to never stop dancing, for it was keeping her alive.
Though the performing aspect is wonderful, the true strength of the team is their togetherness through the good and the bad. In their advanced years, most women in the group have faced or are currently facing problems with their health or losing loved ones.
Many have faced cancer, and together they beat their illness. Others have not shared the same fortune. But through it all, the women are there for each other, helping in the little and big ways that they can.
Summing the group up as a simple dance troupe of senior citizens would never do justice to the true meaning of Jean’s Golden Girls. They are, in fact, a dance team, but they are also a support group, they are lifelong friends, they are chasers of dreams and lovers of life. But most of all, they are a family.
If you are interested in joining Jean’s Golden Girls, feel free to contact Jean Dixon Elliott at (801) 373-3852.
