Raelynn Hazel Whitacre (née Winters; September 5, 1905) was born in Saint-Étienne, France. She grew up in a prestigious French household. She is the youngest child of Christopher and Elizabeth Winters. Raelynn has an older brother named Spencer. Her ancestors on her mother's side were on the Titanic.
She moved with her family to Chesapeake, Virginia, when she was eight. Her father pursued a career as a chef at L'Auberge Chez Francois, a French restaurant in Great Falls, and her mother is a fashion designer and owner of a boutique called Parisian Elegance, located in Richmond. During her childhood, Raelynn aspired to become a professional classical ballet dancer, and she enrolled at the Academy of Classical Contemporary Dance when she was ten.…show more content… She was in a relationship with a fellow student named Elijah Garcia and was engaged to him on her 17th birthday. Raelynn soon worked as a secretary at her father’s company, Chesapeake Insurance Services. For several months, she grew suspicious of Elijah cheating on her with someone else. Raelynn found it challenging to move on from their failed relationship because she could not let go of Elijah and the numerous instances of sexual harassment and trauma that he caused her.
In 1924, Raelynn realized that Elijah was not the right person for her and moved to Gainesville, Florida, for a fresh start. She enrolled at the University of Florida to get a degree in business and participated in the ballet program. Two months later, Raelynn met Damien Whitacre, who gave her the nickname Graceful Swan after seeing one of her Swan Lake rehearsals at the campus theater. The following year, she feared falling for him and had the unfamiliar feeling that comes with being in
