Elaine Taylor Talbert was born on Sunday, August 18, 1935 to Justin Ardis and Nellda Bell Taylor in Shreveport, Louisiana. A natural beauty and throughout her life, Elaine epitomized the words of the nursery rhyme noting a child born on the Sabbath is 'bonny and blithe'. She gracefully departed this world on Monday, April 29, 2024.
Poet Emily Dickinson once wrote: 'Beauty is not caused. It is'. Whether at Byrd High School in the early 1950's or later in life when she lived in the Provenance neighborhood in Shreveport, she was always surrounded by friends who were drawn to her beauty and engaging spirit.
A highlight of her young life was the opportunity to study at the Southwestern Institute of Art with Arthur C. and Gladys Morgan. Mr. Morgan taught sculpture, drawing and art history at Centenary College in Shreveport and was well known for his work in bronze; Mrs. Morgan was an accomplished watercolorist. Their strong influence and friendship honed Elaine's talents as a noted watercolorist. She loved to capture rural Louisiana landscapes, barns, and churches. Her work has been exhibited throughout Louisiana and won multiple awards in juried shows. She was a member of the Hoover Watercolor Society.
In 1952, she married Robert Latham 'Bob' Potter from St. Joseph, Missouri. They had two children, Jeffery Taylor, the joy of her life, and precious angel Margo Elaine, whose Down's Syndrome empowered Elaine to become a parent advocate for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. A resident of Holy Angels in Shreveport, Margo preceded her in death in 2013.
Elaine taught art privately for many years and spent countless hours inspiring students in her home and at Holy Angels Residential Facility to express their own artistic talents. After her marriage to Bob, she entered the real estate and travel industries, and with her timeless beauty, became a runway model. She was an aviator with a natural skill and member of The Ninety-Nines, an international organization of women pilots.
She was ever so proud of her children's accomplishments and loved being a swim mom as both Jeff and Margo excelled and medaled in the sport. She was always present and the greatest champion for her son Jeff's career choice of architecture and the subsequent recognition for his life's work.
Elaine was active at First Methodist Church in Shreveport and a member of P.E.O. International, originally joining Chapter D in Arcadia, Louisiana, before transferring to a Shreveport Chapter. Though she spent her final years as a beloved resident at Belmont Village in Dallas near her son, she held dear the people and the beauty of her Louisiana home. She will be missed by all who knew her.
Elaine is survived by her son Jeff Potter and his wife Shelley of Dallas. She is fondly remembered by her nieces and nephews - James Roach, Jr. (Dinah), Jim Roach (Jordan) and Christa Roach DiPaul (Parris); Beth Roach Childs (Jay), Spencer and Hunter Childs; and Becky Box Roach, Dusty Roach, Katie Roach Pearson (David); beloved cousins J. Rex Bell (Monette), Robert Simmons (Linda), and her Talbert family in Arcadia, Louisiana.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her sister Gwendolyn Taylor Roach, brother-in-law Jim Roach, daughter Margo Potter, former husband Harold Talbert of Arcadia, Louisiana, and nephews Rodney Roach, Taylor Roach and Cameron Childs.
Special thanks to dear friend Sandra Carrier, beloved niece Beth Roach Childs, and the many caregivers at Belmont Village in Dallas, especially LaShaunda Morgan and Ben Chapman.
A chapel service to celebrate her beautiful life will be held at Centuries Memorial Funeral Home on Mansfield Road, Shreveport, on Monday, May 6 at 11:00 a.m. Interment will follow in Centuries Memorial Park Cemetery. Family will receive visitors on Sunday afternoon from 3-5 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to Holy Angels Residential Facility Memorial Fund, the Jeff '78 and Shelley '78 Architecture Scholarship at the Texas A&M Foundation, the First Methodist Church of Shreveport, or charity of choice.
Pallbearers will be her family members.
