Inside
8 Warrior Women
44 Merman on Folly
22 The Real Life of Drag
54 Dan Folk Tribute
30 Meet Gina Mocha
60 Same Sex in the City
32 A Wedding Duet
62 BizBEAU Guide
To subscribe go to BE AU -M AGA ZIN E.CO M BIZ BE AU .GU ID E 2
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Contributors
Maria Rivers Publisher
Douglas Carr Cunningham Lead Photographer
publisher@beau-magazine.com
douglascarrcunningham@live.com
Jonatan Guerrero Ramirez
Steven Willard
Social Media Outreach Director and Writer
thereoncewasayogi@gmail.com
Sarah Bendorf
Dixie Fanning
Jonatan@BEAU-Magazine.com
The Web Goddess
sarahkbendorf@gmail.com
Writer
Graphic Design
dixie@designfromdixie.com
SPECIAL THANKS TO: Harlan Greene, Head of Special Collections of Addleston Library, College of Charleston, for his knowledge and words in the Warrior Women of Charleston. CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS DAN FOLK• MORROW BOGGS • CRAIG JONES ABIGAIL MARIE • DANIEL STRAIT
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Publisher's Note
This edition of BEAU Magazine is about transformation. It’s about transformation of our city through political battles fought by women warriors in Charleston’s history, transformation of a creative boy into a powerful merman that helps people transform their despair into hope and beauty, transformation of traditional weddings into our own idea of what “forever” looks like, and transformation of handsome men into our iconic and highly celebrated drag queens. In this edition of BEAU Magazine, we ask you to join us on this journey from imagination to reality while stripping away things that do not serve your light, visually creating and embodying the greatness that you imagine for yourself. To me, this is the beauty of transformation. Yet, as we continue to experience this sometimes excruciatingly painful process that involves our metamorphosis, we can also have the opportunity to create and share the stories that bond us in efforts to help inspire others throughout this physical, spiritual, and emotional evolution. Special thanks to Harlan Greene for sharing his plethora of knowledge inside his “Warrior Women of Charleston” article. It always amazes me how he can reach through the sands of time to find the most passionate freedom fighter figures and tell us their historical interludes, verbatim. Along with the men and transgender figures that have shaped our LGBT community, we are also holding space for the future editions of BEAU to highlight even more historical feminine warriors: Lynn Dugan bringing us the first Charleston Pride in 2010, Rita Taylor who relentlessly through decades ran one of our oldest gay bars in Charleston with Déjà vu ll, Lee Anne Leland who continues to dedicate her life to helping pave the way for our transgender community while offering a safe space through C.A.T.S., and so many more beautiful stories like these. No matter where you find yourself in the rainbow, thank you for picking up this book and reading our stories. Thank you for sharing your story. And most of all, thank you for being a part of this time and space where our transformation in light weaves us one bright and colorful future. Create Fearlessly! Maria Rivers Publisher, BEAU Magazine
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r o ri
r a Women W of Charleston
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They tell me she is beautiful, my City That she is colorful and quaint, alone Among the cities
That's how the poet DuBose Heyward began his tribute in his poem “Dusk” to his native city of Charleston, SC. To Heyward, this place was obviously feminine, not just for her beauty, but also for her ability to inspire in others courage and integrity. He was on to something; for Charleston is what she has become largely due to the heroics of the heroines and every day women who have lived here over the centuries. While you may not see many memorials to women throughout town (that is fortunately changing), a brief and cursory trip through time will convince anyone that Charleston has been transformed by its women.
version of the same name), there exists a whole neighborhood downtown named for one of the first women who came here. The plucky Affra Harleston left England after its turbulent civil war and arrived here so fraught after an overseas trip in April 1670 that she vowed never to go onboard again. She stayed put, married John Coming in 1672 (the reason for the name of Coming Street) and was granted a vast part of what is today the center of the peninsula of Charleston which she eventually gave to the Anglican Church. Harleston Village recalls her life (she died in 1699) and generosity and there’s a monument to her on Glebe Street.
While we were named for King Charles, (and Carolina comes from the Latin
Much of that land was given over for the use of schools. Where Memminger
By Harlan Greene, Head of Special Collections, Addlestone Library, College of Charleston 9
Elementary School stands today was once an academy for educating women in the 19th century. Memminger remained a women's school into the 20th century; here, there taught a woman whom we would probably call a lesbian today. Anna Brackett (1836 – 1911) of Massachusetts came here in 1860, and, in her short stay, made an incredible impact on the women she taught. She left after the Civil War broke out in 1861 and went to blaze a trail as the first woman in this country to be appointed principal of a secondary school. She wrote and advocated for women’s rights for the rest of her life, and with her life partner Ida Eliot, she adopted two daughters in 1870. It’s almost as if invincible women were somehow drawn to this vicinity. Quite nearby the spot where Brackett taught, at 5 Pitt Street, a plaque marks the contribution of three sisters who changed not just local but national history. The Pollitzers sisters, Carrie (1881 – 1974), Mabel (1885 – 1979) and Anita (1894 – 1975) were daughters of a local
Anita Pollitzer 10
Jewish family. Carrie graduated from Memminger, campaigned and worked tirelessly for the rights of women and children, and led the successful campaign that opened the College of Charleston to women in 1918. Mabel was also a suffragette and avid feminist, teaching girls at Memminger scientific topics for over 40 years. Both Carrie and Mabel were members of the National Women’s Party locally, while their youngest sister Anita rose to National President. She reportedly convinced Harry Burn of Tennessee to cast the deciding vote that passed the 19th amendment to the US Constitution, giving women the right to vote. She devoted her life to gender parity in all fields of law and life and, among her many accomplishments, she introduced photographer Alfred Stieglitz to her good friend Georgia O’Keeffe, thus also influencing 20th century artistic history. Just as important and powerful as these sisters were to the 20th century, so was another set of sisters to 19th. Sarah Grimke (1792 – 1873) and Angelina Grimke Weld (1805 – 1879)
Carrie Pollitzer
Sarah Grimke
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chafed under the chauvinism of their world and what they saw as shallow social customs of their native city. They lived in a house on the corner of George and East Bay streets, where a plaque records their contributions to this country. Leaving the south, they broke the taboos of southern womanhood. They spoke in public, and they spoke out against what they saw as the greatest evil of the day, slavery. So outspoken were they (Angelina became the first woman in history to address a legislative body in this country) that they were not allowed back in the Lowcountry. And once they got the radical idea that blacks and whites were equal, they scandalized the country further by suggesting that men and women were, too – becoming ardent feminists and lobbying for women to vote, a role foisted on them by the demands of their conscience. Their great niece and name sake, the mixed-race lesbian poet Angelina Weld Grimke (1880 – 1958), was one of the writers of the Harlem Renaissance and one of the first black women in this
Angelina Weld Grimke
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country to have a play of hers publicly performed. A similar honor would go to another Charleston woman of color. Alice Childress (1916 – 1994) became the first African American woman awarded an Obie Award as author of the best Off Broadway play of the year in 1955. Her plays and novels (she is the author of A Hero Ain’t Nothing but a Sandwich) often focused on the empowerment of black women.
Henrietta Johnston Women have been active in the arts in Charleston from its very start. Henrietta Johnston (1674 – 1729) lays claim to be the first professional woman artist in this country. Her pastel portraits are often on display at the Gibbes Museum of Art. In the 19th century, Maria Martin Bachman (1796 – 1863) kept company with and painted botanicals for America’s greatest bird painter John James Audubon, who praised her merits and noted that he would not have achieved what he did without her contributions. And two women companions were instrumental in the development of the vital and
• Custody and Divorce • Adoptions www.CondonFamilyLaw.Com
• Name and Gender Changes 13
Maria Martin Bachman exciting art scene here that came alive in the 20th century. The era is called the Charleston Renaissance, when the city, silent since the Civil War, suddenly found its voice and started down the road of becoming the vibrant center for the arts and preservation it is today. Ellen Day Hale (1855 – 1940) and Gabrielle DeVeaux Clements (1858 – 1948), who both had ties to this city, met in Paris where they were studying art and became lifelong companions, sharing a house in Massachusetts. They wintered down here; and it was these two women who taught another circle of women, such as Elizabeth O’Neill Verner, the art of etching, which not only put these artists on the map, but put the city on the national art scene. Local historians have often noted the importance of these women to the city, but their relationship to each other is rarely mentioned or discussed. As noted, preservation, for which Charleston is a national leader today, had its origins in this era of the Renaissance. And the one to start it all, the moving spirit behind the
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movement, was Susan Pringle Frost, (1873 – 1960) who single handedly saved many of the city’s oldest structures and helped found the first preservation group in the city in 1920 (The Society for the Preservation of Old Dwellings, now the Preservation Society). She did not just preserve history, but changed it, being an ardent fighter for women’s rights; she is considered one of the first women in business to invade the male-dominated world of Broad Street of the early 20th century.
Susan Pringle Frost Another woman, whom we memorialize in the name of a highway that cuts through the heart of the city, helped changed the hearts and minds and destinies of countless people across the country. Septima Poinsette Clark (1898 – 1987) was born on Wentworth Street, where a plaque will soon be erected, and grew up on Henrietta Street. Clark first taught on the sea islands and then for years in the city of Charleston, but in the 1950s, she was fired for being a member of
Septima P. Clark the NAACP. Having become familiar with the progressive programs held at Highlander Folk School in Tennessee, she became the head of programs there, teaching and encouraging African Americans to become literate and how to fill out voter’s registration forms among other documents. There, one of her students was Rosa Parks. Inspiring others, Clark became famous for starting and spreading Citizenship Schools throughout the south, teaching blacks not just how to read and write and to register to vote, but to have pride in who they were and what they could achieve. Her schools were soon transferred to Martin Luther King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and she became the first female member of the executive board, where she had to overcome the sexism of many of its male leaders. She accompanied Dr. King to Oslo when he won the Nobel Prize, and she eventually returned to Charleston. Many of her words of wisdom are cut into the sidewalks along the Septima Clark Expressway, and she is also enshrined in several plaques at Liberty Square.
An earlier African American female pioneer, Dr. Huldah Prioleau (ca. 1870 – 1940) was one of the first black female physicians in South Carolina and for years was the only female physician of her race in the city. Though disrespected by whites, she served on an interracial committee and was a founder of the Colored Branch of the YWCA. She lived for years with her female companion, Beulah Crawford, a nurse and director of Harmon Field, a segregated playground for black children. While race and gender made life difficult for many in the city over the years, some women were met with even more complicating obstacles. In the 19th century, a Jewish woman named Charlotte Myers married a scurrilous journalist named Rufus Griswold, whom history blames for blackening the name of his supposed friend Edgar Allen Poe. Griswold, upon his desire to divorce his Charleston wife (illegal in South Carolina), stunned the world when he said he could never consummate the marriage because it was as if he had married a man. Was Charlotte a hermaphrodite or a person of indeterminate gender? Her death certificate says she was a woman; she lived and died in obscurity, but she took tender care of Griswold’s daughter, whom she adopted. In the 20th century, Charleston became the home of one of the first transsexual women in this country. Gordon Langley Hall was born Gordon Langley Hall
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ca. 1922 in England on the estate of Sissinghurst, the home of Vita Sackville West, whom Virginia Wolfe used as the hero/heroine of her novel Orlandao, in which the main character changes sexes. Hall moved to Canada in 1946 and eventually to the United States in 1950, going on to write numerous books about remarkable women. When the Ansonborough neighborhood was undergoing renovation, Hall purchased a house on Society Street and moved to the city. Like Charlotte Myers before her, the true story may
John Paul & Dawn Langley Simmons never be known. Hall underwent sex reassignment surgery in 1968 at Johns Hopkins and changed her named to Dawn Pepita; that was the story she told in one autobiography; later she changed the tale and claimed to have been born intersex. She married John Paul Simmons, an African American, transgressing and transcending even more taboos in a then very segregated city. She and Simmons, who suffered from mental illness and who abused her, divorced in 1982, and Dawn Pepita Simmons died in this city in 2000,
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having managed to encompass in her life span many of the same issues that have confounded this city for centuries. Maybe it is for a good reason, for women such as these and many others whose lives need to be recorded, that a seated female figure holding a scepter, in front of the skyline, is depicted as the incarnation of Charleston and is the key figure and design motif of the official seal of our city. One historian called that figure the Warrior Queen. Warrior women are not just a part of our past, they are here today carrying on a tradition of heroism. In Charleston, as a donor activist in her community, Linda Ketner has served as President of the Coastal Community Foundation, and founded many boards and organizations to help equal housing justice. She is co-founder and past President of Alliance for Full Acceptance (AFFA), a social justice organization achieving equality and acceptance for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. Knowing that to change the infrastructure of the
Charlie Smith & Linda Ketner Co-founders of AFFA
current laws against equal rights she must integrate herself into the system, in 2008 she became the Democratic nominee for United States Congress, District 1, South Carolina. She continues to further serve the movement with her involvement in community leadership growth in minorities through education, including funding scholarships for young women at the College of Charleston. Colleen Condon has also been in the forefront for the fight for LGBTQ rights. As an attorney and member of Charleston County Council 20052016, she was always the people’s representative and became one of the first out-lesbians elected in SC public office. She spoke at an AFFA sponsored rally on the steps of Custom House in 2013 about the importance of being out and visible. She and her fiancÊ Nichols Bleckley (now Nichols Condon) became the first same-sex couple in South Carolina to receive a marriage license on November 19, 2014. Since then she has converted her practice
to be more LGBT centric in family matters such as adoption, marriage, common law and divorce legalities, and amending birth certificates for the transgender community. She is now working towards reforming laws, educating judges, and initiating new precedents that help affirm and strengthen our future LGBT legal rights. Women are out front in understanding that our future depends on the education of our children, no matter their social or economical status. One Charleston warrior woman decided to put her heart and soul into transforming the lives of underprivileged children and helping them get the positive education they need. In 1996, Jenny Deerin, an out lesbian and mother, founded and ran WINGS for Kids, an afterschool program to help elementary school children develop social and emotional skills. WINGS grew to become a nationally recognized, multi-million dollar organization operating in three states. In 2010, Deerin was awarded the Order of
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the Palmetto – South Carolina's highest honor for public service. Paying tribute to Deerin in 2010, Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr. said, “If there is a worthwhile cause going on in the Charleston community, you can bet that in some point in time Ginny Deerin has been a very important and successful part of that.” In 2015, Ginny Deerin openly sought the position of mayor as an out lesbian. She serves in numerous positions where she can impact change in Charleston. Her major community initiatives include aiding the creation of Spoleto Festival USA, the Community Foundation, the SC Aquarium, and Riley Park. Deerin worked with the City of Charleston to win approval for Charleston Place, the largest development in the history of the city. As stronger LGBT proactive legislation comes into play, and more women warriors join the good cause, there will be greater advances, not just for women, but all needing equality and social justice. Charleston is evolving with major population shifts; here,
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and on the national scene, LGBT and allied straight women are positioning themselves for higher visibility and more active roles in government, politics, business and education and other positions of power. The next decade for women is going to be very exciting! Photo Credits: 1. POLLITZER SISTERS, "South Carolina Women Vol2" - 2010 2. SUSAN PRINGLE FROST, "South Carolina Women Vol2" - 2010 3. SARAH GRIMKE, internet search 4. ANGELINA WELD GRIMKE, "Lift Up Thy Voice" Mark Perry - 2001 5. HENRIETTA JOHNSTON, internet search 6. MARIA MARTIN BACHMAN, internet search 7. SEPTIMA POISETTE CLARK, "Freedom's Teacher" Kathryn Millen Charron - 2009 8. GORDON LANGLEY HALL, "Dawn, A Charleston Legend" Dawn Langley Simmons - 1995" 9. Jenny Deerin campaign photo by Devon Turner
10. Linda Ketner and Charlie Smith photo by Dan Folk
Not Just a Grant Program, but a Call to ACTION ‌ By Harlan Greene With a generous grant from the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, Special Collections at Addlestone Library of the College of Charleston is making history by asking for YOUR history. Our mission is to document all the contributions LGBTQ people have made and are making to the lowcountry. We are embarking on an ambitious program of oral histories to capture the information of those of us who remember a very different world and time when it might have been dangerous, and brave, to be out; and we want the stories of younger folk who are living the life and fully engaged in the various communities that make up all colors of the rainbow. Gay or straight, young or old, black, white, Hispanic, southerner or not, if you have a life story (or any materials, photos and documents) that add to the spectrum of history, culture and accomplishments of our community, so please‌ contact us. We want to record and save for posterity the life stories of our people, our loved ones, and those we have lost. Oral histories will be transcribed, and put
online for all to share. Nominate yourself or others to become part of this program that for the very first time makes us the center of attention. Our stories, our documents, newsletters from bars and clubs, coming out letters, photographs, diaries, business and church records and the like, are welcome here and need to be made part of the narrative that proudly shows we are here, we have always been here, and will always be a presence for the betterment of all in this place we call home. For more information please contact program director Harlan Greene at Special Collections, Addlestone Library, at the College of Charleston, 66 George Street, Charleston, SC 2942. Email him at greeneh@cofc.edu or contact him at 843-953-7428. Your tax deductible contributions can make sure that the program does not end when grant funding runs out. Linda Ketner has generously made a pledge to match our donations if we raise $25,000. Contributions can be made online at Giving.cofc.edu/Lowcountry-LGBTQ or by the contact points above.
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The Real Life of
Drag
Brooke Collins
W
e’ve all seen them slaying down the runway, death-dropping on stages, and collecting those dollars. Drag culture has been slowly taking over mainstream media, becoming a common aspect of everyday life for not just LGBTQ but also allied straight lifestyles alike.
By Jonatan Guerrero Ramirez 23
Terms like “Yass Queen” or “you betta werk” are used by more than just LGBTQ members now. “Fifteen years ago, the only drag shows were at gay bars. Recently, there are cabaret style shows, Drag brunches, even Drag BINGO, and many straight venues are getting into what we do. I have seen drag queens who officiated weddings!” says local Charleston Queen Ava Clear. However, with all this sashay and shante, what people don’t see is the true cost of Drag, or the time it takes to get ready to slay the stage and the sacrifice it takes to be a fierce drag queen. “All drag queens are different,” Ava says. “Many of us do this for different reasons. Some transgender people found drag as a way to have a job when they weren’t accepted into society many years ago, and some found it as a way to help them transition into their true gender. Some do this as a job to make money and others do this as a hobby. To me, this is a creative outlet.” For some, doing drag is a sport that that leaves marks, as Miss Mercy Madison explains. “The pain is probably the worst. Drag queens deal with an immense amount of pain in and out of drag. During my personal day-to-day life I deal with knee problems and back aches from my drag life on top of all
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the scabs and scars I get from death dropping on Tabbuli’s brick ground every week.” “To be a queen you must be committed and put in countless hours and sacrifice.” Traveling Queen Kymmya Starr shares, “Even though we may come out on the stage or wherever you see us and make it look so effortless, many of us spend lots of time practicing songs, dance moves, and costuming (not to mention hair). This process takes many hours, or even days, to get everything right for just one song! It is very time consuming and exhausting at times working on these things, but like anything in life, your passion will drive you. I remember several nights staying up with just a glue gun and a dream, working on things I wanted for a show. I did this because I knew my hard work would not go in vain.” From wigs, costumes, make-up, and the bling, the national average cost to be a drag queen can be anywhere from $10,000-$55,000 a year. In the words of Dolly Parton, “It takes a lot of money to look this cheap.” This is one thing that many people never take the time to know… that to make the amount of money that you put in is an investment in the craft. This is why tipping is important. Typically, Drag queens get paid very little to be at a
Ava Clear
Ava, Mercy & Brooke gig. Many girls work in most cities for free or $25. National Titleholders work for $50 to $75. Tips are a sign that you enjoy what you see and you want to see more. It helps drag queens to get more costumes, hair, shoes, make up, jewelry, and that much-needed duct tape to hide the fun stick. Even the gas to get from one gig to another… it all adds up. “Behind every simile, there is a frown, as drag culture has many struggles,” Miss Starr says. “Sadly, many queens are faced with being unable to date. This is a struggle for queens in a masculine society because some men in the community view dressing up as a feminine quality. We queens are
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frowned on. It is a struggle because once drag is brought in the picture it’s a ‘no go.’ This isn’t the case all the time, but it is definitely an issue. On the reverse side there are people who are chasers, who only want to have sex with queens and fulfill fantasies. Underneath the makeup and hair, we are just ordinary people with wants and desires.” Mercy faces a differently struggle, “One struggle I think some face in drag is family. My family and I fought for years and years about my sexuality and about drag. We didn’t agree, but it took me just living my best life and not caring about them and what they thought for them to finally come around. They are now proud of what I do and who I am and recognize drag as an actual hobby and a paying job!” As times change and progress, so does drag. Veteran queen Ava Clear sees the future for drag saying, “Drag is moving
Kymmya Starr
Brooke Collins
into more cabaret and theatre style shows.” Drag is being seen less in gay bars and more and more at comedy houses and restaurants, which is good for queens like Ava who likes to eat. “I also see drag moving away from the typical ‘female impersonation’ that it used to be where you had to look like a woman to be a performer. I see more and more interesting looks: Drag Queens with beards, Drag Queens who don’t wear breasts. It is more about a gender bending performance art experience!” “Listen and Learn!” Ava shares with the young queens. “Also, know that drag is
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going to take A LOT of time and money if you want to do it right. Even if you have a full-time job, this will become a second full-time job that doesn’t pay. Pay respect to the queens who came before you because they might just give you a booking or a costume. This is a hard industry. When I started, I would go in the dressing room and just watch. See how queens did their make up, how they worked a crowd, how they handled the business of a show. I attribute most of what I have learned over the years to the queen, Brooke Collins, who has been here performing longer than myself. Just learn from the more seasoned. That doesn’t mean you
Mercy Maddison before & after
have to be like them, but take away from them the good and discard the negative. Even if you hate someone or someone isn’t nice, there is always a lesson to learn.” “To be a drag queen you have to be able to take hate from all angles while also focusing on yourself and your career so that you may become successful. And that can apply to all facets of life,” Mercy explains.
“So glamorous I thought; it wasn’t until I took the plunge in the unknown and felt the pull stronger than ever. Had I found my calling? Yes, I love what I do. It’s not always glitter and rhinestones. Through it all I wouldn’t a change a thing because it led me down a wonderful path,” Kymmya Starr shares. “A good friend once told me happiness is a journey and not a destination.”
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Meet Gina Mocha, The Poet
Photo by Daniel Strait Regina Duggins, better known as Gina Mocha (Poet) moved to Charleston from Brooklyn, NY with her family in 2010. In memory of her late sister’s fondness for this beautiful city that they visited as children, she decided to plant her roots here. “My parents and my grandparents are from St. George, SC,” says Gina, “so basically my roots lie in the Gullah Geechie parts of the South. I moved also to provide a better opportunity for my five nieces and nephews that I have been raising.” She saw opportunities to integrate the communities here through her poetry and writings. Her new book, Black Coffee, No Sugar, No Cream! is an autobiographical journey exploring
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her life experiences through poetic expression. “As an African American Lesbian author I have decided to show an activist side,” says Gina, “I show in support of shedding light to many stigmas and social injustices that plague this community.” I see on the horizon of Charleston and the LGBT community and the LGBT of color community lots of positive changes and growth,” she explains, “I see a collective force of understanding, support, and growth of love in this area of social injustices.” She currently mentors young African American girls with her company Black Magic Girls Mentoring Program. “I plan events to engage, educate, empower, and expose youth to new innovative ideas, programming, as well as opportunities that will enrich their lives for a better future,” says Gina. Get your copy of Black Coffee, No Sugar, No Cream! on Amazon.com Contact Gina or buy the book directly at reginaduggins77@gmail.com
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A Wedding Duet
C
harleston, SC has been claimed 3 years in a row the #1 wedding destination in the world. Only a few years prior, LGBT people all over the USA celebrated Federal legalization of same-sex marriage. Our love for our partners has never changed. But now, we have won the right to recreate “traditional unions” and re-define what marriage means to us. Some of us have been with our partners for more than 20 years and have many friends or as we call “fRamily” to invite. Many of us also can’t rely on our parents to pay for our wedding whims. So how do you make the picture perfect wedding day with no expense spared? You bring in your best friends to comprise one immaculate wedding duet.
People say that the best place to see Charleston is from the water. The Carolina Girl is Charleston’s premier event yacht catering in both sophisticated setting and memorable surroundings. Luxurious accommodations intertwine with beautiful views of the Charleston Historic District, Charleston Harbor, the Arthur Ravenel and Ashley River Bridges, and the lovely Ripley Light Marina. Fully equipped with Captain, DJ and stews, this true Carolina experience will capture the moment and live in your memories forever. Venue yacht provided by Carolina Girl Events, carolinagirlevents.com
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Trending fashion in wedding dresses pair traditional white with modern romance. With both sophisticated elegance and flirty spontaneity, these designers mix it up for this trend-bending season. From left to right: Gaby: Lea-Ann Belter’s “Jolie” gown Bethany: Ivy and Aster’s “Faye” gown Nicola: Matthew Christopher’s “Arabella” gown Kelsey: Kate McDonald’s “Beatrice” gown Robin: Kate McDonald’s “Miller” skirt and “Kenzie” top with Heidi Elnora’s “Sugar shawl”
All women’s bridal designs available at Southern Protocol Bridal, southernprotocol.com
Necklaces, earrings and bracelets by Haute Bride Jewelry, hautebride.com Bride’s wedding rings by DiamondWave.com Bouquets arraigned by Duvall Catering and Events, duvallevents.com
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Go traditional tux or explore the many other options with suits. This season’s pallet incorporates light greys and soft blush with an organic undertone. Accents in boutonniere and bowties intertwine the subtle patterns in the grooms’ wear. Here in Charleston we are known for our bowties! Traditional bowties with exotic touches are key accents in this fashion collaboration. Wedding planner’s tuxedo and bowtie by Charleston Tuxedo, charlestontuxedo.com Groom’s suits by Charleston Tuxedo Groom’s bowties by Botany Bowties, botanybowties.com Groom’s boutonnieres by Duvall Events, duvallevents.com
Keeping things affordable yet unique can be as simple as consignment. Staying high fashion can be done through finding the perfect consignment boutique. Consignment stores are in the business of buying high end products so purchasing timeless fashion can result in one amazing ensemble. Officiate and Groomsmen outfitted by Worn Consignment + Wear for Men, wornincharleston.com
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There may be few, but not many wedding parties that are complete without a crafty bar service. Choosing a company that is efficient in service with that extra dose of flair can make your wedding stand out. Pick your brand for red, white, and sparkle. Barefoot brand has the LGBT community in their hearts for many reasons but their fair priced and fabulous wine creations
are reason enough to indulge. In your product request, include a signature cocktail. Creating the perfect themed or signature mixed drink declares your cocktail panache! Bar service provided by Duvall Catering and Events, duvallevents.com Libations provided by Barefoot Wine, barefootwine.com
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Choosing your wedding cake and essentials with androgynous style icing and flower accents can bring out the love at your reception. Delicate cupcakes in neutral tones will highlight the wedding cake creation while adding more delectable treats for your guests. Wedding cake and cupcake design by Honey Johnson of Honey’s Baking, honeysbaking.com
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One of the main ingredients for creating that unique wedding celebration is finding on site catering complete with a Chef and serving staff that can reflect your vision. Catering to all guests through gluten-free options, vegetarian, and meatetarians can be pretty complex. Pulling from your local, foody favorites may be a colorful option
Charleston is one of the culinary capitals, and local Chefs know how to celebrate the Lowcountry specialties. Providing a plethora of tiny bites and hand made gourmet dips can help satisfy hunger whims, cater to different tastes, as well as accent your dĂŠcor. Catering by Hamby featuring Chef Patrick Schmidt, hambycatering.com
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Matching your linens with your color pallet sets the tone of the ambiance. This detail integrates the accents balancing the shades. Light grays flow through the room with hints of pinks and whites from the aromatic fresh flower arraignments. Linens and glassware by Snyder Events, snyderevents.com Flower arrangements by Duvall Catering and Events, duvallevents.com
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The best part about having your wedding in the Lowcountry is the naturally romantic and absolute blissful vibe. There’s a reason why we live in the #1 wedding destination of the world, because our hometown is the greatest!
Hair design by Carrie Morris of Sassy Styles, Makeup design by Jonny Southerland of Jonny Cosmetics, jonnycosmetics.com Day of Events Coordinator, William Brady of Top Notch Event Planning, topnotcheventdesigner.com Brides: Nicola Martin and Bethany Fiem Grooms: Adam Huffman and Josh Hunley DJ: Shannon Whitehead AKA DJ Shay
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Officiate: Mandy Horn Bridesmaids: Gaby Osborne Ocampo, Kelsey Whitson, Robin Kozel Groomsmen: James Lloyd and Jerome McWilliams Wedding Party: Robin Pastore, Adam Perez, David Platte, Tyler Murray, Ron Rico Judan, Shavon McPherson, Bonnie Robin, Whitney Cooper, and Michelle Miller.
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Merman on Folly
F
rom the moment life begins, transformation also begins. People say that the one thing that is constant in this world is “change.” It’s within this transformation or “change” that sincere magic happens. And within this magic derives a colorful exploration that, if allowed to prosper, can evolve the sole advantageously. Photography and Photo Illustration by Douglas Carr Cunningham Words by Maria Rivers 45
Eric Milligan grew up in Charleston with his parents and the youngest of four brothers and one sister. From the time he can remember, he was captivated with mermaids. He drew mermaids in his preschool activities, played with mermaid toys, and watched anything mermaid that he could find. His mother was very supportive in his prepubescent creative fascination, until he got a little older. She began to question his obsession with mermaids and tried without success to direct him to more “manlier” outlets.
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His unexplainable affinitive for these mystical sea creatures quickly turned to a struggle stemming from oppressive stigmas that boys can’t play with “girllike things” like mermaids. He hid his passion, refrained from his drawings and grew sad inside his heart. His parents put him into playing baseball when he was 12 to fit him into a more masculine lifestyle. On the first day of tryouts he felt out of place. He fit in the best he could, but when that season was over he refused to go back. He quickly decided to continue
drawing mermaids, but this time with an obsession. When he turned 17 he began seeing a boy that sold mermaid tails online. He realized by embodying the merman in wardrobe and character, that he could actually become what he had been drawing his whole life. By the time he was 20 years old he acquired his first tail and felt that he finally found the missing puzzle piece.
the most vibrant tails that he had ever seen. He saw picture after picture of Naja (the tail designer) and Anthony (her assistant), making and painting these exotic, lifelike tails. Not only was it the first “made for water� tail he had seen, this was also the first time he had ever seen two people of color creating mermaid tails. These tails were unique in the fact that they were full silicone
In 2014 his life changed forever when he met his mentor and mermaid Godmother, Naja James. She was the link that would soon help him cultivate his dream that seemed impossible at the time. His dream of transformation to what he always knew he was‌a merman. Naja James appeared first on Instagram. He had been submerged in this underground culture for so many years that with one look at the scale design on any tail, he could instantly name the tail maker. He was scrolling through tail creators on Instagram one day, when abruptly he became mesmerized with what looked to be new makers of
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was intense. The process was slow and intricate involving oiling the legs, rolling down the tail and finding the foot pockets on the mono-fin one by one, and then from that point losing the ability to walk on land as he rolled the silicone up to his hips.
and able to actually be submerged in water for full mermaid effects. Naja and Anthony also looked so proud and happy to share their art. He immediately reached out to them. Soon after their contact on the web, Eric set out on a road trip to Atlanta to meet his new friends and try out their creations first hand (or first “fin” more appropriately). His imagination ran wild of what these new water-ready tails would be like in both form and in motion. It was his first time wearing the fully functional mermaid tail. When he arrived at Naja’s studio, tons of colorfully elaborate and massive tails were laid out in their backyard by the pool. He couldn’t wait to jump right into it. Like most transformations in nature, the beginning was an extreme struggle. The work to get the tail on the body
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“This was true transformation… very awkward and somewhat painful at first,” Eric laughs, “but then came a tremendous sense of freedom, I felt unstoppable…invisible.” There was something about being able to fully metamorphous from land to water that dissolved any “manmade” layers of doubt, allowing him to realize his true and beautiful inner self. “Even though I always felt it with the fabric tails, the silicone added more realism and aesthetics,” says Eric. “I felt more extra inner strength in the water. It built me up in confidence. I was a merman and
NOBODY couldn’t tell me otherwise,” he laughs with confidence. Eric began posting his vibrant, and now fully functional merman persona all over social media. He began to get hired for parties and event openings. He moved to Atlanta to be closer to his Merman family in hopes to help develop a path for his passion. Craig Harvey, a merman in Florida contacted Davey Wavey (a gay YouTuber) about the merman stories and introduced him to Eric. His first interview with Davey Wavey was at Naja’s pool in Atlanta where Eric transformed Davey into a merman. Eric saw the beauty and power that came from this transformation and realized that he could empower more than just himself in this process. From Davey Wavey’s YouTube interview, more engagements poured out to Eric intrigued by the art of the merman. In
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October he received an invitation from Rimini, Italy to come out to the annual Santarcangelo Festival and transform locals into mermaids and mermen. He knew that this would be the groundbreaking journey that would help him realize his the next level in his merman transformation. The Santarcangelo Festival flew him out from Charleston to Atlanta, to NYC and then to Italy. “This was amazing. To know that my first time out of the country was to go be a merman. There are many other mermen out there, but I was the chosen one,” says Eric, “…and why would Arial not want to be this?!?” He absorbed the immaculate energy as one by one, he watched and taught his new Italian family to swim as mermaids and mermen. “They loved it!” Eric smiles, “I saw the older women transform from feeling like an aging and withered human, to becoming a
free and vibrant mermaid and feeling so beautiful. I watched the kids laugh and get into this playful, empowering realm that I was never allowed to explore as a teenage boy. It was spiritual. It was beautiful.” On the trip back his bags broke and he had to carry his merman tails through each airport and on the plane. Not only in this experience did he realize how ultra heavy that these silicon tails were, he also witnessed the outpour of people that were drawn to the tails and how they lit up with anticipation to hear about his magical transformation adventures. “I knew from this point that there are so many people right now that need this transformation. From the aging women that feel like they have lost their beauty, to troubled
kids and even handicap individuals that struggle with lack of freedom, this transformation creates a light inside of them that makes them realize that they are unique and brilliant individuals. The transformation instills a sense of rare beauty back inside of you with an extra dose of freedom and vitality. This is what I was meant to do with my life. Teach and live…as a merman.” Eric is currently working on developing a non-profit that will help reach more individuals that will benefit from this uplifting transformation. His outreach will encompass troubled youth, people with disabilities, and women that feel deprived of their true beauty. Reach out to Eric on his page Facebook.com/ MermanBlix.
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Photography by Dan Folk
A Picture of You...
A tribute to the life of Dan Folk Within a picture, a song can be found. A story is told that shakes from the ground. Emanating from the eyes, this vision we all view, but so rarely decide to interpret.
Like music, our hearts beat to a rhythm that shapes our smiles. We are not the Artist but merely the vessel of Collective energy focused within a single photograph. And it is our lives that stop to pose when the Photographer takes his aim. His camera was sturdy and called us to attention. Yet no sound is heard from the man behind it. He swirls us into position with the raise of his lens‌ and there we are, smiling from our egos with pain behind our eyes. How did you do it? In that brief moment, you seem to neutralize egotistical warfare waged within our minds.
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With your kind eyes, without judgment or conviction, you reached through time and walked between the cells in our bodies just to touch our hearts with your infinite benevolence. In one immeasurable moment you acknowledge our struggle, offer us peace and give us a complement. With no words exchanged, you did this. And in turn, we received confidence and self worth to show the world, our photograph. We want to take this moment to give you the same honor. To capture within our souls the photograph of a selfless, nurturing man that emanated true unabashed love. The man that never judged us. The man that became the maestro in our soul symphony of photographs, and yet for no other reason but to tell us how much he loves us.
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It was his love that made us smile from our hearts as he captured that Divine moment. More than a photographer, he was a composer. Through his innate instruments of compassion, respect, and true love, he connected us to compose the Greatest Masterpiece. Your work will always be respected and adored within our community, forever. But your legacy lives within the creations, within the concerto that has imprinted in our souls what it looks like to be a virtuoso of love’s virtue. Thank you for your strong and fierce heart that never faltered from our internal struggle.
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Nothing can explain how or why you were taken from our lives. Nothing can replace the moments when you touched our lives. But in your honor, I will always take time to realize and practice emanating your selfless acts of kindness. Because you are beautiful… and that’s really what we all want to be… is beautiful. Time withers on and we are left with these still images of our lives’ experiences we will soon forget. These images are monuments that we were here. Proof that our community has risen together through love and unity.
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Where is your monument? The great photographer that visualized our legacies, bringing them into fruition... Where is your song? It plays deep within the hearts of all of us. We will sing it proudly as we remember, reminisce and smile. We love you. We miss you. We will never forget you. Love, Your LGBTA Family
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F**k You, to Thank You, to Bless You In the South we say, “Bless your heart.” Yet, rarely is this a petition for an actual blessing upon one’s cardiovascular system. If you’re on the receiving end of this blessing of the heart, you should probably brace yourself. Lately, I’ve been trying to use it in its more sincere form. I’m beginning to find that if we’re willing to dig through muck, we can see that the things we perceived as “the worst thing that ever happened” can turn out to be our greatest learning moment, and, ultimately, a blessing. Bless your heart, indeed. I spent the better part of my adulthood in victim mode. You know, victim of bosses who didn’t like me, friends who didn’t get me, men who used me. Sound familiar? It took me some time to see the common denominator. (SPOILER ALERT) It was me. And the “victim” thing is sooo tired.
I had a broken heart and a business that went into bankruptcy. (That’s the Spark Notes version; for the full version we should split a bottle of pinot grigio). To say I was down when I returned to Charleston is an understatement. I got to play my favorite role at the time, VICTIM! My ex partners, the City of Atlanta, you name it and I could tell you their offenses toward me. Here’s the deal; when life knocks you to the ground, you have two choices: stay down or get back up. Buddhism says, “Fall down 7; stand up 8.” I was at a place where my usual tricks didn’t work anymore, and the truth of the common denominator was staring right at me. Literally. I started tending to my spiritual Self. I found my tribe; I found material that resonated with me. I meditated;
Same Sex in the City Charleston By Steven Willard 60
I prayed; I read and studied. I started practicing gratitude. And I started practicing forgiveness. And it is a practice. On this path of self exploitation, I found myself floating in a deprivation tank (way cooler than it sounds) with Don Henley’s “Heart of the Matter” repeating in my head. It was the line, “I’ve been trying to get down to the heart of the matter. But my will gets weak and my thoughts seem to scatter, but I think it’s about forgiveness.” While floating in this pitch-dark tank of salt water, I noticed tears running down my cheeks. I cried for all the grudges I held against so many people, but also for the grievances I held against myself. I thought about this episode that brought me to this place and the people I blamed. In that moment I forgave them. And then I thanked them. What I thought was the “worst thing to ever happen” became my biggest blessing.
a counselor. I eventually quit the job I wasn’t happy in and became a teacher of yoga, meditation, and spiritual principles. I was able to start saying “thank you” to the people I always felt had “done me wrong.” I saw a video of actress Jennifer Lewis speaking about mental health. She said, “If you sit in shit too long, it stops smelling. Come the fuck out of there.” My best transformation has been from self-diagnosed “victim” to spiritual practitioner. If you’re looking for one area to transform in your life, start with the F-word... not that one, but “forgive.” Oh, and as my NC grandma would say, “Bless your heart.”
Without that string of events that brought me to my knees in tears praying, I never would have finally done my work. I found my spiritual home. I let go of old stories and beliefs that didn’t serve me. I traveled to areas of the world to study, eventually becoming
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HOME AND GARDEN
ACTIVITIES AND SIGHTSEEING SERENITY TREE YOGA serenitytreeyoga.com Facebook.com/SerenityTreeYoga SHAKA SURF SCHOOL 6th Street E., Folly Beach, SC 29439 843-607-9911 • Shakasurfschool.com FollyBeach@ShakaSurfSchool.com ARTS CHARLESTON PERFORMING ARTS CENTER (CPAC) 873 Folly Road, Charleston, SC 29412 843-991-5582 charlestonperformingarts.org info@ Charlestonperformingarts.com CHUCKTOWN ART 843-476-1376 • Chucktownart.com la@chucktownart.com Facebook.com/chucktownart EVENT PLANNING AND MARKETING DUVALL 2816 Azalea Drive, N. Charleston, SC 29405 • 843-763-9222 Duvallevents.com POP THE BUBBLY EVENTS 460 King Street #200, Charleston, SC 29403 • 843-406-5645 Popthebubblyevents.com info@popthebubblyevents.com TOP NOTCH EVENTS 309-750-4094 TopNotchEventDesigner.com will@topnotcheventdesigner.com HEALTH AND WELLNESS CHARLESTON ACUPUNCTURE 149 East Bay St, Charleston, SC 29401 222 W. Coleman Blvd, Mt Pleasant, SC 29464 • 843-697-7776 chsacupuncture.com chsacupuncture@gmail.com
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COASTAL FERTILITY 1375 Hospital Drive, Mt Pleasant, SC 29464 • 843-883-5800 CoastalFertilitySpecialists.com facebook.com/coastalfertilityspecialists COOPER FAMILY DENTISTRY 4830 Chateau Ave, N. Charleston, SC, 29405 • (843) 225-8718 cooperfamilysmiles.com office@cooperfamilysmiles.com FERTILITY CENTER OF CHARLESTON 1280 Hospital Drive, Suite 300, Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464 SC 843-881-7400 • GA 912-228-8909 Fertilitycharleston.com facebook.com/fertilitycharleston IRON TRIBE FITNESS 1145 Johnnie Dodds Blvd Ste D, Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464 • 843-388-8892 IronTribeFitness.com mountpleasant@irontribefitness.com KHOURI CHIROPRACTIC 222 West Coleman Blvd Ste. A, Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464 1 Unity Alley Suite 100, Charleston, SC 29401 3495 Iron Horse Road, Ladson, SC 29456 • 843-853-2225 Khourichiropractic.com khourichiro@gmail.com RYAN WHITE WELLNESS CENTER 1481 Tobias Gadson Blvd #1, Charleston, SC 29407 843-402-3093 RyanWhiteofCharleston.org SERENITY TREE YOGA serenitytreeyoga.com Facebook.com/SerenityTreeYoga TATUM DENTISTRY 92 Courtenay Dr, Charleston, SC 29403 (843) 577-6453 • Drtatumsmiles.com facebook.com/TatumDentistry
LOWCOUNTRY TRANSFORMATION SOLUTIONS Carpentry, Welding, Plumbing, Painting, Electrical, Pressure Washing 573-578-1064 • 573-578-5651 Lori.Held21@gmail.com INSURANCE BRIGHTWAY INSURANCE, THE MCKENZIE AGENCY 426 West Coleman Blvd. Ste F, Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464 843-408-4554 • 843-405-0185 Brightwaymckenzie.com Jenny.mckenzie@brightway.com LEGAL CONDON FAMILY LAW Family Law, LGBT Focus 3 Gamecock Ave, Suite 301, Charleston, SC 29407 • 843-225-7288 condonfamilylaw.com KAISER LAW DUI, Traffic offence, Criminal and Personal Injury 155 King Street, Ste C, Charleston, SC 29401 • 843-970-2827 Kaiserlawsc.com Joseph@Kaiserlawsc.com KUHN AND KUHN Wills, Trusts and Probate 1904 Savannah Highway, Suite 202 Charleston, SC 29407 421 Old Trolley Road, Summerville, SC 29485 • (843) 577-3700 kuhnandkuhn.com kelly@kuhnandkuhn.com LAFOND LAW GROUP Real Estate Law 544 Savannah Highway, Charleston, SC 29407 • 843-762-3554 LaFondLaw.com info@lafondlaw.com NIGHT LIFE BOHEMIAN BULL 1531 Folly Road, James Island, SC 29412 • 843-225-1817 bohemianbull.com facebook.com/bohemianbull
CHARLESTON PERFORMING ARTS CENTER (CPAC) Theatre, Drag Shows and Cabaret 873 Folly Rd, Charleston, SC 29412 843- 991-5582 charlestonperformingarts.org info@CharlestonPerformingArts.org OBRION’S PUB & GRILL Late Night DJ 20 Folly Road, Ste-305, James Island, SC 29412 • 843-795-0309 Obrionspub.com THE SHELTER KITCHEN AND BAR 202 Coleman Blvd, Mt Pleasant, SC 29464 • 843-388-3625 TheShelterKitchenAndBar.com THE PUB ON 61 Games, Karaoke, Live Music 2366 Ashley River Rd., Charleston, SC 29414 • 843-737-0072 ThePubOn61.com facebook.com/Pub61 REAL ESTATE CHARLESTON HOME TEAM REAL ESTATE Ashley Dangerfield, Bobby Shealy 12-A Carriage Lane, Charleston, SC 29407 • 843-628-3960 ChsHomeTeam.com info@chshometeam.com CSA REAL ESTATE Charlie Smith 333 Wappoo Rd., Charleston, SC 29407 843-813-0352 • CSARealEstate.com csmith@csarealestate.com CAROLINA ONE Chris Tertzagian 1265 Folly Road, Charleston, SC 29412 843-270-9399 • LoyalForLife.com ctertzagian@carolinaone.com RESTAURANTS AND DINNING BAKIES Custome Cakes and Festive Sweets 426 West Coleman Boulevard, Suite C, Mount Pleasant, SC 29464 843-881-2364 • Bakiessc.com info@BakiesSC.com
BOHEMIAN BULL 1531 Folly Road, James Island, SC 29412 • 843-225-1817 bohemianbull.com facebook.com/bohemianbull MELLOW MUSHROOM 319 King Street, Charleston SC 29401 19 Magnolia Rd, Charleston, SC 29407 843-723-7374 • mellowmushroom.com OBRION’S PUB & GRILL 20 Folly Road, Ste-305, James Island, SC 29412 • 843-795-0309 Obrionspub.com THE SHELTER KITCHEN AND BAR 202 Coleman Blvd, Mt Pleasant, SC 29464 • 843-388-3625 TheShelterKitchenAndBar.com THE PUB ON 61 2366 Ashley River Rd., Charleston, SC 29414 • 843-737-0072 ThePubOn61.com facebook.com/Pub61 SUGAR 59 1/2 Cannon St, Charleston, SC 29403 • (843) 579-2891 Sugarbake.com TATTOOS AND PIERCINGS GILDED MERMAID TATTOO STUDIO 4213 B, Savannah Hwy, Ravenel, SC 29470 • 843-872-6880 facebook.com/gildedmermaid WEDDINGS AND ENGAGEMENTS BAKIES Custom Cakes and Festive Sweets 426 West Coleman Boulevard, Suite C, Mount Pleasant, SC 29464 843-881-2364 • Bakiessc.com info@BakiesSC.com
DUVALL EVENTS Events, Flowers, Bar Service, and Catering 2816 Azalea Dr., North Charleston, SC 29405 • 843-763-9222 Duvallevents.com HONEY’S BAKING Wedding Cakes and Bake Goods 843-367-4424 honeysbaking.com POP THE BUBBLY Event Planning 460 King Street, #200, Charleston, SC 29403 • 843.406.5645 Popthebubblyevents.com info@popthebubblyevents.com SERENITY TREE YOGA Pre-wedding day yoga, Bachelor(s)/ Bachelorette(s) yoga Serenitytreeyoga.com Facebook.com/SerenityTreeYoga SUGAR Desserts, Cupcakes, Fruit Tarts 59 1/2 Cannon St, Charleston, SC 29403 • (843) 579-2891 Sugarbake.com THE BLISSFUL WHISK Catering • 818-836-2686 theblissfulwhisk@gmail.com facebook.com/blissfulwhiskllc instagram.com/theblissfulwhisk TOP NOTCH EVENTS Event Planning 309-750-4094 TopNotchEventDesigner.com will@topnotcheventdesigner.com
DIAMONDWAVE Custom Rings and Jewelry 866-978-7801 • Diamondwave.com service@diamondwave.com facebook.com/diamondwavejewelry instagram.com/diamondwavejewelry
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Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long, you miss them. E
Photo by: Morrow Boggs
William Arthur Ward