CH2: Celebrate Hilton Head - July 2012

sHoulD unDerage Drinking Be alloweD unDer aDult supervision?

Frank & Courtney weigH in pre-sCHool options For new parents

Cool tHings to Do on Hilton HeaD �

tHe art oF Being two-FaCeD 1

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

JULY 2012

american pavers

Denotes General Vicinity ONLY. Check Ad For Actual Address.

arthur Hills Golf Club

George fazio Golf Club

The A HolBeach Hou iday Inn Rse es

ni

The Om

ort

Sonesta

Resort

Dolphin Head Golf Course

FEATuRES

CONTENTS

July 2012

>> FEATuRES

P16 isLanD map Just in case the Maps App on your iPhone isn’t working—you know, because of the terrible cell phone service on Hilton Head Island… Recalculating.economy within the quirky borders of this artsy, coastal town.

P32

tHe birtH of Greater bLUffton’s CHamber of CommerCe New leaders of the Greater Bluffton Chamber of Commerce insist that developing a chamber for Bluffton businesses is not a secession from the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce; they say that establishing a separate chamber is about being fierce promoters and protectors of the local economy within the quirky borders of this artsy, coastal town.

P44

P60

10 CooL tHinGs to Do on HiLton HeaD isLanD So there may be a few more than 10... but more is better, no?

P82

JUst reWarDs The Tipping Point

P90 rŌka LiqUeUr, inspireD LoCaL spirits Based on the packaging alone, RŌKA already looks the part of a top-shelf libation, not to mention that the spun aluminum bottle is perfect for keeping its contents at an ideal temperature. But the genius lies within.

tHe art of beinG tWo-faCeD Something tells us these two bands are connected, but we can’t quite put our finger on how...

43 P94 tHe strive to tHrive Selecting a preschool in the lowcountry

44

P104 beHinD tHe Gates Moss Creek and Colleton River Plantation

>>> on oUr Cover

Cover collage by Tom Staebler 18

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

EvERyTHING ElSE

CONTENTS

July 2012

76

>> EvERyTHING ElSE >> BuSINESS PROFIlES

P22

GoLf 101 The Psychology of Golf

P24

P58

P76 GULLaH HeritaGe traiL toUrs A Family’s Story, An Island History

P86

los Jalapenos Mixing Fresh Food, Family & Friends

P100 saLon artistrY living the Dream

P54

eDitor’s note

Letters to tHe eDitor Sun City outrage & a love story

P26

a series of fortUnate events your 15 minutes of fame

P28 oUr toWn We’re Number One!

P30 oUr toWn Main Street youth Theatre Presents Beauty and the Beast

P36

HeLLo mY name is . . .

Hello, My Name Is...Joe Maffo (a.k.a.

Gator Joe)

P112 a WorD from tHe maYors Drew laughlin and lisa Sulka update you on town happenings on Hilton Head Island and in Bluffton.

P114 DisCoUnts!

Why in the world would you NOT show your cH2 card to get these fabulous discounts? If your issue doesn’t have one, e-mail us your mailing address and we’ll send you one! Card requests to m.washo@celebratehiltonhead.com.

>>> on oUr Cover

a Line in tHe sanD underage Drinking

P40 CeLebrate JULY Happy Birthday America!

P42

86 20

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

it’s five o’CLoCk someWHere Drink recipes, nightly entertainment calendar, band spotlights & more reasons to stay up late.

Cover collage by Tom Staebler July 2012

07.2012

FROM THE eDitor

2 publisher / editor-in-Chief: MAGGIE WASHO art Director: KElly STROuD art & production CATHERINE DAvIES advertising sales: ASHTON KEllEy KIM CROuCH

My FICTITIOuS HHI vACATION

CANDy EAzOR executive assistant lIly BARTEll Contributing Writers: KITTy BARTEll FRANK DuNNE JR. DAvID GIGNIllIAT COuRTNEy HAMPSON lINDSEy HAWKINS DREW lAuGHlIN ERIKA PylE PETE POPOvICH lISA SulKA DEBBIE SzPANKA DAvID TOBIAS Contributing photographers / artist: PHOTOGRAPHy

By ANNE MARK STAFF PHOTOGRAPHy JOHN BRACKETT PHOTOGRAPHy Contributing art Direction: TOM STAEBlER P.O.Box 22949 Hilton Head Island,

F

or a few years now, in the July issue of cH2 & cB2, we have included a Top 10 list of things to do here. We realize that many of our readers this month are “just visiting,” so we do this in an effort to highlight different activities we might enjoy should we be vacationing on Hilton Head Island.

This sort of got me thinking about what I would do here if I were on vacation. I have not, since I moved here 20 years ago, ever had a “staycation” on Hilton Head Island.

Maybe it’s time. So here is my Top 10 list for Maggie’s Fictitious HHI vacation: 1.

First of all, I would rent a house on the beach so I could bring my dog lucy on vacation with me. Every evening would end with a stroll in the sand and wine on the back porch.

2. The rest of the tourists can have the grocery store on Saturday afternoon; I’m eating out every night. My first order of business would be asking several locals what their favorite restaurant is—on the water preferred.

3. Chartering a fishing tour would be my next order of business. I want to catch a big fish while I’m here.

4. I would pay the $5 to go see Harbour Town and listen to Gregg Russell under the liberty Oak. And I wouldn’t even complain about it.

5. Fireworks on Tuesday night at Shelter Cove Marina? I’m there. Afterward, I’m going to the Black Marlin in Palmetto Bay Marina and taking a cab back to my beach house.

6. If I was feeling particularly brave I might go zip-lining...or take a tour of the many traffic circles in the area. I hear there’s even a new one in Bluffton!

7. Beach, beach and more beach.

Frozen cocktail at the Tiki Hut, and then back to the beach.

8. I’m going to see Batman on opening night, so I hope they have some movie theaters here.

9. I would get a pedicure, and a massage. Maybe even a facial. If I have any energy left, I’m going shopping for the rest of the day.

10. Book my beach house for next year.

SC 29925 843.689.2658 m.washo@celebratehiltonhead.com

22

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

m. Washo Publisher / Editor-in-Chief

July 2012

lETTERS

TO THE EDITOR...

Catherine, This is Pam from Palmetto Bay Sunrise Cafe. First of all, thank you for the great article about Sunrise. We had really great response...everyone loved it! I have a story for you that I thought you all might enjoy. Melissa, our adorable server (she is in the green shirt in our article) has known for a few months that her boyfriend was going to propose. He had asked ring size and they had talked about their future etc.

When your latest issue came out I saw it and we spent our spare time looking over it, gazing at the beautiful rings and articles. She and I are always talking wedding stuff.

I did not find out until Wednesday that he was going to propose to her on Friday (Shane had this whole HuGE SuRPRISE proposal planned). Her cousin, Stacey (who also works with us) told me that when Heritage Jewelers was selecting rings for the article they asked Shane if they could use Melissa’s ring (that he designed) for the article.

So, the ring that we have been talking about was actually hers!!

So, last Friday in a romantic proposal (at Palmetto Bluff by the water), they returned to the house where his family was vacationing. There was Melissa’s family (and his) all reading your magazine!! That is when she found out that the ring in the article was hers! I just think it is a great story and I thought you all would want to share in the joy. There are a few more details like he walked in the room one day and she was reading the magazine and a few more but I am trying to keep it short. Melissa Foy and Shane Allison are going to marry in February or early March 2013!

Come see us soon!!

Love, pam

24

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

Hello Maggie, I am the mother of Anna DeGrauw (cover model of June 2012). I would like to thank you for the wonderful opportunity you have provided to have Anna be your “cover girl”. We are very excited to have her on the cover of such a nice magazine.

I was hoping you would be able to send me the digital image of the cover, so we could use it for her electronic portfolio.

I believe Krisztian lonyai was also trying to get us some paper copies to have for sentimental reasons, share with the grandparents, use as tear sheets, etc.

Thank you again for such a wonderful experience, erin DeGrauw one subject. two opinions.

turn the page for a different opinion.



a Line in the Sand a CaSINo IN hardEEvILLE?

article by Courtney hampson PhotograPhy By aNNE

Iconic crooner Barry Manilow is selling his oceanfront Malibu estate for $6,950,000. how’d he swing those digs?

W

ell, that chick Mandy, she came and she gave without taking, so he had that going for him.

(He probably sent her away just in time.) Barry has also had a four-decade career entertaining the masses with his sappy sweet ballads that most recently landed him a seven-year gig playing two shows a night in Vegas.

Jackpot!

Vegas is where it’s at. Washed up ’70s singers can don their polyester onesies and rock out again, and again, and again.

I know. I’ve seen Barry in Vegas twice. You might think I’m pathetic. I say, well you’re probably right. I helped pave his path to prosperous retirement.

When word originally began to spread that a casino and resort complex was in the planning stages within Hilton Head Lakes, (which for the geographically challenged is a good 15 miles from Hilton

Head), local government and business officials were in a tizzy. Why? Well, members of a Hilton Head Island Republican Club have concerns that a casino in Jasper County would “tarnish the area’s image as a wholesome, family-friendly resort and retirement destination.”

Jim Wescott, executive director of the Lowcountry and Resort Islands Tourism Commission, has had mixed feelings. “The businesses that tend to grow up around casinos aren’t always wholesome, and the clientele aren’t necessarily always welcome,” he said. eeew, he’s right. What if they have tattoos?

Last month, Hilton Head resident John Garnett formed CATCH, the Committee Against the Casino in Hardeeville. “This is something that threatens our quality of life,” he said. “I don’t have any moral issues with casinos or with people who want to spend their money there, but I think it would diminish the Hilton Head brand.”

Despite the influx of jobs (a few thousand) that the casino would bring, even Governor Haley’s spokesperson has indicated, “the governor has no intention of signing any memorandum of understanding that would enable casino gambling.”

I say don’t let these goodie two-shoes ruin our future fun.

But just for kicks, let’s talk about “wholesome,” shall we? If we have to say we are wholesome, well we probably aren’t.

That’s like someone telling you that they are funny. If you have to tell someone you are funny, you’re not. You just want to be.

Consider this: if you believe everything you read, sources have reported that Sun City “Hilton Head” residents are stripping down and swinging with their neighbors.

A pineapple on your front porch means you’re ready to toss your keys in a bowl. now that’s a show straight out of Manilow’s era. It sounds like the over-50 contingent

could get behind (or on top of) the idea of a Lowcountry casino. I wonder if the Hilton Head Republican Club has investigated this Sun City “Hilton Head” infraction. Are rumors of swinging affecting home values?

I love where we live. Heck, I bought a house on my second visit and moved here within four months of that visit. On those visits, when I flew into Savannah and drove “the back way” to Bluffton, never once did I deduce that the strip clubs lining the route meant that I was headed into the danger zone. nor do I think that the Gold Club on Hilton Head prevents the island from being family-friendly. I don’t balk at a friendly game of Left, Right, Center either. Or some skins on the golf course. What say you, Hilton Head Republican Club? Have you never placed a friendly wager with your foursome? everyone wants change: raise taxes/ lower taxes, re-vamp health care, create more jobs. But everyone wants it on his or her own terms. unfortunately, the world, the county, the state and the Lowcountry isn’t only about you. Perhaps you won’t frequent a casino. That’s okay. You don’t have to. But, if 3,000 of our neighbors may find employment in that casino, would you deny them that?

Here we are, back at the perception conundrum again. Let’s not jump to conclusions and assume that a casino also means an influx of unsavory businesses and the grand opening of the Heidi Fleiss Finishing School. If people want to spend the day in a casino, 18 miles from the beaches and family-friendly activities of Hilton Head, let them. We’re probably less likely to bump into them than the golf group from Ohio spending their days playing 36 holes at the golf club and their nights trying for a hole in one in at the Gold Club.

Big picture people. Big picture.

Editor, I believe that Courtney Hampson owes all of the residents at Sun City Hilton Head an apology.

My husband and I have lived here in Sun City for over sixteen years and have never known of any behavior such as Ms.Hampson wrote about. The article was degrading and vicious, based on information from “sources”.

She insinuated that we “tarnish” this area. The residents in this Community have generously contributed their time, talent and financial support to Bluffton, Hardeeville and Hilton Head. We have supplied hundreds of volunteer hours to numerous groups. We do not deserve this smear. katie and Jim ryan 30

July

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

2012

June 2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 25

C2

A SERIES OF FORTUNATE EVENTS

Welcome!

Carolina Heritage Insurance is excited to announce the addition of Rett Thompson, Agent/ Producer, specializing in homeowners, automobile, personal liability and flood insurance.

Congratulations

a summer read Publisher Lydia Inglett and Martin McFie are proud to announce the release of Hilton Head Island: Sand, Sea and Sun.

Beach Properties of Hilton Head has been recognized

by The Hilton Head Island – Bluffton Chamber of Commerce with the Small Business of the Year award for 2011.

stay safe!

Kenny Lancaster, a 23-year veteran of the South Carolina Highway Patrol, joined the Sun City Hilton Head Community Association as the Director of Safety and Standards.

grand opening The Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa recently unveiled and celebrated the grand opening of its main resort pool and new deck, which completes the first phase of its $30 million renovation.

Photography by John Brackett

GROOMIN’ Jillian D. Cook rejoins the Paw-metto Pooches Pet Salon staff as a professional pet stylist.

26

tied the knot Congratulation’s to Steve and Maida Harmon, who were married March 24, 2012 at the Dunes House in Palmetto Dunes.

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

CHILLIN!

new addition

The Big Chill on 6 Target Road welcomes Shannon Rice as the new general manager.

Deb Arnold has been hired as the Group 3 Design Studio home furnishings sales specialist located at 1600 Main Street on Hilton Head.

thank you The Board of Hilton Head Heroes and founders, Lindy and Gregg Russell wish to thank the Hilton Head Island Wal-Mart for its donation.

July 2012

July 2012

certificate of excellance The Inn at Harbour Town- the newly renovated boutique hotel- just received TripAdvisor’s “Certificate of Excellance,” awarded by the world’s largest travel website.

Just Opened Prudential Financial, Inc. and the Corkern Group held their official opening and ribbon cutting Friday, June 1 for the companies’ new offices at 1278 May River Road, Suite 300 in Old Town Bluffton.

future artists The Island School Council for the Arts recently awarded scholarships totaling $1,500 to graduating seniors from Hilton Head Island and Bluffton high schools. Pictured is Mira Scott, ISCA president, and Plumb scholarship recipient Jean-Luc McMurtry and Nick Evangelista, Don Ryan scholarship recipient.

For Mother Nature Outside Hilton Head recently gave $1500.00 to The Coastal Conservation League in association with Patagonia.

Pictured (from left to right): Mark Wray, Outside Hilton Head director of retail; Steve Eames, Coastal Conservation League; Jordan Treadaway, Outside Hilton Head Reservations manager, Tracie Martucci, Outside Hilton Head General Manager; Jean Fruh,(seated), Dionne Pierce, Outside hilton Head Director of Destination Management, Mike Overton, Outside Hilton Head, CEO; Mike Hodsdon, Outside Hilton Head, Shelter Cove marina Operations.

To be included in our next Series of Fortunate Events, please email Ashton Kelley a PHOTO and A SENTENCE (not a paragraph) at a.kelley@celebratehiltonhead.com. Photos will not be accepted without a sentence. Sentences will not be accepted without a photo. Paragraphs will be edited down to one sentence. Get it? Got it! Good.

oUr toWn

mAIN STREET yOUTh ThEATRE pRESENTS: bEAUTy ANd ThE bEAST ERIKA pylE



e

veryone in the family will love the Disney classic, Beauty and the Beast, according to Bluffton High School student Dan Brown, who plays Cogsworth in the Main Street youth Theatre’s upcoming production. “Kids will like the story line and hearing songs they know(from the film version), while adults will appreciate how well characters are interpreted and changed,” he said.

Jean White, 18, agrees.

She started in theatre six years ago and has been performing non-stop ever since. Now she’s playing the coveted role of Belle, and along with The Beast, Filip Belka, is performing a final show with Main Street youth Theatre before graduating from high school.

“Beauty and the Beast appeals to everyone because it has everything: Kids love it because of the energy and adults love it because of the lessons it teaches,” White said. like most of the audience who will attend the production, White has seen the family film and recalls the first time she saw it. “I was

28

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

absolutely obsessed,” she said, adding that she has never seen a live production of it.

Daniel Derrer, 22, is a theatre peformance major at Winthrop university who’s been in more than 15 shows in the past four years there.

He says he “jumped at the chance” to audition for Beauty and the Beast, because it was always one of his favorite

shows when he was young.

Playing the part of lefou, he says he loves the play because of “how animated and big everything is.”

“Rehearsals are just full of excitement, and it’s always fun working with Jodi,” Derrrer added, referring to popular local director and choreographer Jodi layman, who is returning to the Main Street youth Theatre stage to create the production with 47 local actors, ranging in age from 8 to 70. Island new comer Bill Peterson is the musical director. Jean-luc McMurty,

Beauty and the Beast will be held at the Visual and Performing Arts Center, July 11-13,1820,25-29. For tickets call 843-689-MAIN

if YoU Go: Performances of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast will be held at the visual and Performing Arts Center, 70 Wilborn Road, July 11-13,1820, and 25-29.

Curtain is at 7 p.m. every night through July 28 with a matinee at 2 p.m on July 29th.

lIKE mOST OF ThE AUdIENcE WhO WIll ATTENd ThE pROdUcTION, WhITE hAS SEEN ThE FAmIly FIlm ANd REcAllS ThE FIRST TImE ShE SAW IT. “I WAS AbSOlUTEly ObSESSEd,” ShE SAId, AddING ThAT ShE hAS NEVER SEEN A lIVE pROdUcTION OF IT. a Main Street youth Theatre veteran who’s headed to New york university to study acting and film and televison in the fall says, that, like Derrer, he was “enamored with the exaggerated characters and comical interactions” when he first saw the film. His character, Gaston, “certainly has strong desires and ambitions, which I think everyone can relate to,” he said.

McMurty encourages audiences of all ages to see the play. “It is a live experience, always unique, with a different flavor every night,” he said. “If you haven’t seen the movie, come see the show, if you have seen the movie, come see the show!”

Group rates are available. To purchase tickets, visit Main Street youth Theatre.org or call (843) 689-MAIN.

July 2012

oUr toWn

WE’RE NUmbER ONE! hIlTON hEAd ISlANd WINS EmS AWARd dAVId TObIA S

 “If you’re going to have a heart attack, the best place to have it is right here on Hilton Head Island.”

Members of Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue, Hilton Head Hospital Staff & the International Association of Fire Chiefs EMS Section Executive Board

I

f Hilton Head Island ordinances allowed (which they don’t), now would be a great time to drape a big banner across Highway 278 declaring Hilton Head Island Number One, because we are— the top Fire and Rescue EMS program and the number one Heart Safe Community in the country.

The award was presented in May by the International Association of Fire Chiefs at its Fire Rescue Medical Conference in las vegas, and Hilton Head Island won for communities with populations under 100,000.

It’s the second time in two years the program has been recognized, although last year’s award was an honorable mention. This one is the big kahuna and represents years of effort by the Fire Department, the Town of Hilton Head Island and Hilton Head Hospital, to assemble a top notch EMS and cardiac arrest response infrastructure.

Recognizing Hilton Head

30

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

Island as an exceptional community for fire and rescue EMS is not a surprise to Fire Chief lavarn lucas.

The Hilton Head Island Fire Department has been training about 400 people a year in CPR for years, selling out every class.

Cardiac response programs have been also in place for years, including defibrillator training for plantation security departments, schools and even resorts.

But over the last several years the chief, his department, the Town of Hilton Head and the Hilton Head Hospital have worked on a coordinated effort, utilizing training programs, state-of-the-art communications systems, and consistent protocols to improve efficiency and effectiveness in response, transportation and treatment.

The result is Hilton Head Island’s program has been proven successful,

especially for “witnessed cardiac events” where Hilton Head Island’s survival rate is 40 percent higher than the national average. lucas says there’s a standing joke about Hilton Head Island—one of those dark jokes that only people in the business of life and death can tell—that if you’re going to have a heart attack, the best place to have it is right here on Hilton Head Island.“That’s in no way a reflection on any other part of Beaufort County or Jasper County,” lucas is quick to add. “We’re just saying we have excellent care here, EMS is centralized, we will send more responders. They’re well trained, and the entire program is coordinated.

When we get them to Hilton Head Hospital quickly and efficiently, with treatment along the way, they can count on a level of care you’re just not going to find anywhere else in the country for a community this size.”

The chief said he is proud to have put in a place something he calls “the NASCAR model” for the program, and he gives that strategy credit for the program’s success, and the subsequent award. “Everyone has seen a car come into pit row to have the tires changed,” lucas said. “It’s a choreographed event. We looked at that and adopted a pit crew concept. When we send people to this emergency, everybody knows exactly what they’re going to do and how they’re going to work together.”

The chief also gives credit to a number of people in the community whose passion for EMS programs contributed in a large way to the success and the award, including Capt. Eric leinhart of the fire department’s training division, Deputy Chief Brad Tadloff, Captain Tom Bouthillet, Fire Marshall Joheida Fister, Assistant Town Manager Greg Deloach, Kelly Arashin, clinical nurse specialist with the Hilton Head Hospital, and the nursing and emergency room staffs at Hilton Head Hospital.

It’s been a great team effort and a great award, he said.

July 2012

Article By Debbie Szpanka

The Birth of Greater Bluffton’s

Chamber of Commerce

B

ack in the mid-1800s, a group of Bluffton men sat Ken Groff, co-owner of Beacon Insurance, suggested that underneath an oak tree and plotted to protest Federal his business and two of his business neighbors, Atlantic taxes on the goods they imported. From there, the Community Bank and Benchmark Fitness Center, sponsor secessionist movement was born, making South Carolina the an outside party for their clients in Sheridan Business Park first state in the Union to succeed. The theme of protecting where they are located. and promoting the interests of Bluffton businesses came “This concept morphed into a full-blown kickoff party alive under what is known as the “Secession Oak,” and for the Greater Bluffton Chamber of Commerce,” Groff that espirit de corps which starts with said. “Several businesses donated food Bluffton’s renowned “state of mind,” still and beverages and hundreds of people Forming a separate lives on. showed up. It’s amazing, because the organization is about Chamber doesn’t have a lot to offer Today, the facts are different, yet the spirit is the same. While the new its members right now since it’s still Bluffton business leaders of the Greater Bluffton Chamber evolving. However, it offers businesses owners finding and of Commerce insist that developing a an opportunity for an identity and a chamber for Bluffton businesses is not a voice and a chance to do this from the forming their own “secession” from the Hilton Head Islandground floor of this organization. It’s fun voice and having a Bluffton Chamber of Commerce, they and exciting to see the Chamber come say that establishing a separate chamber hand in the economic together so quickly, because people is about being fierce promoters and believe in Bluffton. Due to our strong development of protectors of the local economy within community spirit, people want to lock the quirky borders of this artsy, coastal arms together and go out as one.”

Bluffton. town.

Megan Baker, chairman of the “We are about representing Bluffton’s Chamber’s events committee, concurs. businesses,” said Shellie West Hodges, the newly appointed “Since the April 26 kickoff event was our debut, we didn’t executive director. “Forming the Chamber is not about what know how many people would come. We expected about the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce 100. I think there were upwards of 400 people there. This is or is not doing; we want to work side by side, and we tells me people are excited about the prospects of what’s to hope to enhance each other’s efforts. Forming a separate come from the Bluffton Chamber.” organization is about Bluffton business owners finding and Two weeks after the kickoff, members of Greater Bluffton forming their own voice and having a hand in economic Chamber of Commerce were celebrating its first ribbon development of our town. “We want to give Bluffton a face cutting for a new business, which is steeped in Bluffton and voice without a dash in the name.” history. Adam Simoneaux watched as his wife, Lyndee, used The concept of a Bluffton Chamber, initiated by Hodges oversized scissors to cut the red ribbon in half, which was in January, has strongly resonated throughout the community. tied across the parking lot of Scott’s Market in the historic

A view of the May River from Bridge Street in Old Town Bluffton.

downtown district. The couple then welcomed their neighbors and business associates into their family’s butcher shop, which was formerly owned by Adam’s uncle and grandfather.

“This shop has been in my family and in this community for 47 years,” Simoneaux said. “I am honored to be one thread of the Bluffton fabric that has woven its way through the generations. My store and the beginning of Bluffton’s Chamber represent a step into the next chapter of this story.”

Simoneaux said his store, which opened before he was born, represents how tradition and progress are now a part of Bluffton’s culture. “The Chamber can help the older businesses and the newer ones come together as one,” he said. “As business owners, we are a part of a team, part of a bigger picture which leads to a greater community and a greater sum. The Chamber is the organization which can band us together and put its hand on the wheel and help us collectively steer in one direction, while individually steering us to more customers, relationships and business.”

According to Hodges, the focus of the Greater Bluffton Chamber of Commerce is cultivating small businesses— helping them prosper, increase job opportunities and encourage orderly economic development and stability. And a diverse board is the first step for inclusiveness. “We want to reach out to those who work from home, non-profits, small businesses and larger businesses. We want the established business representatives to mix with newcomers and share ideas about marketing and partnerships,” he said.

One idea that the Chamber has initiated is sponsoring “cash mob” events. The first one was held in mid-May at Kinfolks Gullah Grubs & Seafood, located in the Sheridan Business Park.

“It happened at a great time of need,” said Gwendolyn Green, co-owner of the restaurant. “May was a slow month, and this event was a wonderful kick-start. It really did good for my business; I have seen many of the people who were there for the event come back with their families.”

And that’s exactly the intent of a “cash mob” event: introducing the business community to new businesses and helping each out with marketing and exposure.

Green, who owns the restaurant with her husband Lonnie, was honored to be the first recipient of the Chamber “cash mob,” and she views the event as a part of drawing people closer. “This community is already close, and I think the Chamber and its events can also bridge the gaps between our town’s businesses, schools and families,” she said.

“The Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce continues to do a terrific job marketing the entire region and bringing in tourists with local, regional and national exposure,” Hodges said. “This Chamber is more of a vehicle to unite the economic engines of our town.”

Simoneaux echoed this sentiment. “The secret is out about Bluffton,” he said. “The big guys will come. It’s time the little guys band together.”

34

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

july

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 35

A Line in the Sand

Photography By Anne

One subject. Two opinions.

Underage Drinking

Frank Dunne Jr.

T

his thing just gets weirder and weirder. A year ago, Courtney and I locked horns over the institution of marriage. She, although newly bespoken at the time, argued unsuccessfully that marriage is outdated. I, a lifelong bachelor, argued successfully in

Courtney Hampson

marriage’s favor.

Now we’ve got advice on how to handle underage drinking with your kids, even though neither of us has any children.

So I will submit to you our qualifications. I was once a teenager and, to the best of my knowledge, so

was Courtney. I say that irrespective of my suspicion that she’s an alien from a planet where people are born as adults with faulty information preprogrammed into their brains. But I digress. I’ll assume the former and add the fact that as upstanding, influential members of the adult community, she We’re on this subject because Courtney saw pre-prom party photos with kids holding alcoholic drinks on Facebook. She was aghast because, presumably, some of the kids’ parents hosted the parties. and I have plenty of married-with-children friends who have to deal with this issue.

a

cebook does such a good job of suggesting people who should be your “friends” that last month the daughter of a business colleague was suggested. Never one to ignore what Facebook thinks is best for me, I clicked her picture and boy, was I surprised.

Surprised to find a 17-year-old’s Facebook profile picture to be the full landscape shot of her and her high school prom-going friends in the back of a limo, each with a drink in hand, champagne flutes, beer, rocks glasses, etc.

My first thought was, wow! My parents would have killed me.

My second thought was why aren’t her parents bothered by this? Or the parents of her friends.

Or her friends who have strict parents who might be on Facebook. (Aren’t all good parents friends with their kids’ friends so they can keep an eye on ’em?) Yikes.

After some further recognizance and some general questions to parents of teens, I discovered that this incident is not rare.

Apparently it is not out of the question for parents to ply their kiddos with cocktails pre- and post-prom.

I’m not thrilled with this revelation.

Before we get in too deep, let me say that I have no children, so my only experience here is as a former child myself—the child of very strict parents. My mom claims she wasn’t strict, but it sure felt that way when I was grounded for all of spring break for going in an older boy’s car, but I digress.

My parents weren’t big drinkers. My dad’s extremely rare drink of choice was a Black Russian or White Zinfandel, which raises a whole other set of questions, but let’s not go there. I’ve seen my mom consume hard liquor twice in her life,

Frank Dunne Jr

We’re not in the game, but we have 50-yardline seats.

Besides, we know you love “A Line in the Sand” and know you’re going to read it anyway.

We’re on this subject because Courtney saw preprom party photos with kids holding alcoholic drinks on Facebook. She was aghast because, presumably, some of the kids’ parents hosted the parties. The question is, are these parents wrong to serve alcohol to their kids if they’re under 21?

Not necessarily.

First of all, what’s up with 21 anyway? Where is it written that 21-year-olds are any better equipped to drink alcoholic beverages than 19-year-olds? Have you ever been to a college campus or the “Barmuda Triangle” late at night?

Twenty-one is just a nonsensical, arbitrary number. What if the drinking age was 18? Surely there are some 18-year-olds in those photos. Would we be having this discussion?

People who are inclined to abuse alcohol are going to follow that path regardless of when the state says they can start drinking. Sad but true.

The place to teach kids the difference between enjoying alcohol with selfrestraint and abusing it is in the home. As I’m thinking about this subject, I recall a magazine ad that ran many years ago around Father’s Day for Chivas Regal or Crown Royal…I don’t quite remember which.

The copy read something to the effect of, “Here’s a toast to all the fathers who’ve taught their sons the virtues of drinking in moderation.”

That’s the key here— parents setting the right example. Kids who grow up watching Pops get pie-eyed every night after work aren’t getting a very positive message. On the other 38

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

hand, if the folks exhibit responsible drinking habits throughout their children’s upbringing, that’s what they’ll take away. The choice to imbibe often comes while parents still have the opportunity to influence how their kids go about it, so why not use a rite of passage into adulthood like Prom Night as one small lesson in responsible merrymaking? Treat them like adults and let them enjoy a simple champagne toast to kick off a formal evening, just like grownups do. It’s really no different from and just as harmless as parents allowing their kids a glass of wine with dinner on special occasions, a taste of eggnog at Christmas or a sip of the bubbly on New Year’s Eve. Where is it written that 21-year-olds are any better equipped to drink alcoholic beverages than 19-year-olds?

Have you ever been to a college campus or the “Barmuda Triangle” late at night? Twenty-one is just a nonsensical, arbitrary number.

What if the drinking age was 18? Surely there are some 18-year-olds in those photos. Would we be having this discussion?

Like I said, I spent seven years as a teenager, so I’m not oblivious to the fact that kids like to push boundaries, and I’ll bet dollars to doughnuts that some of the young squires in those prom photos had a flask of a little somethin’ stashed away somewhere.

Remember your prom, Daddy-O? Spring for a limo or a taxi, or offer to play chauffer yourself…lots of emphasis added.

July 2012

Courtney Hampson

once on New Year’s Eve 1985 and again at my sister’s wedding in 2002, with the same friend from the ’85 incident. I seem to remember a lot of eye watering, choking and jumping up and down after said shots.

Suffice it to say, I didn’t grow up in a party house, and it is unfathomable to think that my parents would have been okay with me having a few high schools friends over and getting a keg. I still remember the shock on my mom’s face (and probably mine) when I broke in my new ID on my 21st birthday, bought a six pack of beer, marched into the kitchen and placed it in the fridge. I’m not even sure I drank it, but the power to buy it was just too much to handle.

Now, I’m no saint, and I’m not suggesting that I never drank underage. But when you chase gin with a Bartle’s & James Wine Cooler just once, the allure of alcohol quickly dissipates.

I still dry heave when I see or smell either. But it is a completely different story when parents are providing their underage children with alcohol, whether it is an “innocent” pre-prom toast or keg stands at the graduation party. Sorry to be the stick in the mud on this one, but I don’t think there is anything innocent about breaking the law. Or breaking the law on your children’s behalf. Or breaking the law for your children’s friends. It turns my stomach a tad, almost as much as gin.

A Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) report published in July 2011 states that in South Carolina, of the population ages 12-20, 22.3 percent had consumed alcohol in the month prior to the collection of data. (In one month! Not hey, did you try any alcohol this year?) The largest “offenders” are the 18- 20-year-olds (college july

2012

students, no shock here), 43 percent of whom had consumed alcohol in the last 30 days. That was 49,000 kids, last June, in South Carolina alone, breaking the law. Why would a parent knowingly contribute to this scary trend?—a trend that leads to other risk factors.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (which, like SAMSHA, is a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) reported just this past April that drinking affects college students, their families, and college communities at large.

Consequences include: • Death. Each year, an estimated 1,825 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes.

• Injury. Each year, an estimated 599,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are unintentionally injured under the influence of alcohol.

• Assault. Each year, more than 696,000 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking.

• Sexual Abuse. An estimated 97,000 students are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape.

• Unsafe sex. Of 400,000 students having unprotected sex, 100,000 of them do not even remember if they consented to sex.

• Academic consequences. About one quarter of college students report having academic consequences because of their drinking, including missing class, falling behind, doing poorly on exams or papers, and receiving lower grades overall.

I say we keep our high schoolers dry as long as we can. Why encourage a trend that is already spiraling out of control? www.celebratehiltonhead.com 39

JULY

2012 SUNDAY

MONDAY

1

“THE LOWCOUNTRY THROUGH MY OWN LENS” July 1- August 31; 8:00AM, ARTworks More Info: 843-379-2787

8

USCB SAND SHARK SOCCER CAMPS

June 17 - July 12; This is an All Day Event More Info: ed@uscb.edu or 843.208.8072

TUESDAY

2

BROADWAY CHOREOGRAPHY WORKSHOP

July 2,3,6; 10AM-12PM Black Box Studio Theatre Fee: $60 More Info: 843-6863945

9

KARATE SUMMER CAMP July 9;-13th Monday-Friday 9:00AM- 2:00PM Island Rec Center More Info: 843-816-0153

THEATRE CAMP

July 9-13; 9:30AM-3:30PM Arts Center of Coastal Carolina Ages 9-14 Fee: $150

WEDNESDAY

3

WHERE TO WATCH THE FIREWORKS

GREGG RUSSELL PERFORMANCES Harbour Town tree June 3-August 24 (every night except Saturday); 8pm More Info: ww.w. greggrussell.com/ bubblegum

10

HILTON HEAD FIRECRACKER 5000 Shelter Cove Park July 4th 8:00AM-9:30Am More Info: 843-757-8520.

57TH ANNUAL BEAUFORT WATER FESTIVAL JULY 13-22 Beaufort Waterfront

More Info: bftwaterfestival. com/

22

16 TURTLE TALKS AND WALKS June 5th- August 31st 8:00PM-10:00PM Coastal Discvory Museum An evening lecture and beach walk .

29

June 12 - August 15 10:30AM-11:30AM, Coastal Discovery Museum Fun,interactive family program led by professional archaeologist! $10/person More Info:info@ coastaldiscovery.org or 843-689-6767

Starts at 9:30PM

12 IT’S A POOL PARTY! July 12th 5:00pm-10:00pm

More Info: 843-842-7645.

7

FAMILY MAGICAL KAZOO FUN July 7- August 4 7:30PM-9:00PM ARTworks

Rick Hubbard celebrates more than a decade of family fun entertainment.

More Info: lisa@ beaufortcountyarts.com.

14

13 FISHING CAMP June 15-August 14 10:30AM-12:30PM Coastal Discovery Museum More Info:843-689-6767.

BEACH BUM TRIATHALON # 1

July 14th 8:00 AM- 10:00AM Coligny Beach Beach Triathalon entirely on the hard flat beach of Hilton Head Island.

More Info: (843)295-9565.

More Info: (843) 681-8686

17

SUMMER JAMS Every Tuesday June 19-August 14; 7-10PM Shelter Cove Park

Box Office: (843) 681-7273 or www. islandreccenter.org

24

30

SKULL CREEK

More Info: (843)689.6767

PARENTS NIGHT OUT, KIDS NIGHT IN

DIG IT!

Games, Activities, Admission to Museum, BBQ, Bouce House

Bring your four legged friends for a fun adoption event!

23

More Info: 843-689-MAIN

4 “POP! GOES THE FOURTH”

Starts at 9:30

SHELTER COVE HARBOUR

Park Lane Hotel & Suites

MAIN STREET YOUTH THEATRE CAMP

Allows kids of all ages to be onstage,backstage or craft new skills.

SATURDAY

July 4th 10:00AM-2:00PM The Sandbox

July 10 and August 7th 10:30AM Coastal Discovery Museum

More Info: info@ coastaldiscovery.org

June 18 - August 10; 3 hrs a Day, M-F Main Street Youth Theatre

FRIDAY

Starts at 9:15 (dusk)

HARBOUR TOWN

11

SWEETGRASS BASKET MAKING CLASSES

More Info: (843)686-3945

15

THURSDAY

June 13 - August 29; 6PM - 9PM, The Sandbox Pizza dinner, arts and crafts and the whole museum to explore!

More Info: crinehart@ thesandbox.org or 843-842-7645

31

19

18

SOBA FEATURED ARTIST MARY SULLIVAN

June 4 - July 14 All Day Event A Visual Exploration of “TIME AND TIMELESSNESS” Presented by the Society of Bluffton Artists Mary Sullivan is the featured artist at the SOBA Gallery.

More Info: 843-757-6586

BLUFFTON FARMER’S MARKET Every Thursday, 2-7PM Calhoun Street, Carson Cottages and Old Town Bluffton

25 Christmas In July Wednesday, July 25th, 10AM - 2PM Play in the snow and The Sandbox Bounce House, holiday decorations, games and activities. Make an ornament, decorate sugar cookies, and play in the museum. Picnic Lunch and Sno-cones.

26 WATER FUN DAY Every Thursday, 4-7PM Shelter Cove Park $5 Ages 2-15 Adults FREE!

20 SHOUT! THE MOD MUSICAL

June 19-July 29; 8pm Arts Center of Coastal Carolina $37-$42 adult; $25-$29 child.

Box Office: 843-842-ARTS or www.tickets.artshhi.com

21 DOLPHIN NATURE CRUISE

March 2-October 31; 3:00-4:30PM Coastal Discvoery Museum Cruise through the waters of Broad Creek toward Calibogue Sound. $19 Adult $13 Child More Info: (843) 689-6767

28

27 HHI FARMERS MARKET April 6 - December 7 Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn.

8:30am - 1:00pm More Info: (843) 785-2767 or visit our website:

farmersmarkethiltonheadisland.com

12 MILES OF HEAD July 28th

Hilton Head’s Only Endurance Event!

Bike 6am-12pm and then 12pm-6pm.

For More Information: 843-338-1481

More Info: 843-681-7273 or www.islandreccenter.org

EVENTS THROUGHOUT JULY! HARBOURFEST 2012

UPCOMING EVENT? LET US HELP YOU GET THE WORD OUT!

Tuesdays - Ongoing Throughout Summer; 6-9:30p.m.

Shelter Cove Harbor

Email your event to: m.washo@celebratehiltonhead.com

More Info: www.enjoyhiltonhead.com

Subject Line: CH2 Calendar

>>>

tHis paGe

paGe 44

paGe 50







banD featUre: THE ART OF BEING TWO-FACED lOW COuNTRy BOIl & SIlICONE SISTER

niGHtLY entertainment CaLenDar FOR July 2012

toe to HeeL: DRINK RECIPES COuRTESy OF lOCAl DINING ESTABlISHMENTS

5 It’s

O’CLOCK

>>> TRUFFLES CAFE AT SEA PINES CENTER

SOMEWHERE!

THIS MONTH

 >>>

Penny Cup

1.5 oz vodka 1/2 cup of Ginger beer splash of Lime Juice splash of Honey water fresh mint & Lime Garnish

pHotoGrapHY bY anne

ALMOST EVERY RESTAURANT OR BAR HAS A SIGNATURE COCKTAIL. OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS WE ARE GOING TO “STEAL” THEIR SECRET RECIPES AND SHARE THEM WITH YOU.

The Art of Being  Two Faced S i l i c o n e S i s t e r v s . Th e L o wc o u n t r y B o i l B a n d

> Silicone Sister (from left to right; Billy Cummings, Jani St. James, Taime Downz and Robb Foxx)

> The Lowcountry Boil Band (from left to right; Gary Pratt, Andy Pitts, Mike Daly and Jevon Daly)

Dear Diary,

A peculiar and rare discovery was uncovered by CH2 recently. A box of diaries, three with pristine covers and crisp-lined journal entries with notes in the margins, and three with glam rock stickers, lip-stick imprints and unidentified stains over hard to read chicken scratch.

After much debate, CH2 has decided to release the personal rantings in these two groups of journals that seem to have been written by two very different local bands. Something tells us the two bands are connected, but we can’t quite put our finger on it, or how the diaries ended up in the same box‌ Article By Lindsey Hawkins // Photography By Anne

Jevon Daly vs. Taime Downz Dear Diary, Jevon here…and yeah, I know it’s been never since my last entry, but you should do the research and realize the life of a booked musician/teacher/husband/ dad before you judge; basically just research the word awesome, and then read on so that you can understand my one complaint.

I would like to state for the record, not for any therapeutic catharsis (I’m fine, I play instruments and drink beer.), that the fact Ke$ha, who apparently brushes her teeth with a bottle of Jack Daniels every morning, and The Black Eyed Peas, who clearly believe that every night is not only going to be a good night but a good good night, have individually sold more copies of these singles than any Beatle’s single ever. And just for good measure, I would also like to state that the cast of Glee holds the record for number of singles on Billboard’s Hot 100, over Ray Charles…and yes, over The Beatles!

And yes, Diary, I know I must take into consideration the gross difference in music accessibility now compared to decades ago (e.g. iTunes, YouTube, Spotify, Internet), but you are not a defense lawyer for this upcoming generation of hipster posers and impressionable millennial robots, Diary; you listen remember, I vent. And I’m not trying to unleash hate or disdain for this massive group of pasteurized, musical androids, because it’s not their fault that record labels control what is processed and packaged to these tweens and teens.

46

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

I mean, if I hadn’t been raised properly on the musicianship likes of Vassar Clements and New Riders of the Purple Sage, musicians with real talent and proven longevity, I too might have fallen into the mechanically concocted tunage recorded by an eponymous fringed, blonde haircut.

My point, Diary, is if instrumental mastery of sound has stood the test of time historically and is still brilliantly produced by artists today and just as accessible as the sterile repetitive lyrics barked over the butchered hit tracks of yesterday, then WHY Diary? WHY are record labels breeding a generation of Stepford listeners on supermodel looks

I’ve been a listener and a player my whole life. When I perform with Low Country Boil, it’s not just a replicated homage to the hundreds of great songs heard all over the world; it’s a creative interpretation of music. and fashion brands when they could just as easily sell records branded on real talent and performance? I’m saying, Diary, why can’t the industry inspire guitar lessons and political movements instead of hairstyles and jorts?

I’ve been a listener and a player my

whole life. When I perform with Low Country Boil, it’s not just a replicated homage to the hundreds of great songs heard all over the world; it’s a creative interpretation of music. Music that you listen too, not watch in a video. People bought records for decades because they were moved by music and the records used to cost a lot more than a dollar a download.

In final, Diary, I was at Wild Wings Café last night, and though I may be contradicting some of my previous points, at least it’s just you and me, but there was this ridiculous looking band of flaccid guys in spandex and horror show make-up, screaming lewd comments and profanities at middle-aged women eating buffalo strips. I think they were called Silicone Sister, a bit of a liability if you ask me. I mean this isn’t the Sunset Strip; it’s Hilton Head Island. Anyway, they clearly have no taste in music, but ignoring the sad fact that they are trying to relive their ’80s hair- banded youth out on stage at a family restaurant, they sounded incredible. It was like in that two hours they morphed into exact replicas of their idiotic idols and channeled the incredible musicianship that is overshadowed by that hideous genre. I wanted to tell the lead singer Taime Downz that I was actually impressed with his talent and realistic performance, but he looked like he was a drunken loser in real life, so I passed.

That is all.

J.D.

Dear Diary, Alllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiighta! Taime’s back.

So, it’s been like four or five hours since my last entry, and fair warning: I’ve been running with the devil tonight and his name was Jack!

So Diary, I’m on stage with the sistas feeling all the glamorousness running through my veins, and I see these horrible looking emo, crabcore posers pointing, and rolling their eyes while I’m slaying Van Halen at almost unattainable volumes. I’m all, hey you in the back. Yeah you with the fake ID. You might want to ask your

July 2012

The Art of Being

 Two Faced

mom over there, eye-hittin’ the bartender if you’re allowed to drink that wine cooler.

You see Diary, it’s like there is no one teaching these wicked pissers how to gig with a purpose to invoke the fans anymore, and that’s why stages everywhere are infertile, man. I mean these rocker wannabes are running in place on stage, which may only be impressive if you’re rockin’ out geezers at the home. Where’s the eruption, Diary?

Can’t anyone jump anymore? It’d take a miracle for 90 percent of these yayhoo bands out there to get even one drunk and desperate middle-ager to dance the night away, while we send them out in a blaze of glory every night and look pretty doing it.

Showmanship, Diary! Are we really the last sexy talents out there? How many more crap musicians are going to thrill us with their sterile, corner performances outmatched by SportsCenter and ugly, loud women? Demand the hot groupies I say. Wear your tightest pants and best hair and get out and earn your cougars, man. Give love a bad name and smear it around on stage. Or else it’s going to end up being bring your iPod to Wings night.

All I’m saying D., is what happened to the risk takers who shared their moments of brilliance and humiliation on stage, live in front of hundreds, inspiring them to throw bras? I mean I went to Hudson’s the other night to grab a sunset and a beer, thought about doing a cannonball off the dock bar and splash some hot grandmas, but I was stopped in my tracks by a band in plaid shirts, Low Country Bowl I think. I thought about projectile vomiting on the lead singer who looked like the product of Jack Nicholson and Opie, but I noticed he was casting winks out into the audience to these old dames and making them smile.

I might be contradicting my previous shouts, Diary, but he had a little swagger in his fiddle playing and at least the tool invoked that old bag.

I’m just livin’ on a prayer right now D., if you ever want to write me back–a, I’ll be there for you.

Taime D.

july

2012

Andy Pitts vs. Billy Cummings Dear Diary, Well, I’m a weary Pitts today. I know there is no way of predicting iconic status for decades, so I’m not necessarily knocking the artists of today’s Billboard charts pop obsession, but come on.

Where are the instrumental wizards of the future? Are we in a synthetic slump from now on, or is it that anything legit gets lost in cyberspace, suffocating under the tracks of millions of hobbyists uploading their irretrievably moronic interpretations of what they define as music?

Do I over-generalize, Diary? I mean name one finger tapping guitar master, I’m not asking for a prodigy even, that has emerged from any credible record label in the last decade. Where are the Van Halen’s and Vai’s of the millennium? Don’t misunderstand me, Diary. I’m thoroughly unimpressed with recent musicianship, especially when it comes to perfecting, becoming, possessing the guitar; but what I’m venting is when did music become so lazy and thoughtless? Even when artists sound better on record than their influences because of technology, the production is so perfect and sterile, there is no emotional connection to songs on record anymore.

I want to be lyrically, melodically moved, Diary. I want to be taken to utopic levels; I wanna cry and relate and fall in love to music, no matter what the genre. Is it the texting, Diary? Have young musicians no communicative skills anymore so they are dumb but screaming inside? If this is the case, why can’t they

at least play something striking, different, radical, or normal but just incredibly hip?

Is it weird that I want to be energized and emotional all the time, Diary? Am I a freak with a guitar? Do you think I’m a hoarder? Is it weird that I feel energy from vintage instruments? Do you think I’m judgmental, because ultimately I just want to encourage our youth to be awesome and passionate?

Anyway, Diary, I was at Wings with Jev the other night and those tards with wigs, Silicone Sister—you know, the glam band with seemingly infinite knowledge of a genre no one really cares to admit they ever liked anymore. They were rocking out on that tiny stage like they had packed Red Rocks and were hitting acoustic milestones. I wanted to laugh, but it was the jealousy I hold deep inside, almost like a reverence for that creep with no shirt on, Billy Cummings. I love bluegrass, don’t get me wrong, and I know I’m good at guitar, but sometimes I just wanna rooooooooooock! You know?

Cummings killed this solo, and I just feel like maybe I should practice what I preach and just throw down and get all emotional on Hudson’s one night.

Thanks for listening.

Andy

Dear Diary, I had a “Billy’s got his six string on hock” kinda day today, so I’ll start from the intro. Let’s get intimate, D. I need your advice, so don’t lie to me tonight. But do you think the music experience, you know my wicked finger tapping wizardry that channels every great name of the past, my glistening abs that bring all of our fans out to party with us, my jaded heart that keeps all the cougars wanting a piece even though I just got lucky with their sister, do you really think that can be captured digitally?

Here me out, Diary. I’m a troubadour.

I rock two instruments, the guitar and the obvious, so why are industry folk so caught up with how many 99-cent rack-ups they get per one hit wonder? I mean if a million people buy one song ever, that’s only a million dollars, but if a million people come

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 47

and watch someone on tour like me, they could easily be enthralled enough to go see them every year on every tour for $90 a show. Then that’s like a billion dollars or something. My thought process, Diary, is that it’s a lot more money, but my point is that people want to see greatness like me on stage over and over again, because it allows them to feel the tunes in their veins. Music is about feeling awesome and sometimes about partying while feeling awesome.

Diary, I fought tooth and nail to get my talents to their ultimate level, and I feel like artists shouldn’t let their drive go slippin’ away because only a thousand people bought their single on iTunes, because another thousand people stole that digital purchase from their friends and then another thousand people stole it. And so that’s like an extra two thousand fans you never even knew you had. Emotional connection is in the performance of the song live, Diary. It’s the deliverance that creates a legend with a loyal fan following, not a download.

If I hadn’t grown up Jersey scum trying to drown out all those airplanes taking off next to my house with my incredible talent, I would have never achieved such high levels of awesomeness, thrown myself into the fire and toured my way down the East Coast and ended up in the state of sexy awesomeness I’m in today.

I just want this digital measure of popularity to stop skewing the Billboard charts and let ticket sales or something else of real measure put gut wrenching records and legit sounds back on the charts.

It’s like on a local level, regional even, Silicone packs in the fans consistently, so I know that I’m legit because I move people. Like I was at Hudson’s the other night with Taime for some shrimps and a sunset, and we couldn’t get a seat at the outside bar because some hokey orchestra band in cowboy boots was playing a gig for 100-year-olds and 10-year-olds, but I was like who am I to judge that lead guitarist with a butterface; he plays okay, and clearly he was the reason every geriatric and preschooler fan came out that night.

It’s the motion in the ocean, Dairy.

Thanks for sorting it out.

Billy C. 48

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

Gary Pratt vs. Robb Foxxx Dear Diary, Life is good. I read an industry blog today, dedicated to music greatness and opinion after opinion on today’s scene. Kind of ironic if you ask me, Diary, the obsession with the scene being on what’s seen and not heard. When did music become so judgmental, so argued, so competitive, so monetarily driven?

You know I get it; I mean a million things can theoretically be the demise of “real” music, because every human being with auditory function has a unique definition of what “real” music is, and that opinion ultimately matures and changes decade to decade for everyone on some scale. Unfortunately, what these iPeople are disgruntled over in the majority of these blogs has nothing to do with opposing music composition, the melodies, the harmonies, the tempos and the instruments on which they are created. Bloggers are making dramatic comparisons of record sales vs. downloads, pop vs. metal, major labels vs. indie labels, digital artistry vs. musicianship. What’s to compare… everything? I mean come on; there have been 16 billion songs downloaded from iTunes to date. Am I the only one who gets it, Diary?

Bottom line is you can’t really argue tastes in music. Now I like rock and roll undertones in my selection, but today’s music “scene” if you will, Diary,

July 2012

The Art of Being  Two Faced

is just as diverse and exciting as ever.

I guess I could state a preference that, even with all the recording technology out there and all the accessibility the Internet provides, the proof of greatness is in the live performance, regardless of the genre of music or how much the production cost.

I guess, Diary, that if you are to achieve greatness, whether as a cover band, songwriter, singer or some combination, then put in due diligence.

Perfect that harmony, master that tempo and most importantly perform with passion and emotion. The fame and the money are a poor measure for the heart and the talent. “You have to be a bastard to make it. That’s a fact.

And the Beatles were the biggest bastards on earth,” John Lennon said.

Lastly, Diary, I see local bands nightly, and what I’m talking about is exactly this. I was out at Wings with Jev and Andy last night, and Silicone Sister was up there charring Dokken.

Even though I can’t stand the bastards, people love them because they’ve mastered their craft and they’re wild to watch. Especially the quieter, tall one I find most intriguing. Clearly he’s the most accurate on tempos and definitely the best dressed.

Later, Gary P.

Dear Diary, How many times do I have to say have a blast and look good doing it?

Foxxx is getting a little irritated here, Diary. When will these blow-hole noisemakers start realizing that being a rock star not only means layering harmonies with wicked rhythms and potent melodies, but layering ripped fishnets with red, pleather pants and bronzer?

How can these wussies be miles away from the very look that defines their supposed genre of music?

Why would anyone waste their time watching any show where the drapes

july

2012

don’t match the curtains? You pickin’ up what I’m swinging left, Diary?

If you want to perform, get your theatrics right is all I’m asking these filthy posers to even consider. If you rock Wham, then pop the collar of your silk Miami Vice button downs and feather your bangs. If you rock Flo Rida, then hit the juice, get some ink and grow the chops. If you rock Celine Dion, then stop eating, work on your accent and marry your grandpa.

Really, Diary, is it that complicated?

Fashion is a way of the rock star lifestyle. If I performed in some Wranglers and a Bart Simpson T-shirt with a Bart Simpson squished in between some supersized butt-cheeks with a tag line that reads, “Crack kills,” then I better expect to go to Beaufort County headquarters when I tell your mom to show me her coconuts, because I did it out of uniform. Rock stars can only talk like rock stars when they’re dressed like rock stars.

Rock stars can only perform like rock stars and sound like rock stars and be believed to be rock stars when they are, in fact, dressed like rock stars.

I’m a rock star, Diary, and I look incredible and sound incredible, and people love me and they stare at me on stage because I’m hot and I feel hot.

You know, I went to see Low Country Boil Bluegrass Band at Hudson’s with Taime and Billy the other night. They think I went for the bitchin’ sunset and ice cold brews. But I love to watch those plaid guys fiddle and pick and banjo those tourists into euphoria. They rock their crisp, checkered shirts layered with ironed Levi’s and authentic sh** kickers, while performing next to an aluminum, trough of Bud Lights and an empty tip jar. They are a perfect example of rock starring your own genre of music through and through.

They just better watch they don’t piss that bassist off, cuz he’s clearly the glue that holds their sound together.

Rock on.

Robb Foxxx

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 49

5 It’s

O’CLOCK

SOMEWHERE!

black marlin Hurricane bar Happy Hour (4 - 7PM)

kingfisher (Upstairs) - Comedy Show (8:30PM) kingfisher (Downstairs) Tableside Magic with Joseph (6pm), Happy Hour (4:307PM)

Los Jalapenos Happy Hour (4:30--7PM) old fort pub Happy Hour (5-7PM)

the tiki HutJoJo Squirrel & The Homepickles (1-5PM)

san miguels - live Music (5:30-9:30PM)

Wild Wing Café Team Trivia w/ DQ

frankie bones ladies Night

san miguels

the Lodge - Pinch The Pint Night

(5:30-9:30PM)



the Lodge - Kick The Keg Night

the Jazz Corner The Martin lesch Band ft. Whitley Duputy-8PM

live Music

the Jazz CornerDeas Guys (8PM)

frankie bones $10 Off Any Bottle of Wine

Los Jalapenos - Happy Hour (4-7PM) mellow mushroom - Trivia Night

black marlin Hurricane bar Happy Hour (4 - 7PM)

HH prime-Chris Paul (5 - 7PM)

Los Jalapenos Happy Hour (4-7PM)

black marlin Hurricane bar Happy Hour (4 - 7PM)

9:30PM Compete for prizes like Wild Wing gift baskets, certificates, T-shirts, & other fun stuff!

old fort pub - Happy Hour (5 - 7PM)

w

wednesdAy

black marlin Hurricane bar Drink Specials (12 - 7PM)

t

tuesdAy

m

mondAy

sundAy

s

skull Creek boathouse Monday nights Sunset Reggae Party with Patwa 7-10

Los Jalapenos - Happy Hour (4-7PM) old fort pub - Happy Hour (5-7PM)

san miguels - live Music (5:309:30PM) the Jazz Corner The Bobby Ryder Quartet (8PM) xo Lounge- The Groovetones (9PM-1AM)

send your event/entertainment listing to c.davies@clebratehiltonhead.com

skull Creek boathouseJuly 4th fireworks on the pier, with live music from Cranford & Sons san miguels - live Music (5:309:30PM) Wise Guys- ladies Night HH prime- Dean St. Hillaire (5-7PM) Wild Wing Café Karaoke with Big B. $2 Ritas $6 Mega-Rita $4 Skinny Rita



S

Saturday

F

Friday

thursday

T

Black Marlin Hurricane Bar - Happy Hour (4 7PM) Skull Creek Boathouse every night 5-9 kids activities

Ela’s Blu Water Grille LIVE Music (Starting at 8PM) Kingfisher (Upstairs) Comedy Show Tuesdays - Sundays (not on tuesday nights with fireworks) (8:30PM) Kingfisher (Downstairs) Happy Hour (4:30--7PM)

San Miguel’s - Eric Daubert (5:30-9:30PM)

9 PromenadeThe OCD Band- (8PM)

Black Marlin Hurricane Bar - Drink Specials (12 - 7PM) Black Marlin Hurricane Bar Happy Hour (4 - 7PM)

Ela’s Blu Water Grille LIVE Music (Starting at 8PM)

Ela’s Blu Water Grille LIVE Music (Starting at 8PM) Kingfisher (Upstairs) Comedy Show Tuesdays Sundays (not on tuesday nights with fireworks) (8:30PM) The Jazz Corner- Lavon and Louise (8PM) Los Jalapenos - Happy Hour (4-7PM) Old Fort Pub - Happy Hour (5-7PM) The Tiki Hut - Mike Korbar Wild Wing Café - $2 Vodka Night The Smokehouse- Whitey Deputy & B-Town Project (Every Thursday 10PM)

Kingfisher (Upstairs) Comedy Show (8:30PM) Happy Hour (4:30-PM)

One Hot Mama’s- DJ and Dancing Smokehouse- Luke Mitchell (10PM) Wild Wings Cafe- 7 Days a Week Happy Hour (48PM) $2 Beam $4 Red Stag The Salty Dog Cafe- Live Music (5-9PM) San Miguels- Live Music (5:30-9:30PM) HH Prime- David Bohn (5-7PM)

One Hot Mama’s - DJ and Dancing The Salty Dog Café Live Music (5 - 9PM) The Smokehouse- The Simpson Brothers (Every Saturday Night 9:30PM) Freeport MarinaCranford & Sons. 2PM The Tiki Hut - JoJo Squirrel & the Home Pickles. 1-5 pm Truffles Cafe - Happy hour food and drinks every night 4-7 pm

 Golf Tips From a Pro

Pete Popovich, Golf Performance Academy

Golf Psychology Photography by Anne

W

hat separates the best from the rest in anything?

Golfers in this category are beginners or those who It certainly is not the amount of time spent have been playing golf a few years and are just starting acquiring or improving their skill. If that were the to understand how to swing and play the game. Most case, the person who practiced or worked the most would of their time has been spent at the practice area withwin every time. It is not the person with the best technique, out much time on the course. Due to this, they are overbecause there are so many techniques that work. What whelmed by all the variables (sand traps, out of bounds, separates those who succeed from those who have ability water hazards) when they do step onto the course. Here to succeed but fail to do so, is the way they think, i.e. their their attention quickly shifts from what they want to brain and how they use it. accomplish (practice tee) to what they do not want to When put in an uncomfortable situation, the body accomplish (on course dangers), and here lies the proband brain will always revert back to comfort. This means lem. Why? Because whatever direction you point your that when put under pressure, attention is the way you will you will do what you feel comgo. If you are constantly fortable with no matter if it is thinking, “Don’t hit it in the When put in an uncomfortable the right course of action or water,” what inevitably hapsituation, the body and brain will not. Understanding what to pens? You hit it in the water. always revert back to comfort. do in a particular situation Why? Because your brain This means that when put under will help you break through does not comprehend negapressure, you will do what you feel comfortable with no matter if it is plateaus and comfort levels tives, i.e. “don’t do this or the right course of action or not. and take you to higher levels don’t do that.” All it knows and more success. For those is “water,” and because your of you who think getting to attention was aimed in that the next level is the end-all, direction, that is exactly let me shed some light on it. It is not the end. It is just where you hit it. To improve, you must focus on what you the beginning of going to yet another higher level. The want to do. “I am going to hit this onto the green”; “I am process never stops, and as long as you are willing to do going to hit this in the fairway,” etc. If you do occasionwhat it takes to achieve success, you will attain it. ally hit a bad shot, that is simply human nature. Accept Beginner—high handicapper it and move on while knowing you are a novice and the

{

 future holds the chance to improve.

Mid-Handicapper—accomplished 5x/week-er Most golfers in this category have been playing for quite some time yet are finding it difficult to break through a plateau. Progression came at a quick pace early on, but now progression has slowed and oftentimes is at a stalemate. Breaking 90, 80 or even 70 for the first time is often the goal of this golfer. Expectation is the killer of this group. Why? Because they know they have the ability to raise their game to the next level and believe it should be there all the time. If it is not, they either become discouraged or practice harder. What this group often needs to improve is commitment—commitment to how they will hit each shot and committing to that shot regardless of outcome, despite what thoughts might jump into their head and sabotage the process.

For example, if you choose to hit a bump and run up the hill with your 7-iron instead of flying the ball to the hole with your lob wedge, keep the thought of that 7-iron in your mind thru the entire process. Changing your mind while over the ball or mid swing, will only hurt your chances of improving. If something is important to you, would you continue pursuing it if you didn’t receive a commitment from it? No, so why would you not commit in your golf game?

Advanced player and professional Most golfers at this level have spent a great deal of time working on their games. Their technique is consistent due to long hours on the practice tee. However, they are not reaching the level they desire compared to the amount of time practicing. Why? Because any golfer who spends an excessive amount of time working on technical aspects becomes attached to technique. When it comes time to play their brain is not tuned to playing golf but is attuned to playing swing. These players need to learn how to let go and let the technical aspect stand on its own. They have just spent countless hours honing technique, but when it comes time to trust it, they are unable. Like a child attached to a favorite blanket, a golfer’s attachment to technique is comforting, but it inhibits the golfer from reaching the next level. Once the golfer quits thinking of technique, improvement can go forward. The swing might falter a bit at first, just as a child standing on his own for the first time falters; but he soon self-corrects and so becomes stronger. The more he stands on his own, the stronger he gets until standing on his own becomes automatic. When technique becomes automatic, a golfer can commit to each shot and get back to playing golf without entertaining negatives.

Playing golf to your potential requires strong thought processes. Regardless of handicap, the more you can apply the proper thinking, the better you can play. Practicing our thought process allows us to take our game from the practice tee to the course, where we can avoid thinking in negatives, commit to the shot, and, ultimately, trust our technique to reach higher and higher levels of accomplishment in a great game.

If you would like to know more about psychology in golf and how to improve your game, call the Golf Performance Academy-Hilton Head at (843) 338-6737, e-mail pete@golfacademyhiltonhead.com or find us on Facebook at Golf Performance Academy-Hilton Head.

56

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

o f f a M e Jo oe) (gator j

Joe Maffo, but my friends call me Gator Joe. You may have seen me on T.V. or in the papers. I grew up in the boring/ exciting town of Rural Ohio.

My name is

(circle one)

my Jack Hannah

When I was five, my hero was

mother,

but now

is the person I most admire. It’s been

30

years since I first came to Hilton

Head Island, and to me, the biggest change is

growth and tourism.

If someone were to ask me for

alligators, I would tell them never feed them and enjoy them. My line of work is an animal trapper and I chose this profession because I enjoy people and wildlife. advice about

HHI/Bluffton, my first order of business would be to build an alligator attraction to educate locals and tourists.

If I were mayor of

(circle one)

My favorite time of the year on

HHI/Bluffton, is spring because wildlife activity is in full effect. (circle one)

In closing, when you turn the

to call me at Critter Management if you have an animal problem, but definitely not handle the problem yourself. Â? page, I hope you remember

PhotograPhy By Mark Staff

Article by David Tobias Photography by Anne

A Top 10 Tour of Hilton Head and the Lowcountry Take a hike on a bike The history of Hilton Head Island’s commitment to bicycle pathways goes all the way back to Charles Fraser and the very beginnings of Sea Pines, although the impact, perhaps, is just being realized today. Depending on whom you believe (no one has really done a count) there could be as many as 15,000 bicycles for rent on Hilton Head Island, possibly another 10,000 in various plantations just waiting for friends and family to visit, and still another couple thousand coming across the bridge each day during peak periods. That’s maybe as many as 30,000 bicycles that could be on the island and in motion (God forbid!) all at the same time.

As unlikely as that is to happen, thank goodness for the foresight and continued commitment to bicycling from the town, bike shops, clubs and interest groups, which have kept construction and maintenance of more than 60 miles of public pathways and at least 50 more in private plantations a priority. And that doesn’t even count Bluffton or the beach.

Just as Hilton Head Island has been known as “the golf island” and certainly as “the tennis island,” it has quickly become “the bicycle island” in recent years, with the growth in popularity of bicycling as a family recreation option and the discovery of Hilton Head Island as the perfect place for families.

You can get pretty much anywhere on the island (with sometimes a slight bit of effort) by bike, and new kiosks—possibly with QR codes linking to mobile apps and bicycle websites—are on the way to help riders figure out where they are or how to get where they want to go. Loop rides around the island can be mapped

Get Out on Two Wheels Biking is a great way to see the Island and get a little exercise in as well.

Photo courtesy Hilton Head Outfitters in Palmetto Dunes Oceanfront Resort.

Photo by Jim Crotty

ZipLine Hilton Head Get a bird’s eye view of Broad Creek Marina as you soar through the air.

on MapMyRide.com and the Chamber of Commerce website provides listings of shops, rental outlet and bike clubs as well as maps and safety tips. Visit the site at hiltonheadisland.org/biking.

A bike on the beach is a whole different kettle of fish. It’s probably best to rent, since those who manage bike rental shops know how best to maintain bicycles subject to sand and salt. The only thing you have to know is to watch for low tide, which provides an even wider stretch of beach, and keep prevailing winds in mind; it’s a lot more fun cycling downwind on the return leg.

Zip-pity-do da Hilton Head Island has always been known as a great place to chill. If you’re looking for a place to relax on the beach, have a restful cold beverage with friends, relive the old days or just rest and rejuvenate the spirit, this is the place. The knock on Hilton Head Island, however, has been that it lacks excitement. Thanks to ZipLine Hilton Head, you can now put that criticism on the shelf. Suddenly, getting some air, zipping through the trees at high speed, is an option.

The island joined the zip-line craze this spring, with 75-foot towers, seven interconnected lines (including a dual racing line), three suspended sky bridges, and an aerial staircase. But most important are the 40 mile-per-hour flights through ancient live oaks and towering loblolly pines, and the spectacular views of Broad Creek.

62

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

On the Hook Watch the excitement in your child’s eyes when they catch their first shark.

Photo courtesy of Outside Hilton Head.

The experience is open to anyone age 10 and older. The two-hour activity includes careful pre-flight preparation, including numerous safety checks, ground training, and help along the way, thanks to well-informed guides who describe not only what it’s going to be like to zip-line, but also things to look for around Broad Creek before you ascend the tower and once you’re in the treetops.

Walk-ons are welcome, but reservations are preferred. Zip-lining has grown to be enormously popular since it debuted this spring. Visit ziplinehiltonhead.com for more information.

Adventure on the high seas A few years ago a good friend prepped perfectly for our big sea adventure. We were traveling east to the gulfstream, where the big fish live—a run of about 10-15 miles (the gulfstream is closer to South Carolina than almost anywhere else on the East Coast).

So he had the boat checked and double-checked, and

july

2012

the twin engines were meticulously inspected.

We checked the tides, inspected the bait, secured the rods and reels, packed a hearty lunch, iced the beer and got an outrageously early start. All went well, thumping along on the chop in the early morning mist, until the check engine light went on about five miles out.

Now, my experience with check engine lights is that you can usually dismiss them. A little black tape in just the right spot and you never have to worry about a thing.

There’s a loose wire somewhere or someone forgot to hit

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 63

Stand Up Paddle boarding Haven’t caught the wave yet?

Not to worry, SUP classes are available at many locations around the Island.

Photo courtesy of Outside Hilton Head.

the re-set button during the oil change. But on the high seas, it’s different. No one wants to be floating aimlessly toward some distant shore.

So, we turned back, and our big sea adventure became a boat ride. The way to avoid all that is to book a sport fishing charter and put your fate in the hands of a true professional who does this stuff every day. On Hilton Head Island, there are literally dozens of charters and party boat fishing options at the Squire Pope, Broad Creek, Shelter Cove, Harbour Town and Palmetto Bay boathouses and marinas. Offshore fishing for king mackerel, grouper, snapper, amberjack, tarpon, drum, marlin, tuna, wahoo and dolphin (not the domestic kind) are available year-round and seasonally, depending on migratory species. Inshore fishing is for usually reliable catches such as redfish and trout—and anywhere you go you’re likely to hook into some variety of shark or skate. Whichever way you go, and whomever you go out with, the excitement of the fishing is almost as rewarding as the catch.

64

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

SUP, dude?

Sometimes you know trendiness by how quickly it gets picked up as a nifty acronym. For example, “dude, sup?” is not necessarily a buddy just asking how you are; it might actually be an invitation to stand up paddleboard.

This sport has been around for a while, drifting west to east, like most things recreational and done on a board, and it arrived on Hilton Head Island about five years ago.

July 2012

july

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 65

Photo courtesy of Outside Hilton Head

It’s a great way to see the inlet creeks and rivers around Hilton Head, do a little dolphin spotting and even get some exercise. Most agree that spending a couple of hours on a stand up paddleboard has significant core benefits and might even burn a few calories.

It’s also a more statuesque alternative to canoeing or kayaking, and it’s surprisingly easy. Most people are paddling comfortably in a very short time (the board is wider and more stable than it looks like from a distance). Outings are even being offered for those who want to engage in yoga on paddleboards—very popular and very cool.

Stand up paddleboards are available for rent or purchase and classes are taught at a number of recreational outlets on the island, including Outside Hilton Head, H2O Sports, Island Water Sports, Palmetto Bay Water Sports and others.

66

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

Shelter Cove Marina Finish a day of boutique shopping with dinner for two with a view of the Harbour.

Photo courtesy Palmetto Dunes Oceanfront Resort.

Shop ’til you drop Driving from I-95 through the Bluffton stretch of Highway 278, it’s hard to miss two major outlet malls, Tanger 1 and Tanger 2, which reach out and beckon those who have arrived for their long-awaited vacation.

But if you’re driving from a long distance and the kids are asking “when are we gonna get there” you sometimes just have to sacrifice pressing shopping desires for expediency and a longer-term shop-’til-you-drop strategy. Get to the hotel, the villa or the house and make a plan.

What you’ll discover is that traditional beachy shopping is pleasant and walkable at Coligny on the south end of the island; a mall experience is available at Shelter Cove, which is in the midst of serious planning for a major makeover; the Village at Wexford and Shelter Cove Marina provide some exceptional unique privately owned shops, as do the shops at Harbour Town; and scattered throughout the island (and off), there are small shopping strips that require a bit of research, but pay huge dividends upon discovery. Oh, and don’t forget a visit to the Salty Dog T-shirt shop—either the original at South Beach or the expanded version on Arrow Road. No one escapes Hilton Head without a Salty Dog T-shirt.

And of course all roads (well, actually it’s just one) lead to the outlets, where hundreds of stores and amazing bargains are concentrated for ease and convenience.

Gap, Nike, Eddie Bauer, Harry and David, Tommy Bahama…all the top names are there. And as one well-known NPR radio host always says, “If they don’t have it, you probably don’t need it.”

And of course all roads (well, actually it’s just one) lead to the outlets, where hundreds of stores and amazing bargains are concentrated for ease and convenience. Gap, Nike, Eddie Bauer, Harry and David, Tommy Bahama… all the top names are there. And as one well-known NPR radio host always says, “If they don’t have it, you probably don’t need it.” july

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 67

Jazzy Martin Lesch and Bob Masteller entertain on stage at the Jazz Corner in the Village at Wexford.

Live it up live R&R may trump excitement during the daytime, but any 20-something-year-old will tell you that there is a lively nightlife on this island. It’s just kind of a secret, and it’s known by a name that sounds like a missing persons report: The Barmuda Triangle, located just before the Sea Pines gate. This place, a collection of tightly concentrated bars and restaurants, including The Lodge, One Hot Mama’s, The Brew Pub, Reilleys and Jump & Phil’s, comes alive at night; the parking lot is typically packed, and live and piped music predominate.

Just around the corner in the Park Center Plaza is the Electric Piano, a traditional piano bar—not dueling, usually, just one—where the night invariably leads to a group sing and some dancing.

For several years, The Jazz Corner has ranked among the top 150 jazz clubs in the country, attracting name talent like Bob James and local favorites like Deas Guyz, and filling its 100 seats nearly nightly.

A little further up the road, about mid-island in The Village at Wexford, another secret spot is not so secret anymore. For several years, The Jazz Corner has ranked among the top 150 jazz clubs in the country, attracting name talent like Bob James and local favorites like Deas Guyz, and filling its 100 seats nearly nightly. Bob and Lois Masteller have become fixtures on the Hilton Head Island live music scene, and Bob can usually be coaxed onstage for a cornet cameo sometime during the evening, if he’s on hand, which is always a charming event.

Also, be sure to check out Big Bamboo in Coligny and the XO Lounge at the Omni for great live music, including a Beatles cover band, The Beagles, on Friday nights at Big Bamboo.

68

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

Photo courtesy of Outside Hilton Head

Dolphins are our friends These are the ones you don’t eat. These dolphins are the friendly mammals to which many ascribe human behaviors, and they are everywhere around Hilton Head Island. Perhaps the best way to see them—other than patiently waiting for them to come in close to the beach on a tide or using a pair of high-powered binoculars to watch them following shrimp boats—is to book a trip on a one of the cruise boats like the Spirit of Harbour Town or the Vagabond, where they often go so far as to guarantee sightings.

It’s an easy guarantee. If you owned dolphin sighting insurance, you’d make a killing. Show-offs that they are, dolphins usually follow the cruise boat, and sometimes when they’re feeling especially full of themselves, they’ll lead it. You can usually find them feeding near the shoreline, and if you’re really lucky, you might witness “strand feeding,” a behavior first witnessed by Jacques Cousteau while he was here conducting research, where the dolphins actually chase fish up onto the bank and have their fill. It’s not unique to Hilton Head Island, but it happens here quite often.

70

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

Don’t Rain on My Parade A little bad weather is just an invitation to discover what else Hilton Head Island has to offer, like Shout, at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina through July 29th or an afternoon spent bowling at Station 300.

It’s what? It’s raining?

This rarely happens, but sometimes it rains on Hilton Head Island.

No kidding. If it does happen, it’s probably not for long, or you might want to check the weather map and see if it’s also raining in Bluffton; it’s possible and often likely that it’s not. But on the slim chance that there is that blanket of green on the map, and we’re covered up for a day or two, don’t dismay. There’s plenty to keep you busy and entertained.

Some of the finest live theater between here and NYC may be right here on Hilton Head’s Arts Center of Coastal Carolina stage. That’s because many of the actors, actresses and directors are Broadway and Hollywood veterans who find Hilton Head Island and the Arts Center one of their favorite venues. Check the Arts Center schedule for shows and times.

Local movie theaters, both on the island and off, show first-run movies, have state of the art 3D capabilities and some tasty popcorn. The Coligny Theater runs a rich calendar of independent films in an intimate atmosphere.

If you want some physical activity for friends and family, one of the finest new bowling centers in the Southeast opened less than a year ago in Bluffton: Station 300 (300 is a perfect game, by the way) has a lively atmosphere, games for all ages and, of course, bowling daytime and into the evening. They can even shut the gutters down to make it easier.

For those who prefer to be indoors but still get a bit of local culture, the Coastal Discovery Museum of Hilton Head Island at Honey Horn is not only a great spot to learn more about loggerhead turtles and Lowcountry history, it’s also the debarkation spot for a Gullah Heritage Trail Tour, via motor coach, that narrates travel through the mid-1800s when West African slaves became the nation’s first freedmen.

Photo courtesy Palmetto Dunes Oceanfront Resort.

Love-love: tennis and golf Golf and Tennis—ahhh, the meat and potatoes of a Hilton Head Island vacation. Except on Hilton Head, it’s filet mignon and double-stuffed with cheese.

It’s been said that golf on Hilton Head Island ranges from good to better to best.

There are no dog tracks, no weak sisters, no disappointments. You can choose from 17 courses open to the public on the island and another seven within a 15-minute drive off-island, and they’re all challenging, fair and fun. Price might determine your decision, or maybe reputation.

72

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

Harbour Town Golf Links at Sea Pines (home of the RBC Heritage) and its siblings, Heron Point by Pete Dye and the Ocean Course are widely considered the crème de la crème, but it’s a close call. The Robert Trent Jones course at Palmetto Dunes is an extraordinary layout and test of skill and one of only two courses on the island with ocean views. The lesser-known George Fazio and Arthur Hills courses at Palmetto Dunes are also impeccable and slightly less in demand, but both provide a true test of skill in stunningly gorgeous settings.

Premier courses that may sound private but are not include the Country Club of Hilton Head, Golden Bear at Indigo Run and other courses behind gates. The three Shipyard nines are popular, especially as part of packages. All three Port Royal Plantation courses are also open for public play, as are Oyster Reef and the two Palmetto Hall courses on the north end of the island.

Oddly, perhaps, summer is typically a relatively slow time for golf on Hilton Head Island, owing perhaps to heat and humidity. But the benefit is that tee times are usually available, and if you play early or late, you can beat the heat.

Tennis and Hilton Head Island have been synonymous since the old Family Circle tournament days, when names like Van de Meer and (U.S Open champion and Hall of Famer) Stan Smith first burst onto the local scene. Smith is still a fixture at Sea Pines, and international champion Ivan Lendl has added his name to luminaries calling Hilton Head home for tennis teaching programs.

You don’t have to be part of tennis teaching to play, however. With more than 300 courts on the island, there are plenty of places to just get out and hit the ball around.

july

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 73

All in good taste It’s only been lately that Hilton Head Island has begun making waves as a culinary destination. Not that the restaurants haven’t been exceptional until now; it must just be that it takes a while for the rest of the world to discover great food on an island that hangs out into the ocean.

This sudden uptick in reputation has been helped by a few recognizable faces, including Robert Irvine, Food Network host of Restaurant Impossible and Dinner Impossible, restaurant owner and author, and Orchid Paulmeier, finalist for The Next Food Network Star last year, restaurant owner and international traveler.

Both have helped put a couple (eat! and One Hot Mama’s) of the more than 200 restaurants on the island on the map. It also didn’t hurt that several other restaurants, chefs and Lowcountry genres were featured in a series of ads in Bon Appétit magazine last year, raising the profile of David Vincent Young (Roastfish and Cornbread), Leslie Rowland (The Cottage in Bluffton) and others.

Perhaps it’s the wide variety, from upscale to country casual, that distinguishes Hilton Head Island as a culinary mecca. Or maybe it’s the constant surprises—finding astonishingly good restaurants tucked away in what used to be called “strip malls.” It’s just hard to believe you’re eating something so wonderful sometimes with a parking lot

74

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

Over 200?!

Yes, that’s right. Hilton Head Island boasts over 200 restaurants to choose from, many with water views.

Bouillabaisse photo courtesy of the Old Fort Pub.

view. Many of Hilton Head’s restaurants, however, combine exceptional food, fine service and extraordinary water views—the perfect trifecta!

July 2012

Article By Debbie Szpanka // Photography By Anne

“Mus tek cyear a de root fa heal de tree.”

(Take care of the roots in order to heal the tree.)

Dr. Emory Campbell spins tales from the past for Island visitors. Shown here in front of an old schoolhouse on Beach City Rd. (right) and holding pecans that have fallen from a tree near the Island visitor Center on Hwy 278.

GULLaH HeritaGe traiL toUrs: A

t

fA m i ly ’ s

s t o r y,

o tell the history of Hilton Head Island is to tell the story of the Gullah people. For the Campbell family and their Gullah Heritage Trail Tours, it all starts with five generations of their own family, and the story expands from there. Family members have told that story for more than 15 years to thousands of people in hopes that the story is preserved and honored as the island walks into its future.

Dr. Emory Campbell, owner of the Gullah Heritage Trail Tours, served as executive director of the Penn Center for more than 20 years. (Penn Center, a historic landmark,

A n

i s l A n d

h i s t o r y

museum and a gathering place of Gullah culture, sits opposite of Hilton Head Island on St. Helena Island in Beaufort County.)

He was shocked when he repeatedly heard visitors to the first school in the united States for freed slaves say that they didn’t realize African Americans lived on Hilton Head Island. “People couldn’t believe black people lived on an island known for its affluent resorts and retirement communities,” Campbell said.

“They had no idea black people settled the island. The island, as a resort, was born about 56 years ago, yet Gullah history has been alive on this island for more than 150 years.”

78

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

“Ebry frog praise e ownt pond.”

(Everybody favors his own home) The Gullah and the Campbell family story started when a handful of freed slaves and their families settled on Hilton Head Island after the Civil War, because it was such an undesirable place to be. “It was isolated. The heat, the mosquitoes and the inconvenience of getting on an island with no bridge kept the Gullah people in their own separate society,” Campbell said. “I didn’t know white people existed until I saw a ‘Dick and Jane’ book in school.

“We retained what we call the African-isms more so than any other group in the country. We were often called ‘little Africa,’ because the traditions and customs of food, family, language and crafts were a way of life here,” he continued.

The Gullah people, also known in some parts as the Geechee people, are descendants of Western African slaves, known for their ability to grow rice. Slave traders sought them out because of their honed farming skills. Plantation owners in coastal areas between North Carolina and Florida bought many of them because the subtropical climate of the Atlantic Coast was conducive to successful rice production. Gullah people have preserved their language, derived from African linguistics and grammar, and some still speak it at family gatherings. The Gullah culture also gives the region specific food dishes, craft-making, storytelling, folk beliefs, farming and fishing traditions.

Campbell, age 70, is a walking encyclopedia of Gullah history, because his human experience was a personal walk through the better part of the last century. “We were our own society. We had families who fished, families who built homes. I grew up in a black world where black people were in charge. Now, it is rare to see a black carpenter or a black teacher,” he said.

In 1956, the state built a swing bridge that connected the island to the mainland, and cultural changes came as frequently as the tides. “Really, until then, Hilton Head Island was a place no one wanted to be,” Campbell said. “Now, we have 23 golf courses, nearly 200 restaurants, and about 40,000 people live here.”

Instead of rice and cotton, the new crop became timeshares.

The world, as the Gullah people knew it, was now drastically different. The bridge brought people who went to the beach for fun.

Prior to that time, the beach was a place to work: to fish, crab or catch shrimp, Campbell said. “yet, in the ’50s, we were told to go to Driessen Beach Park because that was the ‘colored beach.’”

Funny thing, he didn’t know he and his friends and family were ‘colored,’ until someone told them they were. “It was so gradual, it wasn’t so shocking. A lot of little changes add up, and you wake up one day and say, ‘Wow, why isn’t it more like it used to be?’”

Campbell peppers his tours with humorous yet, historical tidbits. When he was growing up, shrimp and grits was the “poor person’s breakfast,” he said. Now it is a more than $20 entrée, and you eat it for dinner.

Just as he cast his net to catch shrimp for his family, he now captures the stories of his past and shares them in a two-hour tour, traveling through the island’s neighborhoods, which, back July

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 79

in the day, were strictly rural and romantically rustic. Now, those neighborhoods are mixed in with expensive homes, manicured gardens and coastal amenities that have earned Hilton Head a reputation as a world-class resort.

Campbell didn’t want the island’s past to be washed away with the new waves of developments. In 1996, he decided to rent a van and take people around to the neighborhoods whose street signs and landmarks tell the story of the Gullah people. The van went out once on Saturday and once on Sunday from the former Gullah Market, across from Squire Pope Road.

Today, Campbell and his family members have their own 25-passenger buses and guide thousands of people through Gullah neighborhoods 11 times a week, Tuesday through Sunday, from the Coastal Discovery Museum, located at Honey Horn Plantation.

“It’s mostly tourists who take the tour, and many of them can’t grasp that a separate culture has evolved in the United States and they are just hearing about it now,” Campbell said.

The Gullah Heritage Trail Tour gives guests a ride through 10 Gullah neighborhoods and describes how each one was known for a specific good or service. For instance, the Squire Pope neighborhood was the place to buy shrimp and fish; the midwife lived in the Stoney section; and if someone needed the services of a blacksmith, he or she would travel to the Jonesville neighborhood.

“I remember when I grew up, we kept up with our 14th cousin, because you never knew when you might need a shrimp net or boat or something that his neighborhood or family could loan you,” Campbell said. The eldest member of the family supervised the neighborhood, and it was a place where people lived, worked, played and died, he explained.

The tour shows visitors where the one-room schoolhouses were and how cemeteries were near water so “the spirits could float back to Africa.” Campbell laughs as he shares personal stories of

july

2012

the landmark such as the Simmons Fishing Camp, which still stands near Marshland Road. That was the place where he learned how to fish by day and dance by night since it doubled as a club afterhours.

Once development came to the island, the land and lifestyle of the Gullah people was hard to hold, Campbell said. He remembers when land on the island was first bought for $60 an acre. Compare that to the late 1990s when the Town of Hilton Head bought the 68-acre Honey Horn Plantation for $10 million dollars.

Throughout the world, people are learning about the island’s history and crucial role of the Gullah people. It’s a good feeling to know that his family plays a crucial role in keeping history alive, Campbell said. “I just hope those with the power to plan the future of the island will not erase the history, the neighborhoods and the places which symbolize the contributions of the Gullah people. If one day nothing is left except historical markers, we haven’t done much. If the island preserves the Gullah families and their assets into the future, then I will be satisfied with my legacy.”

For more information, visit gullahheritage.com or call (843) 681-7066.

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 81

j u s t r e wA r d s

tHe tippinG point Article by kitty bArtell

W

calculating tips, some restaurants are even including hen I first heard the story of Mr. Edsel tip percentage suggestions on the bill. Remember, Ford Fung, I thought it had to be an urban not every part of your experience is under the control legend; his name alone gave me reason of the server, so even if the service seems underto pause. However, in the history of service industry par, still tip 10% at the very least, as the hiccup that workers, he may actually hold the title as the world’s occurred may not be the server’s fault. most famous and rudest waiter. It is hard to imagine Many other service providers depend on tips as that Fung ever earned a single tip, much less a living well, and visitors may need a bit of tipping guidance as a waiter. Fung worked at Sam Wo restaurant in San for these not so every-day activities.

Francisco until his death in 1984. He was known to Indulging in spa services is becoming a more berate, insult, ignore, and criticize the patrons of Sam common way for visitors to enhance their vacation Wo and, ironically, managed to parlay these skills into experience. According to Spa Finder Inc., there a lucrative career as a waiter and tourist attraction.

San Francisco amusingly claimed Fung its are now more spas in the United States than there own and leveraged his “skills” to generate tourism; are Starbucks. Hilton Head Island and Bluffton are however, we are fortunate to have the many charms on-trend and dotted with places to be pampered. of the Lowcountry as a more inviting and effective According to Alexis Sargo, general manager of way to bring visitors to our shores. Ready to make these visits more enjoyable is an army of individuals who attend to the details of each experience and depend on being financially rewarded for their efforts. Lowcountry visitors play a pivotal role in providing the livelihood of Remember, not every part of your restaurant, hotel, and club staff, drivers, experience is under the control of the guides, and personal service providers, server, so even if the service seems and tipping is the primary mechanism by under-par, still tip 10% at the very least, which this happens.

Virtually no industry relies more as the hiccup that occurred may not be heavily on tip income than restaurants the server’s fault. and bars, with employees depending almost exclusively on them for their livelihood. Much to the chagrin of wait staff FACES DaySpa in The Village at Wexford, spa everywhere, no laws have been written to guarantee services can vary greatly; however, tipping on these tips; however, there is one universal principle: tips services should be at about 18%. When it comes to should be calculated based on the level of service knowing who, when, and how much to tip, “Some received. From this point, the rules for tipping can be clients ask, because they’re simply not familiar with a bit murky and will vary depending on the type of what is customary,” she said. services provided.

Wayne Mutterer, owner of Camelot Limousine In the restaurant and bar business, it is as and Transportation says, “Almost all limousine though an unwritten contract exists between servers companies have a standard 20% tip included in the and customers: servers are tasked with making bill.” Being an industry where suggestive-selling isn’t customers feel comfortable and meeting their needs; an option to increase tip revenue—think dessert at customers are responsible to compensate servers a restaurant—Mutterer’s 21-year-old transportation for their efforts. It’s not as simple as it sounds. The company stays competitive by including a lower server must have the dexterity of a circus juggler, 17% tip rate and hiring drivers who understand that the patience of a monk, and the good humor of, well, superior service will increase tips. It is always wise to the Good Humor Man. Sunburns, rainy days, tired ask any service provider if the tip is included in the children, weary wallets and cranky co-workers loom bill, whether for a large group at a restaurant or for around every corner. The really good ones turn these other services. obstacles into great experiences and earn tips equal Lowcountry visitors may need to tip in a variety to their efforts. of other settings. At hotels and resorts, the concierge Customarily, food and beverage tipping is 15% should be tipped for services such as obtaining event of the bill (excluding tax) for adequate service, tickets or making reservations. Parking valets and 20% for very good services, with no less than 10% bellhops should be tipped for their efforts, after all, for poor service. In an effort to aid customers when no reward is too great when the humidity is 90% and

>>>

84

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

The tipping point

you’re wearing new Jimmy Choos.

Visitors enjoying a round of golf will have the opportunity to tip golf club attendants. If your clubs are well cleaned, in addition to a nice tip, you can thank the club attendant for shaving a shot or two off of your next round by increasing your accuracy.

Mike Overton, CEO of Outside Hilton Head says their company encourages customers to provide a gratuity based on the level of service they receive. The adventure water sport and nature guide and rental company understands that as guides and clients connect, and as visitors become friends, there will be desire on the client’s part to reward a great experience.

While their approaches couldn’t be more divergent, Fung and businesses in the Lowcountry do have something in common: they understand that great experiences will be rewarded, and that there is a living to be made providing them.

Some guidelines for tipping on services you might enjoy during your time in the Lowcountry: Restaurants & Bars 15% of bill (excluding tax) for adequate service 20% for very good service No less than 10% for poor service

Spa Services 18% to 20% Hairdresser 15% to 20% Manicurist 15% Golf Course Club Attendants $2 to $5 per bag, depending on level of service provided Activity Guides (golf lessons, tennis lessons, kayak and watersports, zipline guides, fishing guides etc.)

20% and up Airport Skycap $1 per bag if you use curbside check-in $2 per bag if skycap takes bags to counter Hotel Bellhop $1 per bag for bringing luggage to your room Hotel Housekeeper $2 to $5 per night

Parking Valet $2 to bring your car

Hotel Concierge $5 for arranging tickets or reservations; No tip required when asking for directions

Taxi Driver 15%, with an additional $1 to $2 for assistance with bags

Car Wash Attendants $5 and up, depending on services provided

july

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 85

Article By Debbie Szpanka // Photography by Anne

Los

Jala M ixin g

F a m i ly

Fr e sh

&

Fo o d,

F r i e n ds

penos: R

amon Coronado works and lives by a simple credo: “Treat people the way I want to be treated.” Lucky for his customers at Los Jalapenos, that also means making food the way he wants to eat it.

“The food here is made fresh every day; that’s why it may take longer to get to your table,” Coronado said. “When you take your first bite, you will notice the freshness of our dishes.”

Cheryl and Eddy Longshore agree. Married nearly 20 years, they celebrate the end of almost every week nibbling on a few chips and salsa, sipping Mexican beer and margaritas

and noshing on a Mexican meal. They started this tradition while they lived in Atlanta and have continued it through the eight years they have lived in Bluffton.

Last month, the couple happened upon Los Jalapenos, the Mexican restaurant anchoring one end of the Bridge Center, across from Moss Creek Plantation, and they were pleasantly surprised by the visual and taste difference at the independent Mexican restaurant.

Cheryl was told that the syrup in the margaritas was made from honey and fresh lemons. It is a “taste sensation”

Surrounded by fresh ingredients in the kitchen, Coronado is also surrounded by special people. Two of his daughters, Cruz and Josie, work side-by-side with him, along with his niece, Gladis. compared to the noticeably pre-packaged sour mix most restaurants use, she said. “The first sip made me stop and savor; the touch of honey really made the margarita extremely smooth and, quite frankly, delicious. Eddie, who is a beer drinker, kept sipping from Cheryl’s straw and making extraneous comments about how good the popular Mexican drink was.

According to Coronado, what distinguishes his restaurant from the Mexican restaurant chains is the ability to change up recipes the way he and his customers want them. “Many people confuse us with the restaurant chain Jalapenos; we are plural—Los Jalapenos. That how you tell the difference,” Coronado said.

Just like the Longshores, Coronado moved to the Lowcountry for a better quality of life and to get away from the hustle-bustle of Atlanta. He opened Los Jalapenos December 27, 2011 and has been trying to get to the word out ever since that his restaurant, tucked away in the Bridge Center, has some special items on the menu, special people serving them and as Cheryl found out, a special recipe for margaritas.

Surrounded by fresh ingredients in the kitchen, Coronado is also surrounded by special people. Two of his daughters, Cruz and Josie, work side-by-side with him, along with his niece, Gladis.

“This is my life. I spend more time here than anywhere else, so it’s good they are here with me, too,” Coronado said.

Josie said she likes working and being surrounded by her family as she stashes her tips away to help pay for college. Even those who aren’t blood relatives become family at his restaurant.

“There are three guys who come in almost every day and all three are named David,” Coronado said. “It’s like the old television show, Cheers. We know what they want, how they want their drinks, and we also know everything about them—and they know a lot about us.” Coronado laughed when he remembered one of the guys coming in one afternoon to buy a gift certificate for his buddy and, hours later, his buddy came in to cash it out.

Coronado said his love for serving people comes from his love for cooking. “It’s just a part of who I am. I love using fresh ingredients and mixing up the recipe just a bit so it tastes slightly different from what you may expect.”

Recently, Coronado made his version of Mexican chicken wings and had the “Davids” test them during their nightly 88

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

Los

Jala

penos:

happy hour. Coronado made the chicken wing sauce from tomatillos, which resemble green tomatoes with a spicy kick.

While not on the menu, you can ask for this manager special.

One of the special treats at Los Jalapenos is the choice to have your guacamole and salsa made tableside as you watch the server mash and mix the fresh ingredients. The 16th century sauce or dip, first made by Aztecs, is made today with avocados, jalapenos, tomatoes, onion, cilantro and freshly squeezed lime juice, accented with sea salt and garlic.

Cesar Azcarraga, server and master guacamole maker, said it’s fun to make salsa and guacamole in front of his customers and he enjoys making it to their order. Eddy was thoroughly impressed with the presentation, and even though he has vacationed to Mexico and lived in big cities, he has never had his guacamole made tableside and taste so good, he said.

The Longshores tested the challenge to order an offmenu item, and their choice was fish ceviche, made with tilapia, garlic, cilantro, peppers, cucumbers and tomatoes.

“No doubt, the freshness is beyond comparison to other restaurants. The visual presentation and taste of each dish is terrific,” Eddy said.

“That’s what makes a restaurant fun,” Coronado said.

Even though the menu boasts nearly 200 items and combo plates, if a customer wants something not on the menu and the ingredients are available, no problem.

According to the Longshores, while it’s nice to have that many menu options, the homemade guacamole and margaritas alone make it worth the trip. “It’s funny; we threw toothpicks to decide who could scrape the guacamole bowl with his or her finger,” Cheryl said.

Los Jalapenos is located at 1540 Fording Island Road, Hilton Head Island or you call them at (843) 837-2333.

july

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 89

artiCLe bY LinDseY HaWkins // pHotoGrapHY bY anne

RŌKA Inspired Local Spirits

y

ou thought they would stop with the flavor craze at cookies didn’t you?

Well, you were wrong. The brilliant spawn of family who owned and operated Hilton Head Cookie Company, brothers Brent and Ryan Elam, have jumped off the cookie wagon into the very fluid and tongue tingling world of cocktails. It was a fated trip to a local bar in Marbella, Spain that was the catalyst for a three-year journey that has landed the Elam brothers all over the united States in some of the swankiest watering holes in America, even vegas, baby.

RŌKA liqueur, the brand name of the Elam brothers’ exciting new beverage line, is not easily categorized on today’s market because of its unique content and complex experience of taste and smell. Though it was a shot of a caramel flavored, mystery concoction taken at a Spanish bar that was the muse for their product, the innovative recipes for RŌKA liqueur Chocolate, RŌKA liqueur Apple and RŌKA liqueur Caramel are quickly being recognized by some of the top mixologists in the nation for their distinct scents and subtle palates.

“When I want to drink something that’s flavored, I’m looking for flavor; I’m not looking for the burn of alcohol on the backside,

LIQUEUR which this just plainly doesn’t have,” said Brent Elam, 33-year-old vice president of RŌKA Beverage Inc. Based on the packaging alone, RŌKA already looks the part of a top-shelf libation, not to mention the spun aluminum bottle is perfect for keeping its contents at an ideal temperature, but the genius lies within. For six months, the Elam brothers worked with five flavoring companies to assemble an experience that couldn’t be easily matched by competitors. Focusing on dark chocolates with hints of black tea, Granny Smith apples with flecks of sour, and homemade caramels with traces of butterscotch and vanilla, the goal was to make something that could be incredible right out of the bottle with no additives. “lots of people out there would like to compare our product to something like Apple Pucker, but it’s not even close to the same; you don’t drink Apple Pucker straight. Pucker is 30 proof whereas RŌKA is 60 proof, so there’s more alcohol content, its smoother, the profile the flavoring, everything is stronger, the aromas, the colors, everything is different,” Elam said.

The triple distilled RŌKA is made from 100 percent grain alcohol, fermented 100 percent naturally and is said to be smoother than most any beverage of its kin. Drinkability aside, buying a bottle is like purchasing a bartender right along with it. All RŌKA flavors can be poured straight or on the rocks; the caramel can be mixed one ounce to one ounce with the apple and taste exactly like the perfect caramel apple. The chocolate can be floated on top of a strawberry daiquiri and you would think you were eating a dark chocolate covered strawberry. Drizzle any flavor over your favorite ice cream, or pour a round of snifters with RŌKA chocolate and caramel to add a perfect night-cap to your favorite cigar. The fun is in the simplicity, and let’s be honest. It’s a 60 proof cordial with no sugary mixers to regret the next morning.

So how can a couple of 30-somethings be trusted overnight as savants of a trade that has been around for centuries? The brothers are no strangers to world travel, and when the age was right, they began (continued on next page)

92

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

to develop a broad palate and strong appreciation for European wine and spirits over the years. With local bartending experience under his belt and a marketing degree from Clemson, Brent Elam modestly accredits timing and a love of food and beverage. But cocktail engineers from Los Angeles and Las Vegas might give the brothers a few more kudos for just understanding what simplicity and natural tastes are all about.

RŌKA Liqueurs can be found locally on Hilton Head Island and in Bluffton at The Jazz Corner, WiseGuy’s, Daniel’s, The Skull Creek Boathouse, Red Fish, San Miguel’s, The Brew Pub, Reilley’s Grill and Bar, The Boardroom, The Big Bamboo Café, Bomboras Grill and Coconut’s Bar and Grill. Bottles are available for purchase at Bill’s Liquor and Fine Wines, Big Jim’s Liquors and Roller’s Wine and Spirits.

For more information visit rokabev.com.

Try it at Home: RŌKA Recipes The professional taste-testers at CH2 think RŌKA ( in any flavor) should be enjoyed over ice and that’s all. However, if you want to get all fancy, here are a few other suggestions:

Apple RŌka Recipes 1.5 oz. RŌKA Apple, 1 oz Peach Vodka, Splash Cranberry Juice 2 oz. RŌKA Apple, 1 oz. Southern Comfort, Splash Ginger Ale

july

2012

Chocolate RŌka Recipes 1 oz RŌKA Chocolate, .5 oz Orange Vodka, Splash OJ, Splash Soda, Splash Cream, 1 Orange Wedge 1 oz. RŌKA Chocolate, 1 oz Van Gogh Espresso Vodka, .25 oz Bailey’s Irish Cream 1.5 oz RŌKA Chocolate, .5 oz.

Chambord, whipped cream

Caramel RŌka Recipes 2 oz. RŌKA Caramel, 1.5 oz. Chambord, Splash of Club soda 1.5 oz. RŌKA Caramel, 1.5 oz B & B, served in a snifter 1.5 oz RŌKA Caramel, .5 oz Grand Marnier, 1 oz Cognac www.celebratehiltonhead.com 93

The Strive to Thrive

Selecting a preschool Sending your child into the world to attend preschool is one of the first of many milestones in his or her little life that may cause some, or even a lot, of separation anxiety. While the preschooler may experience some anxiety, it is often the parents who are hit hardest. Personally, I am an experienced traveler on the road of separation-anxiety producing events and remember well the process my husband I went through to select our daughter’s first school here on Hilton Head Island. While time has given me many opportunities to build up my separation calluses, it was this first one that I remember most.

I

sland preschooler Kayla’s mom Jessica Blackwell describes it well. “It’s like having two voices—one telling me ‘send her here’ in one ear and the other telling me ‘send her there’ in the other. I want everything to be perfect,” she said.

I remember that feeling. I had Practical Parent jabbering away in one ear telling me all the logical reasons for selecting one school over another. Then I had Puddle Parent (as in puddle of tears) reminding me that someone

else would now be meeting my child’s needs and wants in my absence. Until this point, her immediate family had provided her with all that she needed, but it was now time for her to begin understanding independence and autonomy.

Having a checklist of what to look for in a preschool is helpful when trying to remain on track, even if what’s really going through your head resembles a debate between Practical and Puddle. The National Association for the

A r t i c l e

B y

K i t t y

Ba r t e l l

Education of Young Children has developed a list of the 10 signs of a great preschool. Scheduling a visit with your child is the best way to gauge how well a school meets these criteria:

10) Do the children and their parents look forward to school? Do the parents feel secure about sending their child to the program? Children are happy to attend; they do not cry regularly or complain of feeling sick.

1) Do the children spend most of their time playing and working with materials or other children and not wandering aimlessly or sitting for long periods of time?

2) Do the children have access to various activities throughout the day? Look for assorted building blocks and construction materials, props for pretend play, books, art materials, and table toys such as games, pegboards, and puzzles. Children should not all be doing the same thing at the same time.

3) Do teachers work with individual children, small groups, and the whole group at different times during the day? It is important that everything the children do they do not always do all together.

4) Is the classroom decorated with children’s original artwork, their own writing with invented spelling, and stories dictated by children to teachers?

5) Children learn numbers and the alphabet in the context of their everyday experiences. The natural world of plants and animals and meaningful activities like cooking, taking attendance, or serving snack provide the basis for learning activities.

6) Children work on projects and have long periods of time (at least one hour) to play and explore. Worksheets are used little if at all.

7) Do the children have an opportunity to play outside every day? Outdoor play is never sacrificed for more instructional time.

8) Do teachers read books to children individually or in small groups throughout the day, not just at group story time?

9) Does the curriculum adapt to those who are ahead as well as those who need additional help? Teachers should recognize that children’s background and experiences mean that they do not learn the same things at the same time in the same way.

Even after considering these criteria, checking the accreditation of the school and qualifications of the staff and addressing the financial side of the coin, instinct is a parent’s greatest tool for selecting a preschool. Do the teachers create an environment in which you want your child? This is where Puddle Parent may be helpful. If Puddle can see the child thriving in this school, and feels the child’s needs being met, then the school is very likely a good fit.

Some children arrive at preschool already veterans of classroom settings and being cared for by people other than their immediate families, while there are still many for whom this will be their first experience with teachers and other children in a structured environment.

“New parents are different from veteran parents and have a different set of needs and criteria when selecting a school,” said Laura Lesnett, director and lead teacher at Christian Heritage Montessori School in Bluffton. “Ultimately, all parents want to give their child the greatest gift you can give a child, which is to provide them with a solid educational foundation on which to build in the years to come.”

Practical Parent understands the opportunities that await their prodigy as they learn to navigate the perils of school. Puddle Parent knows that there will be bumps along the way. The key to a successful transition, after doing the research, and listening to your instincts, is putting on a positive face, even in the midst of emotions and melancholy. Remember, it’s just the beginning, and the calluses will come.

Area preschool options Some of the schools on our list are traditional preschools, while others combine daycare, preschool, school break camps, and before and after school programs.

We invite you to visit the school websites and find time to check out the schools in person. (continued on next page)

Selecting a preschool

amaZinG Creations* Bluffton (843) 837-5437 http://www.amazing-creations.net/ ac/index.php Tuition: Please contact the school for ages and rates bLUffton earLY CHiLDHooD LearninG Center* Beaufort County Schools Bluffton (843) 707-0900 http://bles.beaufortsc.schoolfusion.us/ Ages: Pre-Kindergarten Tuition: Free tHe CHiLDren’s Center* Bluffton (843) 757-5549 Hilton Head Island (843) 681-2739 http://thechildrenscentersc.org Ages: 0 to 5 years Tuition: 0 to 2 years, $96 to $130 per week 2 to 3 years, $86 to $115 per week 3 to 5 years, $79 to $105 per week

96

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

CHristian HeritaGe montessori sCHooL* Bluffton (843) 757-7100 http://www. christianheritagebluffton.com/ Ages: 2 to 6 years Tuition: Please contact the school for rates Cross earLY CHiLDHooD Center* Bluffton (843) 706-2000 www.crossschools.org Ages: 18 months to preKindergarten Tuition: 2 days per week, $300 per month 3 days per week, $420 per month Full school days, $560 per month (5 days per week from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.)

Full time $600 per month After school $260 per month (5 days per week from 3-6 p.m.)

July 2012

kiDs CoLLeGe* Bluffton (843) 953-9780 http://www.kidscollegellc.com/ Ages: 6 weeks to 5 years Tuition: 6 weeks to 18 months, $140 per week 18 months to 5 years, $135 per week law enforcement and military families receive a 10% discount LoWCoUntrY DaY CHristian presCHooL* Bluffton (843) 815-2271 www.lowcountrydaypre@aol.com Ages: 6 weeks to 5 years Tuition: $145 per week maY river montessori sCHooL* Bluffton (843) 757-2312 http://mayrivermontessori.com Ages: 2 years to 5th grade Tuition: Please contact the school for rates rose’s DaY Care Center* Bluffton (843) 757-6528 Ages: 3 months to 5 years Tuition: $105 per week aLL saints episCopaL presCHooL* Hilton Head Island (843) 681-8671 http://www.allsaints-hhi.org/parish/preschool.htm Ages: 2 years to pre-kindergarten Tuition: 2 years to pre-kindergarten, $590 per month** Pre-Kindergarten $566 per month** **Rates are based on fulltime attendance. Please contact the school for additional rate information based on number of days attended.

CHrist LUtHeran presCHooL* Hilton Head Island (843) 785-6570 http://www.clchhi.com Ages: 2 to 4 years Tuition: $2,000 to $6,340 annually Options ranging from 2 mornings per week to fulltime first presbYterian DaY sCHooL* Hilton Head Island (843) 681-3695 http://www.fpchhhi.org/index.php?Page=serve&SubPage =dayschool Tuition: Please contact the school for ages and rates HiLton HeaD earLY CHiLDHooD Center* Beaufort County Schools Hilton Head Island (843) 689-0400 http://hec.beaufort.k12.sc.us Ages: Pre-kindergarten Tuition: Free July

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 97

Selecting a preschool PROVIDENCE CHILDREN’S CENTER* Hilton Head Island (843) 842-5944 http://www.causegodjoy.com/ childrenscenter Ages: 8 weeks to prekindergarten Tuition: Please contact the school for rates SEA PINES MONTESSORI* Hilton Head Island (843) 785-2534 http://spma.com/ Ages: 18 months to 6 years Tuition: $5,950.00 to $8,190.00 annually ST. LUKE’S PRESCHOOL* Hilton Head Island (843) 842-8650 http://www.stlukeshhi.org/ stlukespreschool Tuition: Please contact the school for ages and rates

july

2012

TODDLER UNIVERSITY LEARNING CENTER* Hilton Head Island (843) 689-5558 http://www.toddleruniversitylearningcenter.net/ Ages: 6 weeks to 5 years Tuition: 6 weeks to 2 years, $130 per week 2 years to 5 years, $120 per week * Please contact schools to verify rates and any registration or additional fees as well as other optional programs.

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 99

Gullah Heritage Trail Tours:

Article by David Gignilliat Photography by Anne

“ T h is [ sa l on ] is t h e b est d e c ision I h ave ever m a d e in m y l ife . I c ou l d n ’ t b e m ore c o m forta b l e in m y environ m ent or h a p p ier . T h is isn ’ t just a b usiness for m e . I t ’ s tru l y a d rea m c o m e true . ” - T ra c ee S p en c er

dream

living the

Sa l o n A r t i s t r y

N

more than a business

ear the back of Salon Artistry, past the immaculate waiting area and its floral-print chairs and modern artwork, past the elegant product displays and a to the right of a gleaming row of cleansing backwash systems and processing space, there is a beige-and-black rectangular framed sign with distinctive script that catches the eye: Imagine Your Dream. Create Your Happiness.

For Tracee Spencer, owner of the new Salon Artistry on Hilton Head Island’s north end, the sign represents more than just a throwaway platitude or useful wall decor. These are words that she actually lives by.

“It’s kind of my mantra,” said Spencer, who recently opened Salon Artistry after nearly a decade in the island’s thriving beauty industry. “This [salon] is the best decision I have ever made in my life. I couldn’t be more comfortable in my environment or happier. This isn’t just a business for me. It’s truly a dream come true.”

Circumstances in Spencer’s personal and professional life seemed to align earlier this year, pointing her in a new direction. After consulting with colleagues, friends and loved ones, she sensed the time was right to follow her dream.

“It was a long mental journey for me to get here, but everything else happened so quickly,” said Spencer, who got married last November and whose parents live on the island.

The name Salon Artistry came quickly (“Hair is an artistic profession; it’s your creativity,” Spencer said.)

So did the team—a trio of award-winning colleagues (Mindi Cadman, Holly Martin and Kim Harrison) with whom she worked previously at a nearby salon.

“The team we have is small; it’s only four people, but it’s the best group I’ve ever worked with,” Spencer said. “The four of us just have an amazing rapport with each other.”

After finding the space, almost by accident, Spencer acted decisively. She signed the lease on March 1, and after six weeks of construction (her husband, Larenzo, installed the wood flooring) and a mother-daughter decorating spree, Salon Artistry officially opened for business at its Main Street location on May 2.

“I didn’t let anybody in here. After the floor was done, nobody was let in here except my parents and the contractors—none of the girls, no clients. I wanted it to be a surprise,” Spencer said.

The attention to detail is evident. The rooms are open and spacious, equal parts elegance and whimsy.

Rooms are dedicated rooms to specialty services (nails, skin care, etc.), and every element seems to have been thoughtfully anticipated—right down to a posh chandelier in the washroom. Clients tend to stay a while, often for multiple services, so the space had to be relaxing, Spencer explained. “I wanted it to be a great experience—not just coming in to get your hair cut or colored, but fun and relaxing. We really just try to make this as comfortable of an environment as we can. And we’ve have had amazing feedback from clients so far.”

According to Spencer, the salon feels like home.

“I was essentially creating a second home, and when somebody comes to my home, everything has to be just so,” she said. “I felt very strongly about it being that way, and I am very proud of it.” (turn the page to meet the team!)

Meet the Dream Team “the teAm we hAve is smAll; it’s only four people, but it’s the best group i’ve ever worked with. “the four of us just hAve An AmAZing rApport with eAch other.”

Tracee Spencer • •

Owner/Stylist

moved to HHi in December 2002 Certified through two of the prestigious vidal sassoon academies in London and miami specializes in Coppola keratin smoothing systems, facial waxing, foil highlighting, strandby-strand human hair extensions, and special occasion hairstyles. for appointments: (843) 368-1247 or hairdobyt@gmail.com

•

•

“trAcee is one of my best friends. when she decided to open her own sAlon, i wAs so excited. she hAs greAt ideAs, And i wAs certAinly intrigued. so when she cAme to me, i trusted her. i knew she wAs going to come up with something greAt And hAve A fAbulous plAce. And she hAs.”

Mindi Cadman • • • •

102

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

Stylist

moved to HHi in 2003 2011 & 2012 people’s Choice award—best Hair stylist—the island packet specialize in foil highlighting; certified in Coppola smoothing systems and brazilian blowout for appointments: (843) 338-1310 or melikib@aol.com

July 2012

“All of us girls hAve worked together, And i wAnt to work with the best of the best. we’re A greAt group, And i knew trAcee would do A good job. we All tAlked About whAt we liked/didn’t like At other sAlons, And thAt’s how All of this cAme About. thAt’s pretty cool.”

Holly Martin •

Stylist

20-plus years of beauty experience (Washington D.C., Dallas) trained by industry leaders (roy peters— redken, robert Cromeans—paul mitchell, sam villa, aquage, rusk, tiGi, beth minardi, martin parson, and nicholas french. expert in permanent makeup and eyelash extensions or appointments: (843) 305-2454 or hollymartin22@gmail.com

•

• •

“it wAs A point in my life when i wAs reAdy for And needed A chAnge. All she [trAcee] hAd to do wAs look At me, And we could reAd eAch other’s minds thAt we were reAdy for A move.”

Kim Harrison • • •

Hair Designer

nearly 20 years of experience as a cosmetologist—six years in the area trained under numerous renowned hair and makeup artists in the beauty/fashion industry for appointments: (843) 540-0258 or Hair Designs by kim at schedulicity.com

 Salon Artistry, located at 4101 Main Street, Suite B, off of Highway 278, offers comprehensive hair services and, coming soon, skin and nail services. To schedule an appointment, please call (843) 842-4247 or visit the salon’s new website at salonartistryhiltonhead.com. you can also find the on Facebook at https://www.facebook. com/SalonArtistry July

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 103

Article By Frank Dunne, Jr.

Behind

Gates the

The Crescent and Eagle’s Pointe This is a continuation of a several part series on island living in gated communities.

The Crescent A hometown neighborhood in a gated community is how Property Owners Association president Tom Caffrey describes The Crescent. Tom and his wife Lynne had lived in one of Hilton Head’s busier resort communities prior to becoming one of the first property owners in The Crescent. “There were just so many people coming and going,” he said of their previous home. “We really like the tight-knit community at The Crescent. I just think it’s warmhearted. You feel right at home.”

The Crescent is one of the newer gated communities in Bluffton, with the earliest homeowners taking occupancy in 1999. It is also home to the Crescent Pointe Golf Club, the Lowcountry’s only public Arnold Palmer Signature golf course.

But The Crescent isn’t a golf community in the sense that everybody who lives there is a member of the golf club. The golf course is there, but unlike many of the other private golf communities in the area, club membership is optional. That’s a major draw for many of the folks who choose to buy a home

in The Crescent, because it provides a more affordable option in terms of annual dues. Ed Funk and his wife Kathy moved to The Crescent from Callawassie Island nine years ago, partly for that reason. “I’m not a golfer and, not that I don’t love Callawassie, but I was required to be a golf member there.”

“A lot of realtors would say that The Crescent is one of the best kept secrets in Bluffton,” said Mary Williams of Charter One Realty. “That’s because The Crescent is gated, so it would appear that it’s private, but it’s really semi-private. You have so many amenities like a private golf course community might have, but you have very low POA fees.” Those amenities include—in addition to golf—a pool and pool house, tennis courts and a fitness center.

Those residents who do join Crescent Pointe Golf Club, though, get one of the better golf membership deals around.

Not only are membership dues significantly lower than dues at some of the more exclusive clubs in the area, but Crescent

Pointe members also have reciprocal membership with Eagle’s Pointe Golf Club (See Eagle’s Pointe later in this article) a few miles up the road. So you’re getting two golf courses for the cost of one membership. Likewise for Eagle’s Pointe residents who join Eagle’s Pointe Golf Club.

Caffrey’s description of the community as hometown neighborhood is drawn from more than the friendly nature of the people who live there; it is also a reflection of The Crescent’s location. The main gate is situated on the north side of Highway 278 about 10 minutes from the bridge to Hilton Head Island, placing it right at the “hub” of the Lowcountry. “One of the reasons we chose Bluffton and The Crescent is that I’m a professional photographer and I do business throughout the Lowcountry,” said Funk of the decision he and Kathy made to relocate to The Crescent. Its proximity to Hilton Head, Beaufort and Savannah, plus the fact that you’re minutes from much of Bluffton’s shopping, dining and services makes The Crescent a very attractive option for homebuyers.“That it’s on the north side of 278 is something that I always bring to people’s attention,” said Williams. “Because The Crescent is backed by the marshes of the Colleton River, you don’t have to worry about anything being built nearby. You’re not going to have any concerns that the Bluffton Parkway is going to come through your backyard.”

To that you can add that although The Crescent is located amid the hustle and bustle of greater Bluffton, once inside the gate

106

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

you’d never know it, because there you’ll find a quiet, pastoral Lowcountry setting with luxurious homes, nicely spaced amid the rolling hills of the golf course, lagoons, lush greenery and exquisite landscaping.

July 2012

One of The Crescent’s most attractive features to homebuyers is that it is relatively new. “People who buy here are looking for a newer home, something with a lot of light, and in a gated community,” Williams said. “They may want golf and all the other amenities too, and The Crescent has those options. Since the market is so price driven now, if the home is in the right price point, The Crescent is usually the best choice among comparable communities, because you’re getting a newer home for your money.”

The Crescent was originally a Centex Homes project, but that arrangement changed before the final phases of construction had been completed, so you’ll find a bit more variety in home styles than you’d ordinarily expect in a developer-owned community. The prevailing architectural style is contemporary, but not super-modern. The homes are bright and airy, all have golf, lagoon, or wooded views, and the approximately 400 singlefamily dwellings sit on lots that range from a third of an acre to a half-acre. At the time of this writing, there were six active listings in The Crescent ranging in price from about $400,000 to $700,000 according to Shirley Marbach of ERA Evergreen Real Estate. “Five of those were under contract within 30 days,” she said, a sign that the market is pretty healthy in The Crescent and a reflection of what a popular choice it is for homebuyers in this area. It also means that there isn’t an abundance of existing homes available, but there are approximately 30 un-built lots

july

2012

remaining. Although The Crescent is predominantly single-family homes on full sized lots, one of its little secrets is that there are 12 condominium units in three buildings located near the Crescent Pointe clubhouse.

That there isn’t a formal club at the heart of the social activities in The Crescent doesn’t mean that residents aren’t active socially. A visit to The Crescent’s website (www.TheCrescent. us) and a click on the Activities tab reveals an expansive list of clubs, interest groups (the fun kind) and activities. “We have a very active social committee,” Funk said. “We have Happy Hour the first Wednesday of every month, for example, and it’s always very well-attended. Basically, we’ve made our own social agenda.

There’s no need for a club social membership.”

When asked for a ballpark estimate, Caffrey and Funk agreed that the population in The Crescent is split about 50/50 between retirees and empty nesters and working aged couples and families. You wouldn’t say that there is a profusion of children in the neighborhoods, but there are enough to give The Crescent that hometown feel. “When we were looking we saw a school bus rolling through,” Funk said. “That means there are children, and Kathy and I like that. We wanted to live in a place where we would feel young.”

For more information visit The Crescent at www.

TheCrescent.us and Crescent Pointe Golf Club at www.

CrescentPointeGolf.com.

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 107

108

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

Eagle’s Pointe Just a few miles west on Highway 278 from The Crescent’s main entrance you’ll arrive at Eagle’s Pointe, another Centex Homes concept that incorporates many of the same features and amenities as The Crescent, but on a smaller scale. The most obvious similarities are that Eagle’s Pointe is also a private gated community built around a semi-private golf course, Eagle’s Pointe Golf Club, designed by one of the sport’s top names, Davis Love III.

Taking a drive through Eagle’s Pointe, you’ll see a lot of familiar sights typical of a Lowcountry residential community: fairways, moss draped live oaks, pine trees, lagoons and wetlands, all surrounding a 7 1/2 acre lake. Perhaps what is most strikingly unique, though, is its small size. There are only 249 homes in Eagle’s Pointe giving the community an enhanced quaintness and intimacy.

“The golf course itself is a draw because it’s a Davis Love III design,” said club general manager Brent Carlson.

“Even though you do not have to be a member, the golf is an attractive option for a homeowner because the convenience factor is there. You can just hop in your golf cart and zip over to the course.” Those who do decide to become members of Eagle’s Pointe Golf Club also become members at Crescent Pointe and can play both courses (likewise for Crescent Pointe members).

Taking a drive through Eagle’s Pointe, you’ll see a lot of familiar sights typical of a Lowcountry residential community: fairways, moss draped live oaks, pine trees, lagoons and wetlands, all surrounding a 7 1/2 acre lake. Perhaps what is most strikingly unique, though, is its small size. There are only 249 homes

in Eagle’s Pointe giving the community an enhanced quaintness and intimacy.

“A place so small with so few homes, and built around a golf course, it’s really wonderful,” said Brad Wilson of Charter One Realty.

The homes themselves are also smaller than those in The Crescent and most of the other gated communities that we’ve explored in Behind the Gates to-date. It should be noted that we make frequent

comparisons to The Crescent because the two communities were planned together as a market segmentation strategy.

“Centex wanted to capture both price points,” Wilson said. “The Crescent is a more comprehensive neighborhood and Eagle’s Pointe provides a more affordable option for people shopping at a lower price range.” Centex is no longer involved in the management of either property.

Models in Eagle’s Pointe range in size

from 1,490 to 2,580 square feet and in price from about $250,000 to $400,000. All are three- or four-bedroom single-family homes with wooded, water or golf course views. “It’s ideal for somebody who is in a price sensitive market and wants golf availability without the added cost of being compelled to join a high-priced golf club,” Wilson said.

Like many of its neighbors on the 278 corridor through Bluffton, Eagle’s Pointe is in a terrific location.

The front entrance is a short drive from Bluffton’s abundance of shopping, dining and professional services, but once behind the gate, the quiet seclusion makes that all seem miles and miles away. Plus it’s within easy reach of all the recreational opportunities throughout all of Beaufort County and a few minutes from I-95 if you need to get to Savannah or the airport.

Models in Eagle’s Pointe range in size from 1,490 to 2,580 square feet and in price from about $250,000 to $400,000. All are three- or four-bedroom single-family homes with wooded, water or golf course views. “It’s ideal for somebody who is in a price sensitive market and wants golf availability without the added cost of being compelled to join a high-priced golf club.”

Although there is no formalized social club at Eagle’s Pointe, there are plenty of amenities and facilities to accommodate mixing and mingling and recreation.

Most notable is the golf course and its clubhouse with a pro shop and restaurant. Since the golf club is semiprivate, that is, the public is welcome to play the course, a 640-square-foot “Resident’s Room” is set aside in the clubhouse for residents to host meetings and social gatherings. The neighbors also get together at a picnic area with a children’s playground and covered pavilion, swim in the Jr. Olympic sized pool, or play tennis on two tennis courts.

Eagle’s Pointe’s small size helps to foster a closeknit neighborhood where you’re likely to know most of your fellow Eagle’s Pointers. Residents have referred to it as a “sidewalk community where your neighbors are your friends.” They also enjoy the variety of age groups represented, which makes it feel less like a planned development and more like an organic village.

For more information visit Eagle’s Pointe at www.

EaglesPointe.info and Eagle’s Pointe Golf Club at www.

EaglesPointeGolf.com.

110

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

july

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 111

M A Yor

Drew Laughlin Hilton Head I sl and Photography By Anne

A Sign of the Times

A

s Town Council considered changes to our Land Management’s (LMO) sign ordinance, I began hearing that we were on our way to becoming anywhere USA. Neon lights, signs on trailers, and fluorescent signs advertising any business anywhere was on the way to Hilton Head Island. So let me take this opportunity to explain what Council adopted when it amended our sign ordinance.

The amendments are not a large-scale overhaul of the sign standards; the standards regulating number, location, size, materials, colors, lighting, landscaping and overall design standards of permanent, highly visible commercial signs will not change.

The amendments to the LMO sign standards were changed for several reasons: • The sign standards were contained in two chapters of the LMO, which can be confusing, and some language was unclear and needed to be clarified, both through changes in text and through the addition of photographs.

• In working with business owners, sign manufacturers and our residents over the years, staff identified ways in which the sign code could be more flexible and helpful to business owners while still maintaining the character of Hilton Head Island.

• Since the standards were adopted in 1987, there have been changes in sign technology (notably the trend of video/electronic signs), and the code needed to be amended to make it clear that these types of signs are not permitted on Hilton Head Island.

• There have been many challenges to the constitutionality of sign regulations in other municipalities, generally due to the regulation of political signs and the lack of both a strong purpose statement and a severability clause.

These items have all been corrected in the amendments to the sign ordinance.

To accomplish the above, staff worked to clarify the purpose of the standards, reorganize the standards in a format that is easy to read and understand, and provide examples of signs that meet the intent of the Town’s Design Guide.

The most notable changes are: • Each business will be allowed to use one high-quality portable sign outside of the business to advertise specials or sales. The sign may be placed no more than 10 feet from the main entrance of the business and may not block pedestrian or vehicular traffic.

• Each business will be allowed to have holiday decorations (excluding string lights) year-round instead of just between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The time frame when string lights will be allowed is now earlier— Nov 1 instead of the Friday after Thanksgiving.

• Large special events (such as Wing Fest or Rib Fest) may legally use banners or other temporary signs to advertise sales within the boundary of the events.

So you see we didn’t throw the baby out with the bath water.

We’ve simply improved another element of our LMO.  112

www.celebratehiltonhead.com

July 2012

M A Yor

Lisa Sulka BLU F FTON Photography By Anne

Bluffton Police Earn Reaccreditation The Bluffton Police successfully passed all criteria to be awarded their first reaccreditation certificate for another three years. The department was first accredited in 2009. This year, because of compliance with a number of standards, the department was awarded “advanced accreditation” The Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., (CALEA®) was created in 1979 as a credentialing authority through the joint efforts of law enforcement’s major executive associations, including the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA), and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF).

The purpose of CALEA’s Accreditation Programs is to improve the delivery of public safety services, primarily by maintaining a body of standards developed by public safety practitioners, covering a wide range of up-to-date public safety initiatives, establishing and administering an accreditation process, and recognizing professional excellence.

Specifically, CALEA’s goals are to: • Strengthen crime prevention and control capabilities • Formalize essential management procedures • Establish fair and nondiscriminatory personnel practices • Improve service delivery • Solidify interagency cooperation and coordination, and Increase community and staff confidence in the agency.

The CALEA Accreditation Process is a proven modern management model; once implemented, it presents the chief executive officer (CEO), on a continuing basis, with a blueprint that promotes the efficient use of resources and improves service delivery, regardless of the size, geographic location, or functional responsibilities of the agency.

This accreditation program provides public safety agencies an opportunity to demonstrate voluntarily that they meet an established set of professional standards which: • Require an agency to develop a comprehensive, well thought out, uniform set of written directives. This is one of the most successful methods for reaching administrative and operational goals, while also providing direction to personnel.

• Provide the necessary reports and analyses a CEO needs to make fact-based, informed management decisions.

• Require a preparedness program be put in place—so an agency is ready to address natural or man-made critical incidents.

• Are a means for developing or improving upon an agency’s relationship with the community.

• Strengthen an agency’s accountability, both within the agency and the community, through a continuum of standards that clearly define authority, performance, and responsibilities.

• Can limit an agency’s liability and risk exposure, because it demonstrates that internationally recognized standards for law enforcement have been met, as verified by a team of independent outside CALEA-trained assessors.

• Facilitates an agency’s pursuit of professional excellence.  july

2012

www.celebratehiltonhead.com 113

THE LOCALS INDEX YOUR TOOL FOR FINDING THE BEST DISCOUNTS IN TOWN

EATS SWEETS & SPIRITS

Market Street Café, p. 62 Coligny Plaza, 686-4976 10% Off Entire Check

Captain Woody’s, p. 74 Palmetto Bay Marina, 785-2400, See Ad For Details

Mellow Mushroom Pizza, p. 63 Park Plaza, 686-2474 10% Off

Chocolate Canopy, Ltd., p. 96 Palmetto Bay Rd, 842-4567 10% Off Non-Sale Items (with minimum purchase of $10)

Old Fort Pub, p. 112 Hilton Head Plantation, 681-2386 See Ad For Details

CQ’s Restaurant, p. 112 Harbour Town, 671-2779 See Ad For Details Ela's Blu Water Grille, p. 70 1 Shelter Cove Marina, 843-785-3030 See Ad For Details Josie's Frozen Yogurt, p. 62 843-757-9648, www.JosiesYogurt.com (Best Buy Shopping Center) 20% Off Kingfisher, p. 69 Shelter Cove Marina, 785-4442 10% Off Food La Hacienda, p. 35 25 Bluffton Road, 815-4540 11 Palmetto Bay Road, 842-4982 See Ad for Details Los Jalapenos, p. 84 Hwy. 278, Bridge Center, 837-2333 See Ad For Details Main Street Café & Pub, p. 31 843-689-3999, hiltonheadcafe.com 50% Off Apps (Monday - Thursday) Marker 59 Restaurant & Lounge, p. 72 The Beachhouse, A Holiday Inn Resort 1 South Forest Beach, 843-785-5126 10% off Food & Beverages at Marker 59

Palmetto Bay Sunrise Cafe, p. 31 Palmetto Bay Marina, 686-3232 10% Off Monday-Friday Phillys Cafe and Deli, p. 84 55 New Orleans Road, 785-9966 15% Off with your C2 Card Salty Dog Cafe, p. 8 843-671-CAFE, www.saltydog.com See Ad For Details San Miguels, p. 75 Shelter Cove Marina, 843-842-4555 See Ad For Details SERG Group Restaurant, p. 11 www.SergGroup.com See Ad For Details Skillets Café, p. 71 Coligny Plaza, 785-3131 See Ad For Details Sublime Prime, p. 41 163 Bluffton Road, Suite F, 843-815-6900 See Ad For Details The Big Chill, p. 51 6 Target Road, 843-714-2774 See Ad For Details

HEALTH FITNESS & BEAUTY Club Tan, p. 75 38-C New Orleans Road, 843-686-4826 10% Off For New Clients Comprehensive Family Care, p. 92 2 Greenwood Drive, Suite C, 843-341-3232 See Ad For Details Dermatology of the Lowcountry, p. 88 689-5259, Offices on Hilton Head, Bluffton/Okatie/Beaufort See Ad For Details European Spa, The, p. 71 The Barony Beach Club, 682-3915 10% Off, See Ad For Details Faces Day Spa, p. 41 The Village at Wexford, 785-3075 See Ad For Details Heavenly Spa by Westin, p. 69 2 Grasslawn Ave., Port Royal Plantation 681-1019, See Ad For Details Sanctuary, The - A European Day Spa, p. 37 Park Plaza, 843.842.5999 See Ad For Details Shear Miracle, p. 92 6 Bow Circle, Suite A-4, 843-785-4333 50% Off Keratin Blowout Express Stephens Pharmacy, p. 102 Pineland Station, 843-686-3040 See Ad For Details Weniger Plastic Surgery, p. 15 25 Clarks Summit Drive, Suite 104 843-757-0123, 20% Off CoolSculpting Treatments

Wild Wing Cafe, p. 4 Hilton Head - 843-785-9464 or Bluffton - 837-9453 See Ad For Details

SHOPS BOUTIQUES & MORE Black Market Minerals, p. 16-17 Coligny Plaza, 1. North Forest Beach Dr., Unit 124, 785-7090 See Ad For Details Fresh Produce, p. 13 & 16-17 Coligny Plaza, 843-842-3410 10% Off Non-Sale Items with C2 Card GemJewelry, p. 31 Port Royal Plaza - HHI, 843-342-3663 See Ad For Details Great Frame Up, p. 80 22 Plantation Park Dr., Suite 108, 815-4661 See Ad For Details

Jamaican Me Crazy, p. 23 Coligny Plaza 785-9006 10% Off Non-Sale Items with C2 Card Lowcountry Saddlery, p. 37 1541 Fording Island Rd., Suite 3, 837-8700 10% Off Your Entire Purchase Luciana, p. 39 37 New Orleans Rd., Suite C 686-5620, 10% Off Nash Gallery, p. 80 13 Harbourside Lane, 2H, 785-6424 See Ad For Details

Palmettoes, p. 56 71 Lighthouse Road, Suite.414 363-6800 See Ad For Details Smith Galleries, p. 29 The Village At Wexford, 842-2280 Ask About Our Smith Galleries' Rewards Program!

Tail-Waggers, p. 48 The Village At Wexford 843-686-3707 10% Off With CH2 Card

MAKE YOUR SUMMER EVEN SWEETER! visit josie' ' s self- serve frozen yogurt and save some major bucks! *FIND THEIR AD oN PAGE 62

ACTIVITIES Bluffton Farmers Market, p. 40 Calhoun St., Old Town Bluffton, 843-415-2447, Every Thurs. 2-7PM Crescent Pointe & Eagle's Pointe Golf Clubs, p. 110 Crescent Pointe - 843-706-2600 Eagle's Pointe - 843-757-5900 See Ad For Details Hilton Head National, p. 55 800-509-5993 www.golfhiltonheadnational.com See Ad For Great Deals!

Lowcountry Golf Cars, p. 57 649 N. Okatie Highway, 987-8272 See Ad For Details

SERVICES American Paving Designs, p. 9 843-706-PAvE (7283) 20% Off Any Project Bruno Landscaping, p. 108 109 Dilon Road 681-7022 or 682-2624 15% Off All 1-3 Gallon Plants

North Ridge Cinema, p. 62 342-3800, See Ad For Details

Healthy Environments, p. 107 Hilton Head: 363-6751, Bluffton: 757-5522 Ridgeland: 726-4729 Free Home Evaluation

Celebration Events Catering, p. 75 689-7526, Call For Details

HIlton Head Boathouse, p. 77 843-681-2628, HHBoathouse.net 405 Squire Pope Road (Next to Skull Creek Boathouse) 100% Off yamaha Full Annual Service

Country Club of Hilton Head, p. 65 Contact Catherine Daugherty at 843-681-2582, ext. 123 See Ad For Details

Interior Motives, p. 111 48 Pennington Drive, Suite E 843-815-6747 Call for your Free Consultation

Covert Aire, p. 25 7 Estate Drive - Bluffton 706-5090, See Ad for Details

Isle of Paws, p. 37 341-Dogs, www.isleofpaws.com 15% Off All New Clients

EnergyOne, p. 108 270 Red Cedar Street, Suite 104 www.energyoneamerica.com See Ad For Details

Island Car Wash, p. 69 Hwy. 278, 785-9274, Kitties Crossings, 815-4666 - $5 Off Gold Wash

Foundation Reality, p. 5 www.HiltonHeadRealEstates.com www.BlufftonRealEstates.com 686-4002, See Ad For Details Hahn Air Specialists, p. 108 843-683-4242 See Ad for Details Hargray, p. 2-3 1-866-533-6530 www.hargray.com See Ad for Details

Quality Golf Cars, p. 57 212 Okatie village Drive, Bluffton, 705-6655, See Ad For Details

Lowcountry Motors, p. 80 www.lowcountrymotors.com 843-815-5100 See Ad For Details Mattress Firm, p. 19 1172 Fording Island Road 837-FIRM (3476), See Ad For Details Window Fashions of Hilton Head, p. 111 30 D Hunter Road, 843-689-3990 Call for a FREE Consultation

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER! BECAuSE THERE IS NO ACCOuNTING FOR HuMAN ERROR...ADvERTISERS AND C2 ARE NOT HElD RESPONSIBlE FOR THE DISCOuNTS AND INFORMATION lISTED ON THIS PAGE.

NEED A C2 CARD? CALL 843.342.9190 TO START SAVING TODAY.

www.celebratehiltonhead.com