December 12 edition

Page 1


Beaufort still just a bit short

Wreaths Across America Beaufort several thousand wreaths away from covering all graves at Beaufort National Cemetery

With just a few days before Saturday’s Wreaths Across America Day, Beaufort Coordinator David Edwards confirmed Monday, Dec. 9, that his organization is still several thousand remembrance wreaths short of being able to cover the headstones of all the 28,000 veteran heroes interred at Beaufort

National Cemetery, a feat Edwards and many volunteers have made happen several years running.

If it seems like you’ve heard this response from Edwards before, you have.

“It’s not too late,” he said. “It’s not too late until they close the doors on the trucks on Saturday.”

Edwards habitually shies away from talking about specific num-

bers any more than he has to. He also acknowledges this has been a tough year for a lot of people between inflation, hurricanes and unease about what November’s election might mean for the economy.

“Still, …” he said. “I just want every one of our veteran heroes to be remembered. You know, if everybody in Beaufort just bought one

wreath, we wouldn’t need any big purchases and we wouldn’t need any outside help. We’d get it done.”

To sponsor a Remembrance Wreath, which costs $17, click on the QR code on Wreaths Across America Beaufort’s Facebook page or visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/GA0175P. That code at the

SEE SHORT PAGE A5

’TIS THE SEASON

BEAUFORT

hile the State Infrastructure Bank at its meeting last month agreed to give Beaufort County Council until the end of March to come up with an alternate funding plan for the U.S. 278 Corridor Improvement Plan, talks are already underway.

Because the one percent sales tax referendum went down in defeat — 55 to 45 percent — the county no longer has the $190 million promised as a matching fund to the State Infrastructure Bank for the U.S. 278 Corridor Improvement plan, which includes a replacement bridge to Hilton Head Island. The SIB had pledged $120 million to Beaufort County for a portion of the project. But because Beaufort County voters didn’t buy the idea of another penny sales tax, well, that state money might go elsewhere.

Saturday.

Blue Angels make sneak preview stop

Blue Angel No. 7, a Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet, lands and makes it way around the flight deck at MCAS Beaufort on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. The 2025 MCAS Beaufort Airshow, featuring the Blue Angels, the U.S. Navy’s flight demonstration team, will be held on Saturday, April 12, and Sunday, April 13. General admission is free. Amber Hewitt/The Island News

Nos. 7 and 8 visit MCAS Beaufort, gone as quickly as they arrive

One of the Blue Angels’ familiar blue and gold Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornets touched down at 8:55 a.m. Friday, Dec. 6 at MCAS Beaufort in advance of the Airshow set for Saturday, April 12 and Sunday, April 13

High-ranking MCAS Beaufort officers, members of the media

and several area Marines ROTC outfits were on hand to greet

Angel No. 7, USMC

Scott Laux, and Blue Angel No. 8, U.S.

Lt. Cmdr. Lilly Montana, who made the 55-minute or so flight — at .95 MACH (658 mph over the ground) — from Punta Gorda, Fla.

“We went about as fast as we could and it still took about an hour,” Laux said. According to Montana, the two of them will visit each of the 32 show sites between now and the beginning of the 2025 season.

SEE ANGELS PAGE A3

The Island News
LOLITA HUCKABY
Four-year-old
Adeline Robinson of Beaufort reaches out to feel the snow as it falls during the Night on the Town Christmas tree lighting at Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News
Blue
Maj.
Navy

LOWCOUNTRY LIFE & NEWS

The Island News photographer Amber Hewitt snapped a photo of Gregg Marcel Dixon, a teacher at Sea Islands Heritage Academy, giving a tour of the school to attendees during the Fall Festival & Day of Gratitude on Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. To submit a Lowcountry Life photo, you must be the photographer or have permission to submit the photo to be published in The Island News. Please submit high-resolution photos and include a description and/or names of the people in the picture and the name of the photographer. Email your photos to theislandnews@gmail.com.

VETERAN OF THE WEEK ALAN SZATKOWSKI

American Legion Beaufort Post 207 brings you Beaufort’s

He separated in 1988 and then managed the flight line at the Hilton Head Airport for 13 years. For the past eight years, he’s been a civil servant now supervising the Public Works

Alan Szatkowski, 60, who joined the United States Marine Corps in 1983 in Battle Creek, Mich. After Boot Camp in San Diego, he trained in Millington, Tenn., as an aircraft electrician. He served at MCAS Beaufort assigned to a squadron that made deployments to Iwakuni, Japan, Okinawa, Cubi Point, Philippines and both Osan and Yecheon, Korea.

Department at Naval Hospital Beaufort and the medical clinics at MCAS Beaufort and MCRD Parris Island.

– Compiled by John Chubb, American Legion Post 207 For Veteran Of The Week nominations, contact jechubb1@gmail.com.

Dear Readers,

We need your help.

Do you love having a local newspaper? One you can actually pick up and hold in your hands?

A local newspaper produced BY locals FOR locals?

FYI – We’re the only one.

While other local newspapers around the country are being bought up by impersonal hedge funds – or disappearing altogether – we’re a family-owned publication employing editors, reporters, photographers, and salespeople who actually live in Beaufort and care about what happens here. We’re a newspaper OF the community, BY the community, and FOR the community.

Do you value knowing about last week’s City Council meeting? Yesterday’s school board decision? Friday’s high school football game? What about that new restaurant that just opened? That festival coming up this weekend? That corrupt County official who just lost her job? That occasional monkey prison break?!

Here at The Island News, we believe local newspapers are essential – not just to community spirit and cohesion, but to democracy, itself. Sure, we’re here to keep you informed about all the fun stuff – festivals, concerts, parades,

December 12

2023: Former City Councilman Phil Cromer is elected Mayor of the City of Beaufort. Cromer defeated former City Councilman Mike Sutton in a special election to fill the seat for the rest of the term of former Mayor Stephen Murray, who resigned in September.

December 13

2022: Scott Marshall is announced as the Beaufort City Council’s selection to replace Bill Prokop as City Manager. Prokop was set to

PAL PETS OF THE WEEK

’Tis the Season of Second Chances at Palmetto Animal League. Adoption fees are waived for cats, kittens, and adult dogs through January 4! Here are our Pets of the Week.

Dog Of The Week

Cider is a 1-year-old girl with a bubbly personality. Whether she’s meeting new people or exploring new places, Cider greets every experience with enthusiasm and a wagging tail. She has a knack for making you smile with her lighthearted antics. And she’s always up

for a game of

or

And for 6 years, we’ve been doing it all AT NO CHARGE, because we believe an informed community is a healthy community – and that everybody deserves access to the news.

But like many of you, we’ve experienced tough times over the last few years. Inflation has hit us hard. Paper prices have skyrocketed, along with the price of just about everything else. We’re struggling for our survival.

So this holiday season, we’re asking for your help.

Starting today, you can donate on our website at www.yourislandnews.com or by sending a check to: The Island News, PO Box 550, Beaufort, SC 29901. Your donation – no matter how small – would not only help keep us going, it would let us know you value what we do!

Please help us pull off a Christmas miracle, readers! We love producing this paper for you and hope to do so for years to come.

Many thanks, Jeff and Margaret Evans, Publishers

retire in January 2023

December 17

1803: The Town of Beaufort is incorporated by the State of South Carolina.

1959: The Richard V. Woods Memorial Bridge, named for a South Carolina Highway Patrol officer killed in the line of duty, is opened, connecting downtown Beaufort with Lady’s Island. – Compiled by Mike McCombs

moment. She is spayed, up to date on vaccinations, and microchipped.

Cat Of The Week

Sol is quiet and sweet. And, as you can see, this 3-yearold has the most beautiful eyes! If you're looking for a gentle, no drama cat, you must meet Sol. She is spayed, up to date on vaccinations, and microchipped.

For more info on Cider, Sol and any of our other pets, call Palmetto Animal Leagueat 843-645-1725 or email Info@ PalmettoAnimalLeague.org. – Compiled by Lindsay Perry

adoptable pets, monkeys – but we’re also here to help hold our local leaders accountable.
Scan Here to Donate
Alan Szatkowski

County’s McGowan earns honor from SC Association of County Veterans Affairs Officers

Staff reports

Beaufort County Veterans Affairs Director Caroline Fermin announced in a news release that Veteran Service Officer Anne McGowan has been named Associate Member of the Year by South Carolina Association County Veterans Affairs Officers.

Nominated by VA Director Fermin, McGowan has been with Beaufort County Veterans Affairs for three years first hired as the Senior Administrative Assistant and then promoted to Veteran Service Officer. Her professional demeaner and attention to details

contributed to the successful completion of hundreds and claims filed by County veterans and their families.

"Under leadership of a new department director, Anne has adapted quickly to the changes while continuing to support our mission," Fermin said. "With her professionalism, dedication to our mission and our veterans, Anne has been the foundation of the Beaufort County Veterans Affairs Department."

McGowan was recognized at a recent County Council meeting during County Administrator Mi-

chael Moore's Administrator Report. Watch Moore recognize McGowan at https://bit.ly/4f07koL.

The Beaufort County Veterans Affairs Office assists veterans, their spouses and other dependents with access to government programs for which they are eligible. Veterans Affairs Counselors are available by appointment only by calling 843-255-6880.

For more information, visit https://bit.ly/3CgzP1z. The Federal Benefits Handbook for Veterans, Dependents and Survivors is available here or by visiting www. va.gov.

Veteran Service Officer Anne McGowan and Beaufort County Administrator

Michael Moore. Photo courtesy of Beaufort County

BJWSA responds to Bluffton wastewater release

Staff reports

Beaufort-Jasper Water & Sewer Authority (BJWSA)

confirmed Monday in a news release that an estimated 60,000 gallons of wastewater from a failed force main was released near the intersection of Okatie Highway and Lawton Boulevard in

Angels from page A1

They’ll meet with air show organizers, community leaders and individuals that are coming together to support the Blue Angels when they come to town.

Bluffton on Sunday, Dec. 8

The overflow began at approximately 12:45 p.m. on Dec. 8, and BJWSA crews immediately responded. The overflow was stopped around 5 p.m. The pipeline was repaired and returned to ser-

vice at approximately 1:30 a.m., and crews are currently in the process of standing sewage cleanup and recovery. The wastewater flowed toward a retention pond and wooded area east of Pickett Mill Boulevard.

Signs have been posted in the area to inform the public.

BJWSA has notified the S.C. Department of Environmental Services (SCDES) and is working in conjunction with SCDES to address any effects caused by the

overflow. Citizens who you see or suspect any type of spill from the sewer collection system, please contact BJWSA at 843-987-9200 For more information, visit www.bjwsa.org.

“Our mission is to showcase the teamwork and professionalism of the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps,” Laux said. “We hope that we inspire young people to be interested in aviation, in service to country and just to be excellent in everything that they do. … Adults as well.”

Both Laux and Montana said that the travel, before and during the air show season, is one of the best parts of being a Blue Angel.

“We meet so many incredible people that are so enthusiastic about what we do, and how it reflects on the country, the military, and it’s a very high-energy crowd

To expand primary care access and meet the growing health care needs in the region, Beaufort Memorial has added a board-certified family medicine physician to the team at Lowcountry Medical Group Primary Care.

Dr. Lenzy Stephenson brings a wealth of experience in family practice, community health and holistic medicine to the primary care team. She joins Beaufort Memorial after living for several years in Northern California where she served as a family medicine physician for active-duty personnel and their families at the Travis Air Force Base, while later working as a physician serving a primarily Native American population in Central California.

Originally from North Carolina, Dr. Stephenson turned her attention to the medical field after watching her grandfather’s healthy lifestyle allow him to thrive into his 90s. A physician passionate about nutrition, as well as the impact of lifestyle changes on patient outcomes, she is committed to improving patient health through treatments that minimize reliance on medications wherever possible.

At the practice, Dr. Stephenson joins (l to r) Emi Rendon Pope, M.D.; Veronica Smalheiser, AGNP-C, ANP-BC, CVNP-BC; Carl Derrick,

Nicholas

D.O.; Nikki

R. Scott, ANP-BC; Jennifer Martin, NP-C and James Varner, PA-C.

to be around, and that’s something I thrive on and I enjoy,” Laux said.

“I love the travel, and I’ll add on that I just love being a part of the organization,” Montana said “We’re 140 sailors and Marines, we’ve got a civilian support staff, and everybody that has gone through the application process is at absolute peak performance in their military career and everybody is so excited to be with the team, with the organization, and the teamwork is phenomenal.”

Mike McCombs is the editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.

Doctor of Osteopathy

Lincoln Memorial University

Debusk College of Osteopathic Medicine Harrogate, Tenn.

M.D.;
Dardes,
Newman, PA-C; Craig Floyd, M.D.; Erin

County Christmas Tree lighting set for

December 13

Staff reports

All County employees, their families and the public are invited to attend the annual Christmas tree lighting Friday, Dec. 13 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., in the Beaufort County Courthouse Plaza.

Gates will open at 5:30 p.m., and the event is free to the public.

There will be an appearance by a special guest from the North Pole arriving in his sleigh, face painting, activities and games, food trucks, and of course lots of music and singing holiday carols.

Parking is available at the Main Administration Building located at 100 Ribaut Road, Beaufort.

Lowdown from page A1

County Council Chairman Joseph Passiment met privately last week with Hilton Head officials to provide an update on the U.S. 278 project and the funding status.

There’s bound to be plenty more meetings as county officials ponder the results of that most recent sales tax proposal.

The Mt. Pleasant Town Council got a lot of attention last week with their plan to make up lost revenue due to Charleston County’s sale tax referendum being rejected.

Council members gave first reading to an ordinance establishing a one percent “tourism sales tax” to help develop the

Interventional cardiologist joins Beaufort Memorial Heart Specialists

Staff reports To further expand and enhance cardiac care for Lowcountry residents, Beaufort Memorial has added an experienced physician to the team at Beaufort Memorial Heart Specialists, according to a news release.

Board-certified in Internal Medicine and fellowship-trained in Cardiovascular Disease as well as Interventional Cardiology, Dr. Francis O’Neill brings his background with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to Beaufort Memorial Heart Specialists where he, alongside the practice’s other board-certified providers, will diagnose and treat patients with cardiovascular conditions.

In addition to seeing patients in both the practice’s Beaufort and Okatie offices, Dr. O’Neill will also perform cardiac catheterization

assets of the popular Patriots Point complex.

The new tax would have brought Mt. Pleasant’s total sales to 10 percent, reportedly the highest in South Carolina.

But over the weekend, the Mt. Pleasant mayor called a halt to the proposal, which he had initiated as a response to the rejection of Charleston County’s proposed transportation sales tax referendum last month.

The mayor, in a press conference, apologized for the quick proposal and stressed that the council would not be moving forward with the idea, even though they hope to continue with plans to improve the Patriots’ Point area.

It will be interesting to see if Beaufort County’s municipalities, which all had specific projects

procedures in the newly renovated cath lab at Beaufort Memorial Hospital’s main campus. “Dr. O’Neill will be a fantastic addition to our team of skilled cardiologists at Beaufort Memorial Heart Specialists,” Beaufort Memorial President and CEO Russell Baxley said in a news release. “His experience in compassionate, patient-forward cardiac care will truly be a benefit for patients here in the Lowcountry.”

The New York native joins Beaufort Memorial from his role as an interventional cardiologist and Director of both Cardiac Catheterization and Cardiac Critical Care at Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, N.Y. He had hospital privileges at Northshore University

identified in the sales tax referendum, will consider similar revenue sources. Port Royal officials were definitely supportive of plans to improve their section of Ribaut Road traffic, which was one of the projects on the rejected sales tax list.

And City of Beaufort officials and Lady’s Island County Council representatives have been talking for years about traffic improvements, proposals that were also on that sales tax list. That list, if anyone had looked at it closely, also included money for a study of a third-bridge project which has been discussed for … oh, at least four decades.

Beaufort County’s clout growing in Columbia COLUMBIA – State officials

Hospital, South Shore University Hospital, Huntington Hospital, LIJ, Peconic Bay and Mather Hospitals, and completed rigorous training in coronary interventions at Morristown Memorial Hospital in New Jersey. Having performed more than 1 000 coronary procedures, his focus is interventional cardiology – but his diverse experience will bring specialized, high-quality care in the areas of heart failure, hypertension, pacemaker and defibrillator management, coronary disease, pulmonary embolism, cardiogenic shock, valve disease and arrhythmia management.

While attending medical school, Dr. O’Neill discovered an aptitude for cardiology.

“Once you find something you’ve got a knack for, you tend to fall in love with it, too,” he said, which led to honing this skill with over a de-

went back to the Capital last week, preparing for the 2025 legislative session which begins next month.

And with their return, came the news that one of Beaufort County’s own, State Rep. Bill Herbkersman (R- Bluffton) was appointed chairman of the House Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee.

The Bluffton real estate developer had been on the House Ways and Means Committee, but this most recent appointment makes him the fourth Beaufortonian to chair a legislative committee.

State Rep. Weston Newton of Bluffton is the Judiciary Committee chairman, Rep. Jeff Bradley of Hilton Head Island chairs a special artificial intelligence committee and Rep. Shannon Erickson of

cade of training.

Dr. O’Neill’s rural upbringing on a dairy farm in upstate New York is one of the factors that attracted him to Beaufort; he and his wife, Rita, wanted their children to grow up in a smaller community. The desire for connection drives his philosophy of care, too.

“I look at each of my patients as a whole person and treat them like I would treat my family,” Dr. O’Neill said. “Their care is not a transaction; it’s a conversation; I’m going to listen.”

Beaufort Memorial Heart Specialists is located in Beaufort at 300 Midtown Drive and in Okatie at the Okatie Medical Pavilion (122 Okatie Center Blvd. North, Suite 300).

To schedule an appointment with Dr. O’Neill or one of Beaufort Memorial’s heart care specialists, call 843-770-4550

Beaufort chairs the Education and Public Works Committee.

Herbkersman’s committee is tasked with seeing an updated state energy bill, the Ten Year Energy Transformation Act (H.5118), which passed the House this year but never made it to the Senate. The bill includes a restructuring of the S.C. Public Service Commission to include streamlining the permitting process.

Lolita Huckaby is a community volunteer and newspaper columnist. In her former role as a reporter with The Beaufort Gazette, The Savannah Morning News, Bluffton Today and Beaufort Today, she prided herself in trying to stay neutral and unbiased. As a columnist, these are her opinions. Her goal is to be factual but opinionated, based on her own observations. Feel free to contact her at bftbay@gmail.com.

of

County Department of

Angelica Gonzalez, Legal Depart-

of

Services, 3685

(30) days of

101, Charleston, S.C. 29405 within

publication, exclusive of

date of service. If you fail

the Plaintiff will proceed to

within

from the Court. Angelica Gonzalez, SC Bar # 106325, 3685 Rivers Avenue, Suite 101, Charleston, S.C. 29405, (843) 953-9637. TRUSTEE'S NOTICE OF SALE 95-20 Pursuant to S.C. Code Ann. §§ 27-32-300, et. seq., NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN of the intent of the undersigned Trustee, KING CUNNINGHAM, LLC, to sell the below described Properties at Public Auction to the highest bidders for cash on

12/12/2024 beginning at 9:30 A.M. The Public Auction shall occur at the Office of Bolchoz Law Firm, 6 Buckingham Plantation Rd, Ste B, Bluffton, SC 29910. Property Descriptions: A fee simple undivided interest (SEE EXHIBIT "A") in the Project as tenant(s) in common with the holders of other undivided interests in and to the timeshare property known as MBV VACATION SUITES, as established in that certain Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions and Vacation Ownership Instrument for MBV Vacation Suites, recorded at Book 3406, Pages 1312-1365, et seq., of the records of the R.O.D. Office for Beaufort County, South Carolina, as amended or supplemented (the “Declaration”), having Interval Control Number (SEE EXHIBIT "A"). The names and notice address of the obligor(s), record owner(s) of the timeshare estate (if different from the obligor(s), and junior interest or lienholder(s) (if applicable) (hereinafter referred to as “Obligors”) are identified in Exhibit “A”. The sale of the Properties is to satisfy the defaults in payment by the Obligors of the obligations secured by those certain Mortgages to HHI Development, LLC as recorded in the records of Beaufort County, South Carolina and detailed in Exhibit “A”. The amounts secured by the MORTGAGES, including accrued interest and late charges now owing along with a per diem amount to account for further accrual of interest and late

HHI Development, LLC, by Jeffrey W. King, SC Bar # 15840; or W. Joseph Cunningham, SC Bar # 72655, P.O. Box 4896, North Myrtle Beach, SC 29597, (843)-249-0777. EXHIBIT “A” – NOTICE OF TRUSTEE’S SALE Owner(s), Address, TS Interest, TS Interval Control No., MTG BK/PG, Default Amount, Trustee’s Fee, Interest, Total Amount Due, Per Diem- JUAN GOMEZ&SAMANTHA GOMEZ 1002 MALEVENTUM WAY, SPRING HILL, TN 37174, 0.0073861610410129%, U1203-W25E, 3815/1158,

$19,887.28, $450, $259.33, $20,596.61, $8.14; ALPHONSO PHILLIPS 10053 WOOD WIND CT, LOUISVILLE, KY 402235327, 0.0073861610410129%, U2107-W1O, 4215/488, $13,964.14, $450, $259.33, $14,673.47, $6.89; WILLIAM PAUL BELCHER&JILL CONLEY BELCHER 3548 RIDGEMILL CIRCLE, DACULA, GA 30019, 0.0147723220820258%, U2503W39B, 3831/198, $20,383.43, $450, $259.33, $21,092.76, $5.23; DONNA SUE HARBIN&SKYLAR PAIGE HARMAN 5910 HORSE PASTURE LN APT 111, CHARLOTTE, NC 28269-3364, 0.0073861610410129%, U1204-W48E, 3797/2145, $9,796.97, $450, $259.33, $10,506.30, $19.02; LARRY R. RUMBLE 2302 LA SALLE DR, PINOLE, CA 94564-1613, 0.0147723220820258%, U2207-W17B, 3888/2857, $19,740.03, $450, $259.33, $20,449.36, $19.18; FREDRICK C. HERMES&DEBRA D. HERMES 11345 CHAUCER DR, FRISCO, TX 75035-7788, 0.0147723220820258%, U2507-W17B, 3706/536, $19,097.10, $450, $259.33, $19,806.43, $4.92; QUEENESTER TAYLOR 175 FERNWOOD AVE, SYRACUSE, NY 13205, 0.0073861610410129%, U2508-W48E, 4186/1771, $13,866.76, $450, $259.33, $14,576.09, $6.97; ROSLYNN ROSS 3 HENRIETTA ST, VALLEY STREAM, NY 11580-3120, 0.0073861610410129%, U2209-W7O,

Dr. Francis O’Neill

Palmetto Animal League hosting Holiday Open House

Staff reports

Palmetto Animal League is hosting a Holiday Open House from noon to 3 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 14 at their Adoption Center in Okatie.

Guests are invited to drop by for cookies, hot cocoa, coffee, and good cheer.

“The festive holiday decorations at PAL pale in comparison to the bright, beautiful faces of the pets waiting to be adopted,” PAL President Amy Campanini said in a news release.

Short from page A1

“There’s a wonderful feeling around our adoption center this time of year, and the cats and dogs can sense the excitement.”

PAL is waiving adoption fees for cats, kittens, and adult dogs during the event as a part of their monthlong Season of Second Chances.

“If you’ve been considering adopting a pet, PAL’s Open House is the perfect time to find your next great love,” said Campanini. “And those who can’t adopt can

end of the web address guarantees the wreaths purchased make their way to Beaufort.

Beaufort County Veterans Affairs joins Wreaths Across America Beaufort again this year as a partner.

The trucks and motorcycle escort will arrive at 11:30 a.m., with the brief ceremony beginning at noon.

Cemetery gates will be closed at 9 a.m. so people are asked to park on the surrounding streets. No cars will be allowed to park on the Avenue of Flags — it needs to be kept clear for the tractor trailers and motorcycle escort.

Family members of the two Medal of Honor recipients will place the first wreaths. The public is asked to let families who have loved ones buried in BNC, place their wreaths on their loved ones' graves first, then the public is welcome to place the remaining wreaths.

still make a difference, simply by visiting with PAL’s adoptable pets and bringing them a special gift.”

PAL encourages everyone to stop by with a donation to help make the holidays a little brighter for shelter pets. The animals love cat and dog food, toys, treats, pet beds, and cozy blankets. PAL will make sure every item you donate makes a forgotten cat or dog feel special this holiday season.

“If you’ve been considering adopting a pet, PAL’s Open House is the perfect time to find your next great love.”

AMY CAMPANINI, on the excitement and generosity of the

If parking inside the cemetery, please do not park on the grass, tree roots or graves. Please stay on the pavement. When parking on

Holiday Shopping

This holiday season, discover one-of-a-kind treasures in Downtown Beaufort! From handcrafted jewelry and unique home decor to locally-made goods, our small businesses offer gifts as special as the people on your list.

When you shop local, you’re not just finding special gifts—you’re supporting the heart of our community. Skip the big box stores and make a difference this season. Shop local, shop Beaufort, and spread the holiday cheer!

to make sure all 28,000 veteran heroes buried in Beaufort National Cemetery have a Remembrance Wreath on their headstones. Wreaths Across America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded to continue and expand the annual wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery begun by Maine businessman Morrill Worcester in 1992. The organization’s mission — Remember, Honor, Teach — is carried out in part each year by coordinating wreath-laying ceremonies in December at Arlington, as well as at thousands of veterans’ cemeteries and other locations in all 50 states and beyond. In 2023, the organization placed more than three million sponsored veterans’ wreaths at more than 3,700 participating locations nationwide and in Europe. For more information, visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org.

Mike McCombs is the Editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.

We are proud to have exceptional providers like Dr. Cindy Charnetski and Dr. Denise Carter available to serve you and your family.

Visit our skilled optometry team for comprehensive eye exams, glaucoma treatment, diabetic eye exams, contact lens fittings, an expansive optical boutique, and more.

Book your appointment today!

side streets around the cemetery wall, please be equally attentive and keep parking on private prop-
erty to a minimum. Wreaths Across America Beau-
PAL is waiving adoption fees for cats, kittens, and adult dogs during its Holiday Open House. Submitted photo
holiday season at PAL's adoption event.
Wreaths Across America Day is set for noon, Saturday, Dec. 14 at Beaufort National Cemetery. Photo courtesy of Beaufort County
Community members watch as the Christmas tree in Port Royal lights up on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News
“Timely Too” moves toward the Woods Memorial Bridge just after passing spectators during the 2024 Lighted Boat Parade on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News
Beaufort’s Cameron Smalls, 6, is handed candy during the Beaufort’s annual Christmas Parade on Saturday, Dec. 8, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News
The Gullah Traveling Theater presented "Christmas Wish … Freedom!" at the USCB Center for the Arts in Beaufort on Dec. 5 and 6. Set during the final Christmas before the Civil War, the play explores the differing perspectives of plantation owners and enslaved individuals. Anita Singleton Prather wrote, directed, and starred in this interactive full-stage musical. Asa Aarons Smith/The Island News
Santa counts down with the crowd as the Christmas tree lights up during the Night on the Town Christmas tree lighting at Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News
The First Presbyterian Church of Beaufort hosted its 13th annual Nativity Celebration from Friday, Dec. 6 to Sunday, Dec. 8, showcasing more than 150 nativity scenes from various countries. This impressive display includes private collections, including that of 95-year-old Anne Errington of Lady's Island. Errington has gathered more than 50 depictions of the Christ Child with Mary and Joseph since her childhood. Asa Aarons Smith/The Island News
Folks line up to taste the variety of Gullah food and rice during the Gullah Taste of Christmas & Rice Cook-Off at Henry C Chamber Waterfront Park on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News
Marilyn Harris, Executive Director of the Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce (BCBCC), engages with 3-year-old Mason Johnson during the Black Chamber Holiday Market on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2924. Amber Hewitt/The Island News

Holy Trinity’s ‘A Light for the Nations’ set for Dec. 17

Staff reports

Holy Trinity Classical Christian School is hosting its annual Christmas Program at 6 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 17, at Saint Helena’s Anglican Church. This year’s production titled “A Light for the Nations” is a Christmas musical celebration, including musical and dramatic performances featuring Holy Trinity students in grades K-12

During Advent, we look with anticipation to the birth of Christ, we also look forward to the day when “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow … and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Phil. 2:10-11).

In this spirit of worldwide celebration, Holy Trinity students will be presenting carols from many different countries, singing in languages such as German, Spanish, Norwegian and Hebrew.

“The birth of Christ has inspired every nation to sing with gratitude and praise at the wonder if His coming,” Holy Trinity Fine Arts teacher and elementary school Music teacher Anna Booman said in a news release. “I am always moved when I hear carols sung in

different languages because it reminds me that my small offering of praise is but a mere echo of the multitude of voices celebrating

this joyous event. We hope our program, ‘A Light for the Nations’ will inspire all to join their voices in praise to the Savior of the

world.” Holy Trinity students will present an array of musical offerings, including several familiar favor-

ites such as “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” and “Silent Night.” Throughout the program, there will be many opportunities for congregational participation in the singing.

The event is free. Doors open at 5:15 p.m. The program will be held at Saint Helena’s Anglican Church, 505 Church Street, downtown Beaufort 29902

Founded in 2012, Holy Trinity Classical Christian School (HTCCS) provides students with a distinctly Christian and classical education in Beaufort, serving students from preschool through 12th grade. For more information, visit www.htccs.org.

A cure for the soul that is ailing

When we are truly in love with someone, nothing can keep us from them or at least thinking about them. It sounds like the beginning of a beautiful romantic love story, doesn’t it?

Actually, it is. It’s between a divine creator who sent His Son Jesus to save those who were lost. Christ gave His life so that all who place their faith in God can spend time with Him, listen to His voice, and fall deeply in love with Him.

His words are life-changing as they convict the conscience and renew the mind. When our spiritual eyes and ears are opened we realize His endless mercy and compassion longs for us to trust Him. When we decide to embrace His invitation, we are then faced with deciding how much of our lives we will surrender and dedicate to Him.

Speaking of deciding, I think and write a lot about choices, and no wonder as they are the foundation of our existence. Every moment we are choosing what we will think about, what we will say and do. Good and evil opportunities are presented and then we have the power to select.

A sobering thought about the Christian life is whatever we allow to interfere and prevent us from living in holy intimacy with God are sins of intention and omission. Of course, there is a world of excuses why we are not as holy as we should be, but there is never an acceptable reason to neglect loving and obeying Christ as our highest priority. If we are convinced that our treasures and pleasures are worth more than surrendering our will and doing what He says, we are deceived.

A divided heart is always a reason for a lack of joy and contentment. This is associated with what we give our attention to, and as James mentions it’s not good to be double-minded. Striving to accumulate material possessions, dreaming of becoming more wealthy, and having a relentless passion for pleasure cannot satisfy

what our spirit is longing for, which is to be saturated in God’s presence.

In fact, concentrating on worldly gain leads to being conformed to thinking like the world and allows the carnal nature to have control. Those who are caught in this web of chaos of compromising are always disappointed and miserable in their soul.

A Christian is called to seek first the kingdom of God, and then the Lord will lead and bless according to His perfect plans. I guess we could say that

our souls can become sick much like our bodies can. There are natural germs that can cause an infection, and there are sins that can cause the spirit to become dry and drift away from the refreshing waters of God’s perfect peace. I have walked through times when my soul was weak and ailing and I admit it was no one's fault but my own.

Again, the condition of our mental and spiritual health has everything to do with the decisions we make. If we avoid prayer, we

have denied ourselves the most beautiful gift within the human experience.

God is always available for us to approach Him, He desires that we live in the awareness of His presence, He has given us so many amazing promises, and yet we have more important things to do?

I often forget that I’m not a finished product, as God is trying to mold me like soft clay on His potter’s wheel. Submitting our will to Him is a painful process we do not want to consider

because we are too busy seeking His blessings. His refining fire is a very real ingredient within the understanding of our responsibility and how our relationship with God works. Being transformed means our former motives and attitudes must die so that a new life with Christ can rise and thrive. Only then can we finally begin our humble descent toward total dedication and obedience so the character and nature of Christ can be manifested within us. If we want more of God, there must be less of us. The good news is there is a miraculous lifeline of God’s mercy, an instantaneous cure for the weak, sick, and discouraged soul. The spiritual medicine is simply this: Ask God to forgive you of your sins and then make a fresh commitment to love and obey Him with all of your mind and strength. Read Jeremiah 29:12-13, as you control your constant state of faith, love, joy, and hope.

Billy Holland is an ordained minister, certified chaplain, and Christian

BILLY HOLLAND
Holy Trinity students perform in the 2023 Christmas Program. This year's program will be held at St. Helena's Anglican Church in downtown Beaufort. Photos courtesy of Caroline Graham Photography.

Editor’s Note: The opinions of our columnists in the

Sometimes truth is a tough pill to swallow

It is Monday, early, and after months of endless summer,

I’ve made a fire in the hearth.

In addition to a smallish fire, I’ve got the Wall Street Journal that tells me Lance Morrow has died.

Some of you know that in 1967 I was a cadet private at The Citadel. I was a political science major, but for the life of me can’t remember any political debate in the barracks.

What I do remember were the essays that were written (for Time Magazine) by Lance Morrow. He became — for all intents and purposes — my window into the political world.

Some years ago I discovered Morrow was still writing in the Wall Street Journal and I started reading this man’s commentary. I found that I still liked his insight, now buttressed with first person, I-was-in-the-room accounts of remembered history.

Last summer, Morrow did a piece on his alma mater, Harvard, and the campus convulsions that eventually led to the resignation of its President, Claudine Gay. In this piece Morrow took us back

So the word of the day, the topic for the week is “pardon.”

I decided to do a little research on why and how the Presidential pardon came about.

A presidential pardon excuses a person who has committed a crime from serving punishment. A pardon does not expunge, or erase, a criminal record or a finding of guilt. However, if any civil rights were lost due to the criminal conviction, those rights will be restored. This, according to Wikipedia.

George Washington granted the first high-profile federal pardon to leaders of the Whiskey Rebellion on his final day in office. From that time on, every president used the constitutional right to pardon those they felt had been unjustly accused, treated, or sentenced. Literally thousands over the course of our time as a nation have been pardoned, that number bolstered by the pardons for ex-Confederates.

to Harvard alums Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry James: “Emerson graduated with Harvard’s class of 1821. James studied at the law school 40 years later during the Civil War. I mention them because those sons of Harvard framed the issue that haunts the great university now. The controversy that divides Harvard in the 21st Century is rooted in the question of American theocracy. How can the country’s evils be reconciled with its core Emersonian ideal of excellence, individualism, freedom of thought and speech and other foundational notions that — not always honored but always implicitly there — are essential to the country’s future.”

At The Citadel, there was a

debating club called The Round Table; but membership was based on academic and military achievement, and I was lacking in the latter. We did have guest speakers from time to time — usually retired generals from World War II — but they rarely spoke of the Viet Minh or voting rights in Alabama.

But when I got to George Washington Law School that changed — I walked into a caldron of anger and turmoil. Almost every night there was discussion in the dorms about Vietnam. And almost every weekend thousand of students — mostly from the Northeast — would descend on campus looking for a place to crash.

All of this was exciting but became an almost weekly diversion that closed down the law school for days at a time. Not only were classes suspended; but the grading of one’s performance was labeled “paternalistic,” and eventually abolished in favor of a less accurate “pass/fail” system.

Looking back on those three years I know I had some great teachers — one of which was John

Banzaf who ended smoking on commercial airplanes — and I met and married Susan Roller. But I don’t think I learned much law.

Which brings me to the students at Columbia, Harvard and other elite colleges who are furious with Israel. These students — like those students who demonstrated in the late 60s — are consumed with moral outrage.

These same students — by virtue of very hard work — got themselves into the very best colleges in the world. When they arrived they were told they had found Valhalla and would be rewarded with White House fellowships, clerkships at the Supreme Court, and with alumni connections that would lead directly to the C-Suite in many multi-storied glass buildings in midtown Manhattan.

According to Morrow, these students should have been told that Harvard’s motto is veritas — truth.

“That was never meant to be a claim that it possessed the truth, it was the promise to struggle to search for the truth. The flaw in Ms. Gay’s vision — and that of the

Well, pardon me!

Who was the only president to ever receive a pardon? Richard Nixon, who was granted a full and unconditional pardon in 1974 just before he could be indicted in the Watergate scandal.

So the idea of a pardon is neither unheard of, nor illegal. However, the latest brouhaha over a pardon comes with President Biden’s pardon of his son, Hunter. The initial hue and cry, even from some liberals, was that Biden had said previously he would not do so. Furthermore, they added, this will tarnish the father’s presidential record, and may even deprive him of his presidential library. I can understand Biden’s

action, especially when it has been pretty well documented that there were several technicalities of questionable legality within one of the cases. Additionally, there is almost no precedent for the aggression used in charging Hunter. Some have described it as a political "hit job.”

Nevertheless, Hunter Biden did commit the crime and was sentenced. And up until the time that Joe Biden stepped down from running for a second term, he refused to intervene in any way, letting justice run its course.

But then the dynamic changed. Biden removed himself as a candidate, the election was won by Donald Trump, and with that win came the volley of the president-elect’s cabinet candidates. What also came, or more accurately, persisted, were Trump’s threats of retribution. He was and is very open about those against whom he will throw the full force of his DOJ, and this includes Hunter Biden.

Unless you are a parent, you cannot possibly relate to the anguish of seeing your child in this kind of a situation. So now, all bets are off. You know your child (make no mistake, that person as an adult is still your child and will be until you take your last breath) is in the bullseye, and you have the ability to remove the threat. Hell, yes. Meanwhile, let’s look at pardons on the other side of the political fence, and do a little evaluation. Remember those fine upright “patriots” of January 6 fame? Treason is the charge. Say it again, treason!

And yet the incoming president has made it clear that those who tried to overthrow the government, who defecated in the halls of the Capitol, who assaulted the Capitol police, resulting in the death of some, will be exonerated the first day he takes office. Then there is Charles Kushner, father-in-law of Trump’s daughter, whom

diversity, equity and inclusion bureaucracy that she and her fellow ideologues have assembled — is that they claim they already possess it.”

And perhaps these students should have been warned that tutorials on diversity, inclusion and Gaza might offend young, non-credentialed men who fell short in their race to secure a college acceptance letter from any school.

What Morrow didn’t know was that this resentment would, in fact, motivate young, no-degree-holding men to vote Republican. According to Forbes Magazine voters without college degrees supported Trump by a 14-point margin (over Harris) compared with a 2-point margin in 2020 OK, I know, that equity and diversity are good. But being told this truth by an 18 year old who has just matriculated at Brown is a tough pill to swallow.

Scott Graber is a lawyer, novelist, veteran columnist and longtime resident of Port Royal. He can be reached at cscottgraber@gmail.com.

Donald Trump appointed to the job of U.S. ambassador to France this past week. Just as a sidebar, this is a man Trump pardoned four years ago. It seems that Mr. Kushner pleaded guilty to federal charges of tax evasion, campaign finance offenses and witness tampering and was sentenced to two years in prison in 2005

And, of course, there are those in the dynasty of the first Trump administration who were found guilty of federal charges that mandated jail time: Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, Michael Flynn, Steve Bannon. They, too, were pardoned. On the horizon comes the possibility of preemptive pardons. Again, Trump has made it clear on several occasions, the most recent being Sunday, Dec. 8, that he has a list of those whom he intends to have prosecuted, some for conducting inquiries into his part in the January 6 insurrection. His list includes Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzing-

er, both Republicans, both real conservatives. Of course Kamala Harris made the hit list as did Jack Smith and Anthony Fauci. Joe Biden is said to be in conference with attorneys regarding the placement of these names as a group to receive pardons before Trump can conduct his vendetta.

In closing, I want to make this clear: given the circumstances, I believe Joe Biden did the right thing regarding his son. It’s about time Democrats take off the gloves and stop playing “nice guy.” It gets us nowhere. We’re heading down a dangerous path where leaders, elected to represent the people, are using their power for revenge. This isn’t about personal vendettas — it’s about the American people.

Carol Lucas is a retired high school teacher and a Lady’s Island resident. She is the author of the recently published “A Breath Away: One Woman’s Journey Through Widowhood.”

The state program lots of people love

T

ake this column as a sign of things that are here.

The S.C. Department of Archives and History on Dec. 5 unveiled a new exhibit in Columbia about those historical markers – signs – you see dotted across South Carolina’s landscape.

The exhibit celebrates the state’s collection of 2,000 markers spread high and low – from Table Rock to the Temple of Sport in the Lowcountry.

Eric Emerson, the agency’s director, said he’s constantly amazed at how much people enjoy the historic markers.

“In this age where everything is digital and apps and online and people want to access history digitally, that there is something tangible and out there in

the public still generates interest among South Carolinians,” he said. “People love the program.”

Edwin Breeden, who coordinated the exhibit and helps to verify what’s on new markers, said the state’s marker program allows the department to partner with local groups to shine a spotlight on history and its relevance now.

“It makes people more aware of the ways that history is not just something that unfolds in other places,” he said. “It’s something that

has real connections to places across the state.”

Back in 1936, the department, then called the S.C. State Historic Preservation Office, established the official state historical marker program. It’s one of the oldest programs of its type and, interestingly, isn’t filled with a bunch of hurdles.

If a group wants a marker, it needs to do research, come up with wording, apply and be able to pay the $2,500 to $3,000 for the aluminum marker. But before the department gives its seal of approval, it verifies the information and ensures the proposal has local, state or national historic significance.

“We also usually do a lot of additional research,” Breeden said. “But it’s a fairly straightforward process.” In an average year, the

program approves 50 new markers. Here’s a look at some interesting ones: First marker: Long Canes Massacre, Greenwood County. The program’s first marker actually commemorates a 1760 Cherokee attack on 23 settlers in McCormick County, but is physically located just over the county line.

2 000th marker: Finley High School, Chester. The marker, unveiled in October, recognizes a 1950s-era equalization school erected during the state’s civil rights struggles. Alumni sponsored it. Gov. Henry McMaster, a big fan of the marker program, spoke at its dedication.

A favorite marker: Table Rock in Pickens County. “That was a really fascinating project to work on

because it was for a natural feature,” Breeden said. “It was kind of challenging to tell the history that wasn’t just reciting geological facts.” It includes the social and cultural history of the mountain and how it became an icon for the state.

Reminder markers: Emerson said he is fascinated with markers in places that people wouldn’t know had history unless the markers were there. Examples are signs that denote Cherokee townships that have no trace today. Or a 2008 marker near Charleston International Airport that highlights the importance of a 1790s garden by French botanist Andre Michaux who imported plants that were tremendously important to American agriculture.

Odd marker: Mars Bluff atomic bomb accident,

Florence County. In 1958, a U.S. Air Force jet with a nuclear payload accidentally dropped an unarmed bomb used for a nuclear payload. While the warhead was not installed, the bomb’s high explosives detonated on impact, leaving a huge crater and destroying a house. “It’s an unusual story that a lot of people aren’t aware of,” Breeden said. Emerson agreed.

To see the agency’s new free exhibit on markers, visit the department Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., at 8301 Parklane Road, Columbia, S.C. 29233. The exhibit is open through March.

Andy Brack is editor and publisher of Statehouse Report and the Charleston City Paper. Have a comment? Send it to feedback@statehousereport.com.

SCOTT GRABER
CAROL LUCAS
ANDY BRACK

VOICES

Editor’s Note: The opinions of our columnists in the Voices section are not necessarily the opinions of The Island News

We shall overcome the coming of winter

As the oppressive heat fades, our Spanish moss sways gracefully, paying homage to the queen of seasons. The air turns crisp, ushering in a vibrant tapestry of colors that paint the marsh grass with rich hues of amber and gold. With each passing day, our sleeves extend, and hems fall longer, embracing the anticipation of the calmer winds that whisper through our charming seaside town. Change unfolds around us, reminiscent of the leaves crunching beneath our feet, as our beach-born spirits come to terms with the bittersweet, temporary farewell to summer's warmth.

Frigid is a fluid term that means multiple things to multiple zip codes. The definition of cold on the east coast of Maine versus the east coast of South Carolina differs tremendously. While much of the United States embraces the cheerful spirit of the season with festive carols like "Jingle Bells," those

residing in Beaufort, S.C., find themselves subtly murmuring the more somber chorus "Baby, It's Cold Outside."

We are far more skilled at sweat than shivers and tanning over trembles; this is not our most favored season. Yet, we rise from our beds with indignation, shuffling our feet as if trying to rouse a stingray from sandy rest, making our way to work, social gatherings, and the cold and flu isle of our pharmacy of choice. As all Southerners, we do our very best to maintain our manners, keep our scowls at a minimum, and avoid the one gas pump that requires hand-holding

the entire fill-up process. Thankfully, the joy of the holidays is enough of a lifeline to persuade us to leave our toasty abodes. Of course, there are things we enjoy about the less-than-gentle winter winds; they are just few and fleeting. Hot chocolate, traditional chili recipes, oyster roasts, hot toddies, and not sticking to our leather seats are delightful seasonal simplicities. Yet, despite it all, we have learned to endure the bone-chilling reality of temperatures plummeting below 55 degrees, an unwelcome torment we've faced with resilient grace. We will overcome the early onset of darkness and

find ways to combat the need to tell every stranger we meet that it is only 5 p.m. We will make our way to the abyss, the winter section of our closets, pulling out survival necessities such as light jackets, scarves, and boots with fur. Our feet ache with confusion as our toes remain inside our shoes, and our skin pales as trips to the beach are temporarily unavailable. We will sniffle and sneeze through this momentary setback, knowing the scent of sunscreen comes shortly after the clearance sale of Valentine's candy. Be kind; those you meet are facing discomfort of varying degrees. Extend

grace, as sometimes it is just too cold to chit-chat at the mailbox. Remember, this season of chill is temporary; soon, we will find ourselves emerging stronger, filled with joy, and possessing a newfound appreciation for the warmth of July.

Enjoy the slower pace, thicker blankets, and less crowded boat landings. Godspeed, my fellow warm-blooded Beaufortonians; this, too, shall pass, usually in a week or two.

for

of

Hope springs eternal; time will tell

As I write this, it’s been almost a month since the election results were in, and to most people’s surprise and relief, it didn’t take two months and multiple lawsuits to come up with the winners. By now most of the dust has settled and the experts, pundits and assorted “Talking Heads” around the country have all been heard from and told us how, why and who was responsible for the somewhat unexpected results.

So, you will be happy to hear, there is no need for me to add my two cents here, I think it’s now time to move on and hope that the voters have made the right decision.

A little over half of the country is, I am sure, delighted with the outcome, and a little less than half are a bit shell shocked and trying to figure what happened and why. If history is a teacher, the doomsayers who are telling us that the Democratic Party is in

complete disarray, and may not regain power for generations to come, will be wrong again. Just as they were wrong when these same people told us that after the Republican “Red Wave” of 2020 never happened, that the Republican Party would be out of power for at least two terms and maybe never again. They told us that people of color will never vote for Republican candidates, that they are owned by the Dems and their policies. Somehow that didn’t work out too well this time. It seems that Americans pretty much share the

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Thanks from a retired Army Colonel

I am a resident of Beaufort, a retired Army Colonel, and an enthusiastic and appreciative reader of The Island News. I especially enjoy and use your columnist Larry Dandridge’s articles on veterans’ benefits to help me navigate the complex VA and S.C. veterans’ systems. Larry’s articles are most informative and simplify things for me. After having questions concerning aspects of the VA claims process, I called your Larry Dandridge. He immediately talked me through everything I needed to know and sent me a detailed email referring me to the Beaufort County Veteran Affairs Office. He also sent me a half dozen past articles from The Island News that explained all I needed to know about Intent to File, Filing Claims for service-connected disability compensation, Lay Witness Statements, Evidence Needed, Compensation and Pension Exams, VSOs, and more.

Larry even called me the next day to see if I had any questions with the information he sent me the day before. I’m most grateful to The Island News and Lt. Col. Larry Dandridge, U.S. Army (Ret.), for helping my fellow veterans and me every week through your articles.

I know that the VSOs are overwhelmed with calls for help from military members, veterans, and their families, and it is people like Larry and your newspaper who are serving a desperately needed role in helping veterans like me until we can get an appointment with a VSO. The Island News and Larry deserve public service and writing award recognition for their valuable support of our military members, veterans, and their families, caregivers, and survivors.

– Col. Howard Born, U.S. Army (Ret.) re: U.S. 278 Corridor improvements

I just read the article by Lolita Huckaby about U.S. 278 improvements in today’s The Island News

I voted against the one-cent sales tax that would have raised $950 million for transportation projects. Of that amount $190 million would have gone to US 278 improvements including a replacement bridge to Hilton Head.

I suggest that a toll be imposed on the bridge to Hilton Head that would raise the $190 million needed to match the state’s $120 million. It makes sense that users of U.S.

same hopes and dreams whoever they are, and when you put those hopes and dreams at risk you lose them. That fact should put a smile on everyone’s face.

Someone asked me if I was happy that Mr. Trump won. My response was that even though I didn’t care for many of the things he has said and done, I was delighted that he won. I was in that 70 percent or so that felt strongly that the country was heading in the wrong direction, and maybe President Trump was what we needed to shake things up and turn them around in the right direction. Time, of course, will tell if we were right.

On the local front, which many times means more to all of us than national politics, things could not have worked out better. All of our Beaufort County legislative delegation was overwhelmingly returned to office. They will now return to Columbia with the seniority that they have accu-

mulated over the years which enables them to head powerful House and Senate committees.

For many years, Beaufort County was sending money to Columbia and getting very little back. Through the efforts of our delegation that has turned around and we are now receiving state funding for schools, roads and various programs for the county and cities that we need.

I don’t often find myself agreeing with much that Opinion Page contributor Carol Lucas has to say, but I must admit that as I read her piece in the November 28 edition of The Island News, I was shaking my head in agreement. With all the success that we had in the last election there is one place where we, Republicans, could have, and should have done better and that was in the case of our first district Congresswoman. We had an excellent opportunity in the primary election this year to elect

278 pay for improvements to U.S. 278. A user fee is the fairest mechanism to raise the local funds for this project.

– Paul Smith, Beaufort

‘It’s morning in America’

The printing in the Nov. 28 edition of The Island News of M.Z. Thwaite's conservative commentary is welcomed by this voter in the hope that you will continue political even-handedness. Her explanation of the reasons Donald Trump won the election was thorough and accurate. Liberals should join the majority of U.S. voters to correct the problems created in America the last four years. As Ronald Regan advertised during his second campaign: "It’s morning in America.”

– James P. Atkins, Beaufort

Support funding for cultivated-meat research

With the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirming the first child in the United States has tested positive for bird flu, our political leaders should, among other things, consider a massive increase in public funding for cultivated-meat research.

For those who don’t know, cultivated meat is grown from livestock cells. Since animals are removed from the process, the risk of zoonotic pandemics would be dramatically reduced.

Though the new protein has been approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration, it is currently too expensive to mass produce. Further development in the field of cellular agriculture could overcome these cost barriers. Any politician, at either the state or federal level, who cares about preventing future pandemics, should support government funding for cultivated-meat research.

– Jon Hochschartner

Feeding us truth and facts

Great piece about Lutheran refugee ministry efforts in South Carolina that was wisely picked up by The Island News here in Beaufort. There are so many conspiracy

a highly qualified and respected candidate, and we failed. Hopefully in two years we will succeed.

Much needs to be done to undo the damage that the Biden Administration has done to the country, and I hope and pray that most Americans will step back and give President Trump and his cabinet a chance to correct that damage. However even as I write this, I know that Trump Derangement Syndrome runs so deep in many of us that it will be hard to overcome, but as I said, hope springs eternal, and time will tell.

Born, raised and educated in the Southwest, Jim Dickson served in the U.S. Navy Reserve in Vietnam before a 35-year business career. Retired to St. Helena Island, Dickson and his wife are fiscally conservative, socially moderate and active in Republican politics, though they may not always agree with Republicans. Having lived around the country and traveled around the world, Dickson believes that the United States truly is the land of opportunity.

fed stories that misinform the public about refugees and immigrants and asylum seekers, that your story helps to dispel.

And, altogether appropriate that the family described are Afghani, considering this state’s donation of soldiers to the military that found itself in Afghanistan. People forget. If you look at the Cambodian, Lao and Vietnamese here in S.C. including the Lowcountry — another infusion of great cultures to our surround that resulted from another war. Keep up the good work. You are feeding us truth and facts and cannot but help make this a better, more loving place. … Have a good holiday. You are making things better.

– Tim Dodds, Lady’s Island

Opportunity cost

My previous letter was written as an example of critical, strident, and divisive rhetoric that has become too common in recent times. A typical response you see every day that divides friends, family, and neighbors. Citizens of good will are often polarized by the political rhetoric. This is Page 2 to suggest a better way.

My point is that instead of criticizing, name calling, and negative responses when someone has a different viewpoint, we need positive feedback to other people and constructive discussions. Welcome different opinions and perspectives. Make conversations civil again. Remember not long ago when we could discuss politics and national issues with each other with no hard feelings? Let’s do that again. And after elections, let’s form up as Americans, together, united, and working together to make things better. There’s an opportunity cost to writing, worrying, and complaining about national or global problems. The cost is we lose the opportunity to use that time and energy on local matters we can influence. We can’t solve national problems anyway, but we can help solve local problems like improving the schools and help your church feed the hungry.

America has survived many difficult times over our long history but we have always endured and found that our strength is in our unity as one.

– Jerry Floyd, St. Helena Island

Cherimie Weatherford is a long-time real estate broker, small business owner, wife and mom in beautiful Beaufort. She is the Director
Operations and Programs
the Freedman Arts District.
CHERIMIE CRANE WEATHERFORD
JIM DICKSON

Stressed and craving comfort food? Cocoa could help

Drinking cocoa may help us recover more quickly from the physiological effects of stress, despite high-fat comfort foods we may turn to in such times. This is according to a new study from the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom.

Cocoa contains a flavanol, epicatechin, that relaxes blood vessels’ endothelial cell layer, improving their function and addressing elevated blood pressure, which is a common reaction to stress.

Why do fatty foods make stress worse?

While high-fat foods may be tasty and comforting, the researchers’ previous work strongly suggests that if a person is looking to recover from the ill effects of stress, it is actually best to avoid such food items.

This is especially true for people who have stressful jobs or who experience stress regularly.

Why cocoa flavanols may offset the impact of stress.

According to the study’s author, it is not entirely clear why fat consumption delays the recovery of flow-mediated dilation following mental stress, although there is evidence of increased triglycerides and C-reactive protein levels in blood several hours after consuming

In 2022, 830 million people worldwide had diabetes. The vast majority of people with diabetes have type 2, so researchers are particularly interested in its prevention.

An October 2024 study published in The British Medical Journal (https://www.bmj.com / content/ 387/bmj- 2023 - 078386 ) analyzed the relationship between eating chocolate and the risk for type 2 diabetes. This research was able to differentiate between dark and milk chocolate consumption.

Researchers found that participants who ate 5 or more servings of dark chocolate a week had a 21% decreased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

The researchers found some interesting associations between chocolate consumption and other

fatty foods.

Elevated levels of these reduce endothelium-derived nitric oxide, impairing endothelial function. This may be why cocoa helps.

Cocoa, green tea, and berries may all help counteract stress.

The researchers found, however, that cocoa appeared to have no beneficial effect on

dietary choices. For example, milk chocolate was associated with other less healthy food choices like added sugar and processed meat.

Dark chocolate linked to 21% lower risk of type 2 diabetes

In looking at overall chocolate consumption, researchers found that participants who consumed 5 or more servings of any chocolate in a week had a roughly 10% reduction in type 2 diabetes risk when compared to people who never or rarely ate chocolate.

Subgroup analyses suggested that participants with high-quality diets were most likely to benefit from type 2 diabetes risk reduction related to dark chocolate. However, when looking at chocolate subtypes, the benefits ap-

the restriction of brain oxygenation due to stress.

“Stress-induced changes in brain blood flow could result in cognitive changes such as difficulty concentrating, difficulty in memory, impaired decision-making, or even changes in mood,” a lead researcher explained.

Even so, the study’s findings regarding cocoa are welcome.

• If you eat fatty comfort foods during stressful times, drinking cocoa may help you bounce back more quickly from the effects of stress, a new study suggests.

• Stress takes a toll on the body, at least temporarily, and eating fatty foods before or during stress may cause the body to require more time to recover.

• Cocoa contains flavonoids that appear to protect vascular function from temporary impairment caused by stress, which can result in high blood pressure and other issues.

The good news is that, when you’re stressed, if you can’t help but reach for the fatty food, by adding a healthy flavanol rich food to that meal, you can minimize the effects of stress and fat combined in vascular function.

Don't have any cocoa (or dark chocolate) on hand?

Two cups of green tea or a handful of blueberries offer similar protection. But researchers stress that the best approach remains avoiding fatty comfort foods

during stressful times—they can trigger inflammation and hormones that may damage your heart. The researchers wouldn’t encourage people to eat the fatty foods in the context of stress to start with, but in situations in which it happens, you have an additional dietary strategy that you can use to mitigate those effects.

Source: Excerpted from the article at https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/ articles/craving-fatty-foods-whenstressed-cocoa-may-offset-impact

peared to rest with dark chocolate over milk chocolate.

Researchers found no significant association between milk chocolate intake and type 2 diabetes risk. Additionally, increasing milk chocolate intake was associated with weight gain.

Note: The study does have limitations. First, some data, like those on chocolate consumption, were collected through self-reports, which do not always accurately portray real-life consumption.

While dark chocolate may offer some protective benefits against type 2 diabetes, it should not be viewed as a standalone solution.

Moderate dark chocolate consumption as part of a balanced, nutrient-rich diet may be suggested for patients interested in improving their overall health.

However, it’s crucial to maintain moderation, as chocolate is calorie-dense and excessive consumption could negate its potential benefits. Go ahead and enjoy a few delicious morsels of dark chocolate this holiday season but be aware of the rest of your diet… keep it healthy!

Source: Excerpted from the article and research provided at https://www. medicalnewstoday. com/ articles/darkchocolate-mayhelp-lower-type2-diabetes-risk?

parent PULSE ©

Toys to avoid with your little ones

December is National Safe Toys and Gifts Month

Reports show nearly 155 000 children under the age of 12 were treated at emergency departments last year due to toy-related injuries. So, how can parents keep their little ones safe?

“One of the most important things in toy safety is we certainly want our toys to be fun and not a hazard for our patients,” said Adam Keating, MD, pediatrician for Cleveland Clinic Children’s.

“One of the first things that

everybody thinks about is a choking hazard. There are some toys that will include an age on the

Dr. Keating said if any part of a toy can fit through a toilet paper roll, then it’s considered a choking haz-

ard for kids under the age of three.

The same goes for toys with cords or long string.

He said toys with magnets or button batteries are also a concern because a child could accidentally swallow them.

If you are going to get a toy that needs a battery, the battery should be well secured with a cover that cannot be pried off.

Other toys to avoid include anything with sharp edges that could cut or scratch them, or anything vintage that contains lead paint.

And finally, if your child has an electric scooter on their wish list, Dr. Keating said to make sure you also get them a helmet.

“Any time we're doing anything with wheels, we want to make sure there's safety equipment that goes along with it. I tell my patients that I don’t make the rules in your house, but in my house, people didn't end up on things with wheels without a helmet. Other parts of the body heal, but if you hurt your brain, sometimes it doesn't get better,” he explained. If you are unsure about whether a toy is safe or has been recalled, you can check the US Consumer Product Safety Commission’s website https://www.cpsc.gov.

Source: ccnewsservice@ccf.org

Options & References for a Healthier Life

Handling holiday anxiety

Having occasional feelings of anxiety is a normal part of life, but people with anxiety disorders experience frequent and excessive anxiety, fear, terror and panic in everyday situations, especially during the hype of holidays. These feelings are unhealthy if they affect your quality of life and prevent you from functioning normally.

Common symptoms of anxiety disorders include:

Experiencing a sense of impending panic, danger, or doom

• Feeling helpless

Feeling nervous

Hyperventilation

Increased heart rate

Obsessively thinking about the panic trigger

Sweating

Trembling

These feelings of anxiety and panic can interfere with daily activities and be challenging to control. They are out of proportion to the actual danger and can cause you to avoid places or situations.

You should see your healthcare professional if your anxiety is affecting your life and relationships. Your healthcare team can help rule out any underlying physical health issue before referring you to a mental health professional.

While many people with anxiety disorders need psychotherapy or medications to get anxiety under control, lifestyle changes and

coping strategies also can make a difference.

11 tips for coping with an anxiety disorder:

1 Avoid alcohol and recreational drugs. These substances can cause or worsen anxiety. If you can't quit on your own, see your healthcare team or find a support group to help you.

2 Eat healthy foods. A healthy diet that incorporates vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and fish may be linked to reduced anxiety, but more

care TALK ©

research is needed.

3 Identify triggers. Learn what situations or actions cause you stress or increase your anxiety. Practice the strategies you developed with your mental health professional so you're ready to deal with anxious feelings in these situations.

7 Quit smoking and reduce or quit drinking caffeinated beverages. Nicotine and caffeine can worsen anxiety.

8 Socialize. Don't let worries isolate you from loved ones or activities.

9 Stick to your treatment plan. Take medications as directed. Keep therapy appointments and complete any assignments your therapist gives. Consistency can make a big difference, especially when it comes to taking your medication.

10 Use stress management and relaxation techniques.

Visualization techniques, meditation and yoga are examples of relaxation techniques that can ease anxiety.

11 Write in a journal.

Keeping track of your personal life can help you and your mental health professional identify what's causing you stress and what seems to help you feel better.

5 Learn about your disorder. Talk to your healthcare team to discover what might be causing your specific condition and what treatments might be best for you. Involve your family and friends and ask for their support.

6 Make sleep a priority. Do what you can to ensure you're getting enough sleep to feel rested. If you aren't sleeping well, talk with your healthcare professional.

4 Keep physically active. Develop a routine so you're physically active most days of the week. Exercise is a powerful stress reducer that can improve your mood and help you stay healthy. Start slowly and gradually increase the amount and intensity of your activities.

Standing on one leg may indicate how well you’re aging

Measuring how well a person is aging can be as simple as balancing or standing on one leg. It may not be easy for everyone to maintain balance on one leg, but according to Mayo Clinic research, it can be a reliable measure of neuromuscular aging for both men and women.

Aging can be a balancing act, and according to Mayo Clinic research, your ability to balance on one leg can be a meaningful measure of aging.

"This was a study looking at markers of aging in older adults," explains Dr. Kaufman, senior author of the study and director of the Motion Analysis Laboratory at Mayo Clinic.

Forty healthy, independent, community-dwelling people over age 50 underwent various tasks known to be markers of aging, including balance.

"We were comparing different markers of aging and trying to see which one was the most predictive of declines with aging," says Dr. Kaufman.

Standing on one leg

He says, if someone can stand with all their weight on one leg for 30 seconds, they're doing very well.

"Balance is complicated. It involves many different systems. It involves your vision, your vestibular system, your somatosensory system, and your neuromuscular

system. All those have to work in coordinated fashion to keep you on one leg," says Dr. Kaufman.

All of those systems deteriorate with age and increase the risk of falls. The good news is it's never too late to improve your balance, it just takes practice.

"The important message is to try it at home. It's very simple, easy to do. It's quick. If you are unable to stand on your leg for five seconds, at least five seconds, then you're at risk of falling," says Dr. Kaufman.

Source: https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic. org/discussion/mayo-clinic-minute-whatstanding-on-one-leg-can-tell-you-abouthow-well-youre-aging/

Your worries may not go away on their own and could worsen over time if you don't seek help.

See your healthcare team or a mental health professional before your anxiety worsens. It's easier to treat if you get help early.

Source: https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic. org/discussion/tips-for-coping-with-ananxiety-disorder/

Reviewed by Siri Kabrick, NP in Psychiatry & Psychology (Fairmont, Minnesota).

Students from Saint Peter’s Catholic School

From all at Saint Peter’s, we wish you Christmas joy! Remember that God loves you so much that he entered the world as a little child, so that you may know him and love him!

Tuesday, Dec. 24: Wednesday, Dec. 25: 4pm & 6pm Midnight & 11am

Confession Opportunities

Every Saturday: Monday, Dec. 16: 11am-1pm 3:30-5pm, 6:30-8pm

If it has been a while since your last Confession, don’t worry! Our priests will welcome you and help you.

70 Lady’s Island Drive, Beaufort, SC 843-522-9555 • www.stpetersbeaufort.org • office@stpetersbeaufort.org

SPORTS&RECREATION

Whale Branch’s Mulligan surpasses ‘Sweetness’ in SWAC title win

LowcoSports.com

It’s safe to say Irv Mulligan is already a star at home in Seabrook, but now his name is etched where an all-time legend’s used to reside.

The former Whale Branch star had another big game for Jackson State in Saturday’s 41-13 rout of Southern University for the SWAC title, and in the process surpassed the great Walter Payton’s top single-season rushing total during his tenure with the Tigers.

Mulligan rushed for 116 yards on 23 carries, including a 2-yard touchdown run that gave the Tigers the lead for good at 17-10 early in the third quarter. Mulligan’s sixth game this season with 100-plus rushing yards pushed his season total to 1,174, surpassing Sweetness for seventh on the school’s all-time list.

The top spot is likely out of reach — Mulligan would have to rack up 440 rushing yards against South Carolina State in the Celebration Bowl to catch Jackson

State legend Destry Wright’s total of 1 614 in 1999 — but Mulligan can further cement his legacy at JSU — and his NFL prospects — with another big game Saturday in Atlanta.

Mulligan was named the SWAC Offensive Player of the Year last week, and his name is on the short list for a number of other honors, including the Urban Edge Network's inaugural HBCU+ National Player of the Year award, which will be presented to the outstanding player from 21 Historically

Black Colleges and Universities in FCS college football.

He is also among the 35 finalists announced for the Walter Payton Award, which goes to the national offensive player of the year in NCAA Division I FCS college football.

Mulligan and the Tigers (112), including freshman defensive back KJ Chisholm, a fellow Whale Branch alum, will face South Carolina State (9-2) in the Cricket Celebration Bowl at noon Saturday on ABC.

Sharks defend Lowco wrestling crown

The rising depth and level of competition among the Lowcountry’s growing number of wrestling programs was on display at the second annual Lowcountry Wrestling Championships at Hilton Head Island High School, but the May River Sharks showed they’re still the biggest fish in the pond.

Coach Ashley Powell’s team rolled up a lineup filled with new names, but the Sharks still racked up 222 points to comfortably retain the team crown with May River wrestlers reaching the finals in nine of the 14 weight classes and

six claiming individual titles. The Bluffton Bobcats finished second with 125 5 points, with Beaufort High (118), Hilton Head High (117), Bridges Prep (115 5), and Battery Creek (97) tightly packed behind them, indicative of the sport’s growing popularity in the area and strong parity in Region 6-4A, where the Bobcats, Eagles, and Seahawks will be duking it out and trying to take down the Sharks. Beaufort’s strong third-place showing was a pleasant surprise from a team with its third head coach in as many years, as a number of inexperienced wrestlers

showed their quick progress by claiming medals for first-year coach Coby Peeler’s team. Among those claiming gold were five repeat Lowco champs —May River’s Ryan Seman (106), Marcus Foulk (120), Liam Englom (126), and Joshua Echeverria (190), as well as Bridges Prep’s Jeremiah Chavez, the two-time heavyweight champion. Battery Creek’s Nate Najar (150) and Bridges Prep’s Ali Jenkins (175) claimed titles after runner-up finishes a year ago.

Former Whale Branch star Irv
Mulligan on Saturday surpassed Walter Payton on Jackson State’s alltime rushing list. Submitted photo
Whale Branch’s Jordan Fields (14) takes a jump shot at Beaufort High on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. Beaufort High won, 4943. Amber Hwitt/The Island News

ART

Budding Artist After-School Art Club

4 to 5 p.m., or 5:15 to 6:15 p.m.,

Mondays/Wednesdays or Tuesday/ Thursdays, Happy Art Studio, 10 Sam’s Point Way, Beaufort. Ages 8 to 13. Painting, drawing, clay or crafts. Visit www.happyartstudio.net.

CALENDAR

New Year’s Eve Fireworks

9 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 31, Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park, Beaufort. Presented by Beaufort Area Hospitality Association.

Tides To Tables Restaurant Week

Thursday, Jan. 9 to Sunday, Jan. 19, Beaufort. Tides to Tables Restaurant Week kicks off the Beaufort Oyster Festival featuring local restaurants and their cuisine.

Beaufort Oyster Festival

10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 18 & 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday Jan. 19, Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park, Beaufort. Hosted by the Beaufort Area Hospitality Association. Free Admission. Live music. Cornhole tournament at 1 p.m., Sunday. Oysters provided are all locally farmed or harvested. Oysters will be available steamed, raw, roasted or fried. Other food options will be available as well. More than 15 local educational organizations will take part.

50th Beaufort Charities Festival

Friday & Saturday, Feb. 28 & March 1, Live Oaks Park, Port Royal. Live entertainment Friday and Saturday nights. Oyster roast all day Saturday.

Lowcountry Food Truck Festival

11 a.m., Saturday, April 5, 1404 Paris Avenue, Port Royal.

MCAS Beaufort Airshow

Saturday, April 12 and Sunday, April 13, MCAS Beaufort. Celebrate 250 years of the Marine Corps with us. From the U.S. Navy Blue Angels to unforgettable aerial thrills, it’s a weekend you don’t want to miss. Tickets are free for general admission but required! Reserve yours now to secure your spot. Go to beaufortairshow.com to reserve your tickets.

Karaoke with Melissa

8 p.m. to midnight, Tuesdays, Highway 21 Bar, 3436 Trask Pkwy, Beaufort. Enjoy food and drinks during Karaoke with Melissa.

Karaoke with Melissa

7:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., Wednesdays, Beaufort Moose Lodge, 350 Broad River Blvd, Beaufort. Enjoy food and drinks during Karaoke with Melissa.

Eric’s Karaoke Krew

9:30 p.m., Wednesdays, Rosie O’Grady’s, 2127 Boundary Street, Suite 2, Beaufort. Free. Enjoy karaoke with either Parker or Eric.

Trivia with Tom –Bricks On Boundary

7 p.m., Every Thursday, Bricks on Boundary, 1422 Boundary St, Beaufort. Free. Team trivia event, win house cash and Beer Bucket prizes! For more information, visit https://rb.gy/o9nhwe.

Eric’s Karaoke Krew

7 p.m., Thursdays, Amvets Post 70, 1831 Ribaut Road, Port Royal. Free. Public is welcome. Enjoy Karaoke. Dinner will be available.

Karaoke at Willie’s

8 p.m., Thursdays, Willie's Bar and Grill, 7 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Saint Helena Island. Come and showcase your singing talents or just enjoy the performances. For more information, visit www.GullahLove.com.

Bluffton Night Bazaar —

a Lowcountry Made Market

5 to 8 p.m., first Thursday of each month, Burnt Church Distillery, 120 Bluffton Road. A highly curated selection of accessories, clothing, home goods, custom gifts and more by local artists and makers.

Habersham Farmers Market

3 to 6 p.m., Fridays, Habersham Marketplace. Vendor roster includes B&E Farm, Cottonwood Soap, Flower Power Treats, Hardee Greens, Megs Sweet Treats, Vitamin Bee, Lady’s Island Oyster Company, Pet Wants.

Eric’s Karaoke Krew

9 p.m., Fridays, Highway 21 Bar, 3436 Trask Pkwy, Beaufort. Free. Enjoy Karaoke with Lt. Dan.

Eric’s Karaoke Krew

9:30 p.m., Fridays, Rosie O’Grady’s, 2127 Boundary Street, Suite 2, Beaufort. Free. Enjoy Karaoke with Parker. Karaoke with Melissa

7:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., Fridays, R Bar & Grill, 70 Pennington Dr, Bluffton. Enjoy food and drinks during Karaoke with Melissa.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

HIGHWAY 21 DRIVE-IN

The movies scheduled for this week (Friday, Dec. 13 through Thursday, Dec. 19) at the Highway 21 Drive-In are Moana 2 (PG, 7 p.m.) and Red One (PG-13, 8:45 p.m.) on Screen 1;

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (PG, 6 p.m.) and Wicked (PG, 7:45 p.m.) on Screen 2; Red One (PG, 6:30 p.m.) and Kraven, The Hunter (R, 8:40 p.m.) on Screen 3.

Online ticketing is available at hwy21drivein. com on the Now Playing page. Patrons are asked to arrive early on Friday and Saturday nights. Gates open at 6 p.m.

A reminder: no outside food or beverages can be brought into the drive-in.

Upcoming movies include Sonic The Hedgehog 3 (December) and Mufasa (December).

Port Royal Farmers Market 9 a.m. to noon, Saturdays, year round, Naval Heritage Park, 1615 Ribaut Road, Port Royal. Rain or shine. You will find fresh, local, seasonal produce, shrimp, oysters, poultry, beef, pork, eggs, bread and cheese, as well as plants, ferns, camellias, azaleas, citrus trees and beautiful, fresh cut flower bouquets. There are prepared food vendors serving barbecue, dumplings, she crab soup, crab cakes, paella, coffee, baked goods, bagels and breakfast sandwiches. No pets allowed. For more information, visit http://www.portroyalfarmersmarket. com/, visit @portroyalfarmersmarket on Facebook or call 843-295-0058.

Slip and Splash Saturdays

10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Saturdays, Battery Creek Pool, 1 Blue Dolphin Drive, Beaufort, and Bluffton Pool, 55 Pritchard Street, Bluffton. $5 per person. Stay busy for hours climbing on our inflatable challenge track.

Eric’s Karaoke Krew

7 p.m., Saturdays, The Beaufort Moose Lodge, 350 Broad River Blvd., Beaufort. Free. Enjoy karaoke with Lt. Dan. Come early at 6 p.m. for Steak Night.

Eric’s Karaoke Krew

9:30 p.m., Saturdays, Rosie O’Grady’s, 2127 Boundary Street, Suite 2, Beaufort. Free. Enjoy karaoke with Eric.

Teddy Bear Picnic Read-Aloud

9 a.m. to noon, 1st Saturday each month, Port Royal Farmer’s Market, Corner of Ribaut Road & Pinckney Blvd, Port Royal. Free. DAYLO Students and other volunteers will read to young children, who are encouraged to bring their favorite stuffed animals.

Karaoke with Melissa

8 p.m. to 12 a.m., 2nd and 4th Saturdays of every month, Peaceful Henry’s Cigar Bar, 181 Bluffton Rd, Bluffton. Enjoy food and drinks during Karaoke with Melissa.

CHRISTMAS

Christmas Extravaganza

With The Cox Team

1 to 4 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 15, 1304 Paris Avenue, Port Royal. Crafts, treats, bounce house, face painting, Santa & Mrs. Claus and more. Sponsored by Stephanie Cox, The Cox Team, EXP Realty and Melanie Ott with Gateway Mortgage Group. Family, friends, clients, associates -- let’s get together for a fun afternoon spreading holiday cheer.

Community Sing —

The Nativity Scene

6:30 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, Frissell Community House, Penn Center, St. Helena Island.

Town of Yemassee Christmas Tree

Lighting & Christmas Party

6 to 8 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 19, downtown Yemassee. Activities include hayrides, refreshments, pictures with Santa, bingo, painting and more.

CLASS REUNION

Beaufort High School Class of 1975

Oct. 17 through Oct. 19, 2025, Beaufort. 50th Class Reunion Celebration. Request that graduates of this class contact the class Community Outreach Representative Barbara Gardner Hunter at 347-497-9326 or email gardnerbarbara991@gmail.com to provide current contact information.

DANCE

The Beaufort Shag Club

6:30 to 9 p.m., Wednesdays, AmVets Club, 1831 Ribaut Road, Port Royal. Free lessons for members from 6 to 6:30 p.m. We also host a dance the second Saturday of each month from 7 to 10 p.m. Lessons will run September through May only. Visit our FaceBook page (beaufortshagclub) for current events.

HEALTH AND WELLNESS

Rooted Beaufort Yoga classes

5:30 to 6:45 p.m., Thursdays, Cypress Wetlands, Port Royal; 9 to 10:15 a.m., Whitehall Park or Pigeon Point Park. Rooted Beaufort is a collective of local Yoga teachers who host outdoor yoga classes and donation-based events with proceeds being donated locally on a rotating basis.

BEMER Circulation Therapy

10 to 11 a.m., Fridays via Zoom. Already own a BEMER? Never heard of it but curious? Join to ask any questions about this leading-edge German technology that enhances blood flow 30% in 8 minutes. Sessions are designed to support those who have their own unit but everyone is welcome. Brought to you by BEMER Specialist -- Human & Equine, Elizabeth Bergmann. Text 410212-1468 to get the Zoom link. Free.

HISTORY

Beaufort History Museum at the Arsenal

10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturdays, 713 Craven St, Beaufort. General Admission for Adults $8, Seniors $7, Active Duty Military and College Students with ID $5. Children/Teens younger than 18 Free. Explore and experience more than 500 years of Beaufort History with knowledgeable docent guided tours.

The Historic Port Royal Museum 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. or upon request, Thursdays through Sundays, The Historic Port Royal Museum, 1634 Paris Ave. The museum features the turn-ofthe-century businesses and industries of Port Royal: Shrimping, crabbing, oystering, the railroad, the school and the mercantile. Great gifts featuring local artists are available. For more information. visit www.portroyalhistory.org, email historicportroyalfoundation@ gmail.com or call 843-524-4333.

Tour Historic Fort Fremont Dawn to dusk, Monday through Sunday, The Fort Fremont Preserve, 1124 Land’s End Road, St. Helena Island. Free and open to the public. The History Center is open Fridays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sundays from 1 to 4 p.m.

Visitors can learn about the fort’s history during the Spanish-American War through interpretive signs, self-guided walking tours with a smart phone, exhibits in the history center, and docent-led tours. For more information visit www.fortfremont.org or contact Passive Parks Manager Stefanie Nagid at snagid@bcgov.net.

LIBRARY ACTIVITIES

“Lego” With Lego 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., every Tuesday, St. Helena Branch Library, 6355 Jonathan Francis Sr. Road, St. Helena Island. Free and open to the public. Ages 5 and up. No registration required. Come see our new and improved Lego Club. Choose one of our new Lego kits and get going. Call 843-255-6540 for more information.

Career Navigator

11 a.m. to 1 p.m., every Tuesday, Beaufort Branch Library, 311 Scott Street, Beaufort. Free one-on-one resume writing and job application assistance with a Career Navigator from Palmetto Goodwill. No appointments necessary. For more information call 843-2556458.

Bridge Club

11 a.m., Wednesdays, Beaufort Branch Library, 311 Scott Street, Beaufort. Beginning September 18. The first session is for beginners new to the game, and following sessions will provide some instruction and we will learn as we play. Join us if you want to learn a new game, practice your skills, or need more players. Call the Beaufort Branch Library at 843-255-6458 for more information.

Mahjong Club

10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Fridays, Beaufort Library, 311 Scott Street. All levels of players are welcome. Feel free to bring your own mahjong sets. Plan to meet every week. For more information, call the Beaufort Branch Library at 843255-6458.

MEETINGS

Zonta Club of Beaufort

6 p.m., 4th Tuesday of each month, Smokehouse, Port Royal.

Rotary Club of Sea Island lunch meeting

12:15 p.m., 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month, Sea Island Presbyterian Church, 81 Lady’s Island Drive, Lady’s Island. Social gathering every 3rd Tuesday at 5:30 pm, locations vary and posted on our website. For more information, visit www.seaislandrotary.org.

Rotary Club of Sea Island social gathering

5:30 p.m., 3rd Tuesday of each month, locations vary and posted on our website. For more information, visit www. seaislandrotary.org.

Beaufort Rotary Club

Noon, Wednesdays, Sea Island Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall, 81 Lady’s Island Drive, Lady’s Island. Catered buffet lunch, followed by a guest speaker. Prospective members welcome. For further information and upcoming speakers, please visit website www.beaufortrotaryclub.org.

The Beaufort Trailblazers –A Volunteer Group 8 a.m., first Thursday each month, Herban Marketplace, Beaufort. Anyone interested in supporting or building offroad/dirt/wilderness mountain biking/ jogging/walking trails near is encouraged to attend. For more information, call 843-575-0021 or email universitybicycles@hotmail.com.

Emotions Anonymous International local group meeting 4 p.m, Thursdays, via Zoom. Emotions Anonymous International, (EAI), is a nonprofit program designed to help people with emotional difficulties. It has a chapter in the Lowcountry and members want others who feel the need to know they are welcome to participate. There is no charge to participate. They are based on the 12 steps and 12 traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous and follow a specific format designed to provide the support and tools for navigating life’s painful difficulties. All are welcome. Anyone interested in participating may contact the group via email at EALowcountry@gmail.com or call or text Laurie at 252- 917-7082. For more information on EAI visit www.emotionsanonymous.org.

Rotary Club of the Lowcountry 7:30 a.m., Fridays, Sea Island Presbyterian Church, 81 Lady's Island Dr., Ladys' Island. Catered breakfast from local chef. Speakers weekly. Occasional social events replace Friday mornings, but will be announced on our website, www.rotaryclubofthelowcountrybeaufort.org.

MUSIC

Habersham Third Fridays Music on Market 5 to 8 p.m., third Friday of the month, Habersham Marketplace.

OUTDOORS/NATURE

The Beaufort Tree Walk Lady’s Island Garden Club invites you to take a meandering walk through the Historic “Old Point” and enjoy some unique and noteworthy trees. The “Walk” takes about an hour, is a little over a mile starting at the corner of Craven & Carteret streets in Morrall Park and concluding in Waterfront Park. Booklets with map and information about each tree are available free at the Visitors Center in the historic Arsenal on Craven Street.

Tours of Hunting Island Every Tuesday, Hunting Island State Park, 2555 Sea Island Pkwy. Free, park entry fees apply. Sponsored by Friends of Hunting Island Keeper Ted and his team. For more information call the Hunting Island Nature Center at 843838-7437. The next Tuesday is August 1.

RUNNING/WALKING

Oyster Boogie 5K

Saturday, Jan. 18, downtown Beaufort. USATF Certified 5K Race.

SEWING/QUILTING

American Needlepoint Guild Meeting

10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., 1st Tuesday each month. The Hilton Head Chapter of the American Needlepoint Guild welcomes anyone, beginner or experienced stitcher, who is interested in needlepoint to join us for stitching, learning and fellowship. For more information, please contact us at hiltonheadislandchapter@needlepoint.org.

Embroidery Guild of America Meeting

Second Tuesday of every month, Palmetto Electric Community Room, Hardeeville. The Lowcountry Chapter of the Embroidery Guild of America welcomes anyone, beginner or experienced stitcher, who is interested in any type of embroidery including needlepoint, cross-stitch, surface and beaded embroidery, hardanger, bargello, sashiko, etc., to join us for stitching, learning and fellowship. For more information, please contact us at lowcountrychapter@egacarolinas.org.

SPORTS/GAMES

ACBL Duplicate Bridge Club

9:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., Tuesdays, Carteret St. Events will be held weekly. Contact Director and Club Manager Susan DeFoe at 843-597-2541 for location.

Bridge Club 11 a.m., Wednesdays, Beaufort Branch Library. The first session is for beginners new to the game, and following sessions will provide some instruction and we will learn as we play. Join us if you want to learn a new game, practice your skills, or need more players. Call the Beaufort Branch Library at 843255-6458 for more information.

Beaufort Masters Swim Team 6 to 7 a.m., Monday through Friday, Wardle Family Port Royal YMCA. Coached practices. Ages 18 & older, all skill & speed levels, no prior swim team experience needed. Visit lowcountryswimming.com for more information.

ARTS & SPORTS

Holiday Market

Academy. In full Christmas regalia, vendor Lynn

Chalk It Up! will be back, bigger in 2025

Staff reports

After an amazing debut of the Chalk It Up! festival in spring 2024, organizers are inviting artists from all over to come and create vibrant chalk illustrations on the pavement of downtown Beaufort in March 2025 for the second annual Chalk It Up! event.

This fun and creative event, hosted by the Freedman Arts District, mixes community spirit with a love for art, and it’s happening for free during the weekend of March 28 through 30

Popular professional chalk artists Chelsey Scott and Brittany Williams from Georgia will return, along with Tennessee’s very own Mary Ward, who wowed everyone with her chalk portrait of Dolly Parton and won the People’s Choice award. Chalk It Up! will showcase local talent as well as artists like Chelsey, Brittany, and Mary, who are traveling from across the country to join our festival.

Chalk It Up! is a family-friendly weekend that promises fun for all ages. Enjoy amazing large-scale street chalk art, live music from local musicians, hands-on activities for kids, artisan demos, delicious food trucks, and so much more.

The weekend will kick off with a special Meet & Greet the Artists reception on Friday evening at the Tabby Place on Port Republic Street. There, attendees will hear an engaging introduction to Beaufort’s Gullah history from Dr. Valinda Littlefield. Then, over the next two days, talented artists will create stunning works of art and connect

Crown from page B1

The other champs were Bluffton’s Eli Garcia (113) and Gabe Fulton (165); May River’s Thomas Brough (144) and Blake Butler (157); Hilton Head’s Cole Sowers (132) and Ethan Fleming (138); and Beaufort’s Colton Freeman (215). Garcia and Sowers are both freshmen.

The quality of competition was on display in the championship finals, which showcased several high-profile matchups. At 120 pounds, Foulk earned a hard-fought decision over Hilton Head’s Bryce Stephenson, a third-place finisher at last year’s Class 4A state tournament. Fulton’s major decision over May River’s Leandro Larranaga was another highlight in the 165-pound bracket — arguably the toughest weight class in the tournament with returning state-placer Antonio McKnight of Beaufort defeating Bridges Prep’s Kevin Summers, a defending Lowco champ, in the consolation finals.

Chavez’s well-earned decision against Beaufort’s Jaden Priester was one of the weekend’s best battles with last year’s third-place finisher in Class 2A/1A taking his second straight 285-pound title. And anoth-

Master street painter Chelsey Scott will be returning to Beaufort for Chalk it Up! next March. Submitted photo CALL FOR ARTISTS Are you an artist aged 18 or older and want to join in on the fun? Simply fill out the online application at www. FreedmanArtsDistrict.org. It’s free to participate, and you don’t need any street painting experience to get involved! You can find all the guidelines and rules at www. FreedmanArtsDistrict.org. We can't wait to see your creativity shine!

with the community right in the adjacent parking lot.

The festival will conclude on Sunday, March 30, at 5 p.m. with the awards ceremony, where three fantastic prizeswill be awarded: $700 for First Place, $500 for Second Place, and $300 for People’s Choice.

Bridges Prep’s Jeremiah Chavez elevates a single leg to score a takedown against Beaufort’s Jaden Priester during the 285-pound final at the Lowcountry Wrestling Championships at Hilton Head High on Saturday. LowcoSports.com

er great story came from the 215-pound bracket, where Beaufort sophomore Colton Freeman claimed the crown in his return to the mat after missing last season due to injury. Freeman won a SCISA state title as an eighth-grader at Thomas Heyward Academy. Bluffton Middle School (185 5) edged Hilton Head Middle (175 8) and Bridges Prep (164) in the middle school division, with Hilton Head and Bridges each claiming four individual titles.

2024 LOWCOUNTRY WRESTLING INVITATIONAL

Team Scores May River 222, Bluffton 125.5,

Beaufort 118, Hilton Head 117, Bridges Prep 115.5, Battery Creek 97, Whale Branch 50, Hardeeville 3

Lowco Champions

106: Ryan Seman, MR

113: Eli Garcia, BLF

120: Marcus Foulk, MR

126: Liam Engblom, MR

132: Cole Sowers, HH

138: Ethan Fleming, HH

144: Thomas Brough, MR

150: Nate Najar, BC

157: Blake Butler, MR 165: Gabe Fulton, BLF

175: Ali Jenkins, BP 190: Joshua Echeverria, MR

215: Colton Freeman, BFT

285: Jeremiah Chavez, BP

Justin Jarrett is the sports editor of The Island News and the founder of LowcoSports.com. He was the sports editor of the Island Packet and the Beaufort Gazette for 6½ years. He has

Even Santa's elves showed up for the annual Holiday Market of Beaufort on Saturday, Dec. 7 at Beaufort
Russell talks about her wares with shopper Jeanette Modie of Lady's Island. Asa Aarons Smith/The Island News

Beaufort students perform in 'Christmas at Belmont: Live from Nashville'

Staff reports

Beaufort students Kimberly Rauscher and Jonah Louque, currently attending Belmont University, will be among more than 600 student musicians and vocalists to perform in the beloved annual concert tradition, "Christmas at Belmont: Live from Nashville."

Beginning Wednesday, Dec. 11 at 8 p.m., this popular holiday spectacular began streaming to a global audience on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch ans will be available throughout the holiday season. For more information, visit belmont.edu/christmas.

This year marks the first time the event has been available on a global streaming platform.

"It's not just a stage of choral orchestral people singing Christmas song after Christmas song," explained Director of Choral Activities Jeffery Ames. "We could have a poignant piece by a loft choir followed by pop ensemble singing the latest Christmas chart, then percussion ensemble, country, bluegrass — and then the orchestra shows their skills."

"Christmas at Belmont Live from Nashville" highlights Belmont's commitment to fostering innovative creativity and providing comprehensive training. The 90-minute performance will feature more than 600 student musicians and vocalists where viewers will witness the depth of Belmont's musical education. Filmed live in front of an audience at the University's Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, more than 15 student choirs and ensembles will perform including the Belmont Chorale, Symphony Orchestra, Southbound (country) and Voxology (Gospel, R&B), among many others.

Read With A Ranger

Read

a

Dec. 7. In addition to DAYLO participant

The books included “Okra Stew: A Gullah Geechee Family Celebration,” which features

Island News

Beaufort County School District seeks input about new communication platform

The Beaufort County School District is asking the public’s help in trying to find a new communication platform.

The school district has released a survey for members of the community to complete as part of the process to select a platform that will meet the needs

of all families, students and staff.

The online survey can be found at https://tinyurl. com/bcsdmasscomm.

The BCSD Communications Department seeks to replace BrightArrow, which Is the current communication system, and use one that will unify all athletic, classroom and club communications.

BCSD hopes to centralize communication to make the user experience better, streamline staff training and ensure consistent branding.

The hope is for the improvements to create a “more seamless and user-friendly experience for families across the district.”

“We know that effec-

tive communication is the foundation of a strong school-community relationship,” said BCSD Communications Officer Candace Bruder. “We are committed to providing our families and staff with an ideal platform to make connecting with BCSD easier and more efficient.”

The survey will remain open until Friday, Dec.

20 and BCSD encourages community members to complete the survey in order to share their thoughts about this decision.

Delayna Earley, who joined The Island News in 2022, formerly worked as a photojournalist for The Island Packet/The Beaufort Gazette, as well as newspapers in Indiana and Virginia. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.

State takes control of Jasper County school district’s finances

District

has not turned in an audit on time in two years

COLUMBIA — Citing multiple late audits, reports of possible misspending and the potential to lose federal aid, the state Board of Education agreed Tuesday to take control of Jasper County School District’s finances.

Unlike a state takeover of a school district, which allows the state superintendent to fire the local school board and make decisions in its place, financial control gives the state Department of Education the district’s purse strings but no other decision-making power, a department attorney told the board Tuesday.

“This is essentially like helping them complete their homework,” said board member Chris Hanley, a family doctor in Summerville.

The state will remain in control of Jasper County schools’ finances at least through June, the end of the fiscal year. However, the state can retain control for as long as necessary to get the district back into fiscal shape.

Almost 70% of the countywide district’s 2,600 students live in poverty. It receives about $21 000 per pupil this school year, with just over a third of that coming from

state taxes and 11% from federal aid, according to the latest estimates from the state Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office.

Having control of the finances will allow state officials to intervene and ready the district for state- and federally required audits, which haven’t been done since 2022. The district has contracted with an auditing firm but has not taken any more steps to prepare for auditors to come in and review the district’s finances, said Daniel Haven, a fiscal analyst for the education department.

State officials will also train the district’s financial workers to better track the district’s money and be prepared for upcoming reviews. And the state will help find and train a permanent chief financial officer, since the district has had someone in charge in only a temporary capacity for the past year.

In Jasper County School District’s case, the move came after years of missed deadlines for district-wide audits.

“They need our help,” Haven told the board.

The district, located in South Carolina’s southern tip bordering Georgia, first missed its deadline in December of 2022, prompting

the state to put the district on fiscal watch, the lowest of three escalating tiers.

The district turned in that year’s audit and a plan to avoid missing the deadline again. But come 2023, the district again failed to complete an examination of its finances, moving its status to the next tier, fiscal caution.

It submitted another plan to avoid further problems to the state, but state officials declined to accept it until they had the 2023 audit.

Meanwhile, in July, The Post and Courier reported that district officials spent $228,000 on travel and lodging during the prior 3½ years. That same month, the board voted to put then-Superintendent Rechel Anderson on paid administrative leave. The board fired Anderson in October without giving a reason, The Post and Courier reported.

By August, state officials learned that the district had no timeline to complete its audit and the potential to lose federal funding because of the unfinished review, Haven said. Because of that, state Superintendent Ellen Weaver declared a financial emergency in the district, the highest level of scrutiny from the state. She also called for an investigation by the state Inspector

General’s Office for any signs of potential financial waste, misconduct or law-breaking, according to an August letter.

That investigation will continue during the state’s control over the district, Haven said.

As of Tuesday, the district had not submitted its 2023 audit. State officials had not received the district’s 2024 audit by the Monday deadline, Haven said, though districts are allowed to continue submitting without penalty until Dec. 16

A spokesman for the district said it welcomes the agency’s help.

“They will provide guidance and expertise to help us resolve the delays in delivering our 2023 and 2024 financial audits,” Travis Washington said in a statement Wednesday to the S.C. Daily Gazette. “Additionally, they will assist us in the search for a permanent finance director and help improve our financial practices to ensure quality and efficiency within our finance department.”

The Jasper County district is one of three school districts in danger of a full state takeover, based on its financial and academic performances, a spokesman has said previously. A district is eligible for takeover if the district consistently

receives scores of “unsatisfactory” on its annual report cards, if its accreditation is denied, or if the superintendent decides the district’s turnaround plan is insufficient, according to state law.

Jasper County schools have not met that criteria, though the district is on the state department’s radar. Four of Jasper County’s six schools were rated average during the 2023-2024 school year. One was below average, and one was unsatisfactory, the lowest possible grade. Two rural school districts remain under total state control.

Williamsburg County’s local board is allowed to make decisions, so long as they get state education department approval, in the first step toward moving decision-making powers back to the board. Allendale County remains under complete control, with no clear timeline as to when local leaders might be able to make decisions again.

Skylar Laird covers the

The
With
Ranger program returned for the holidays at DAYLO's monthly Teddy Bear Picnic at the Port Royal Farmers' Market on Saturday,
Micke Thompson (center), NPS Park Ranger Katherine Freeman read to children like Allie Kate Merjerink.
Gullah family traditions and foods. Asa Aarons Smith/The

SC education officials ask legislators to raise teachers’ starting pay

COLUMBIA — The starting sal-

ary for South Carolina teachers

would be at least $50 000 next school year if education officials get their wish, which would speed up the governor’s announced goal by one year.

The salary floor for teachers this school year is $47,000, as set by the state budget. That’s the minimum that school districts must pay first-year teachers with a bachelor’s degree, though many supplement state aid with local property taxes to pay more.

Gov. Henry McMaster has repeatedly said he wants to increase the state minimum to $50 000 by 2026

The Department of Education seeks $200 million in its budget request to make that happen in July 2025 instead.

“That would be a blessing,” said Sherry East, president of the South Carolina Education Association.

The proposed raises represent about half of the education agency’s $433 million total request. Other requests include $100 million to help poor, rural districts and charter schools pay for construction; $35 million for school buses; $31 million for summer reading camps; and $20 million for another round of school security grants.

Raising teacher pay has for

years been a priority for legislators and the governor. House Republican leaders have said they want to again increase teachers’ salaries next year, though they haven’t given a number.

Earlier this year, legislators went beyond McMaster’s request for a $2 500 increase for teachers, whose salaries are based on their years of experience in the classroom and level of college degree. The governor’s budget recommendations would have brought base salaries from $42 500 to $45 000 Instead, the final budget’s increases across the so-called teacher salary schedule upped the minimum starting salary to $47 000, which is $15 000 above the starting point six years ago. A teacher with 12 years of experience and a master’s degree — which is considered the average — makes no less than $57,250 this year.

Continuing the increases would be like “striking while the iron is hot,” said Patrick Kelly with the Palmetto State Teachers Association.

He notes the revenue is available.

Last month’s projections by the state’s economic advisers gave legislators an additional $1 66 billion to allocate next year, though just under a third of that, or $534 million, is available for recurring expenses. And the Department of Education is competing with all other state agencies for the money.

Public colleges, for example, are collectively seeking $1 4 billion, and that doesn’t even include technical schools’ requests.

“The time is right to make the move to fulfill that goal, when we know the resources are available,” Kelly said.

The $200 million would be enough to increase all teachers’ salaries by $3 000, Kelly said.

He and East want legislators to require districts to pass that on to teachers, ensuring they actually see the increase in their paychecks. Several years ago, legislators gave districts greater autonomy with their state aid. That allowed districts that already paid teachers above the state minimums to boost pay at their discretion, if at all.

“We want to make sure (raises) are across the board,” East said.

Previous raises have helped attract and retain more teachers, the education department and teachers’ advocates have said. The number of teacher vacancies in the state decreased this year for the first time since 2019, an achievement Weaver and teachers’ advocates attributed at least in part to compensation increases.

“Continuing to boost teacher pay is foundational to recruit and retain the best and brightest to serve in South Carolina classrooms,” the request reads.

Still, just more than 870 teach-

ing positions were vacant this fall, according to the annual report from the Center for Educator Recruitment Retention and Advancement. And teacher’s advocates, including the Palmetto State Teachers Association, suggested the numbers did not tell the whole story, with some districts possibly cutting teaching positions or hiring less-qualified teachers to fill gaps.

“We are not in a position to rest on our laurels as a state, but we are in a position to build on that momentum,” Kelly said.

Keeping and attracting more teachers will require legislators to make changes beyond pay, Kelly and East said. A few years ago, pay was by far the biggest concern among educators, but as salaries increase, other concerns have gained more prominence, the advocates said.

For instance, stipends for student teachers could attract more people who can’t afford to spend a semester without a job, East said.

A bill again backed by House Education Chairwoman Shannon Erickson. R-Beaufort, could also address some issues plaguing legislators, if they can get it to the finish line this year, Kelly said.

Erickson proposed making teaching certificates permanent and allowing more flexibility in teacher contracts, two changes to

state law that advocates have applauded as supporting teachers.

Teachers would no longer have to prove to the state they completed their district-required training in order to renew their certificates every five years under the renewed proposal.

Districts would also have to give teachers more wiggle room in bowing out of their contracts after seeing their salaries if the bill passed.

By law, teachers must sign their contracts by mid-May, usually weeks before their local school board sets their pay. If a teacher breaks their contract after signing, they lose their certification for a year, beginning whenever the State Board of Education hears their case.

Legislation that would give teachers 10 days after seeing their contract to bow out passed the House but stalled without a hearing in the Senate. When the House tacked it onto separate legislation, it died again in the Senate. Erickson filed the bill again ahead of the upcoming legislative session.

Skylar Laird covers the South Carolina Legislature and criminal justice issues. Originally from Missouri, she previously worked for The Post and Courier’s Columbia bureau. S.C. Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

SC BOE member calls for review of PragerU in schools

Emails a legislator received through a public records request reveal little about the partnership

COLUMBIA — The South Carolina Board of Education should review whether a state endorsement of PragerU videos for public school classrooms is appropriate, one board member said after complaints from teachers, parents and students.

Emails between PragerU representatives and state Department of Education officials, dated from July through October, offer little insight into the partnership with the conservative media nonprofit. The emails, provided to reporters Wednesday, are the state agency’s response to a state House Democrat’s public records request.

The partnership was not announced by the education agency for public K-12 schools. Instead, it became public when state Superintendent Ellen Weaver appeared in a video that PragerU released in September encouraging classroom use of the videos, drawing the ire of parents, teachers and advocates.

South Carolina was the eighth state to approve the videos for use in public K-12 classrooms, joining Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, Montana, Louisiana, New Hampshire and Arizona, according to the organization’s website.

The videos, which are optional for teachers to use in their classrooms, did not go through the normal vetting process for classroom materials, such as textbooks. Typically, a 15-member commit-

tee composed primarily of teachers and administrators reviews materials, with input from the public. The State Board of Education then has the final say on what to approve or not approve.

The state board did not have any say over the PragerU partnership. A spokesman has previously said the department regularly offers teachers materials and training that don’t need board approval.

But the oversight board should make a decision about this one, board member Beverly Frierson of Columbia said during a Tuesday meeting.

“I, too, am extremely concerned and disturbed by the indoctrination, and I’m not even going to use some of the other adjectives to describe it,” said Frierson, a former high school English teacher. “Check it out for yourself.”

Frierson, who also previously led the South Carolina Education Association, gave her fellow board members a homework assignment for the next meeting in January. She asked them to watch some of the videos on the nonprofit’s website and review the law tasking the state board with deciding what material is allowed in classrooms.

A department spokesman did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday. Neither did representatives for PragerU.

Partnership begins Still unclear is how, exact-

ly, the partnership began, said Rep. Jermaine Johnson, the Columbia Democrat who requested the records in October.

Johnson wanted details on how the relationship came about and what the partnership entails, he told the S.C. Daily Gazette.

But he came away with “no clear answers, no anything,” he said.

Johnson questions whether details might exist on personal email accounts, which would skirt the state’s public records law.

At least one email, dated Aug. 28, did go to department officials’ personal emails before being forwarded to official accounts.

“Who knows what was going on and how many emails were going back and forth on their personal emails?” Johnson told the Gazette.

The first email in the batch Johnson received that references PragerU was written by department attorney Robert Cathcart.

In the July email, he notes that a PragerU representative had called “regarding some free curriculum that PragerU can make freely available to the Department that is aligned to our Financial Literacy Standards.”

Cathcart forwarded the PragerU representative’s information to the department employee in charge of instructional materials, suggesting they talk about the platform the state uses to host online resources.

That initial email from Cathcart notes that Prage-

rU’s list of videos includes nearly two dozen “crash course” lessons on debt, credit, stocks and other finances.

But the videos that PragerU promotes as aligning with South Carolina’s education standards go far beyond finances. The 67-page list includes lessons in history, geography, civics and other subjects.

How the conversations went from financial literacy to a broad array of subjects can’t be discerned from the emails.

The emails show that at least one department employee raised questions on how to handle reviewing the videos, including which division of the agency should do it. The emails did not include answers to her questions.

While an agency spokesman previously told the Gazette that PragerU is providing the videos for free, Johnson believes state funding is somehow involved. However, the emails make no mention of money.

Johnson is still deciding on what to do with the information he received, he said.

Official list

At least one video remains on PragerU’s list despite assurances from Weaver that it would be removed, according to the emails.

In an exchange that started Sept. 19, a teacher representing the Palmetto State Teachers Association raised concerns about a 5-minute video arguing why Colum-

bus Day should keep its name.

The video doesn’t even seem to meet the state standards PragerU tied it to.

Beyond that, it features a speaker wearing a shirt that reads, “Try the Walther,” referring to the firearms company, with a picture of two handguns, Patrick Kelly wrote in his initial email to Weaver about it.

“In light of this, it would be beyond inappropriate for this video to be played in a South Carolina classroom,” Kelly wrote, referencing recent upticks in school shootings across the country.

Weaver responded the next day, saying department staff had also flagged that video for removal from the agency’s endorsed list.

“The final list that will be posted in the iHub and online for the public is still being curated, and that video will definitely be removed,” Weaver wrote Sept. 20

In his response back, Kelly said removing a single objectionable video did not solve the problem.

“Upon reflection, I have increasing skepticism about any organization that would ever produce that video in the first place,” he wrote.

“The design of the video makes it crystal clear that it is intended for an elementary school age audience, which gives me deep alarm about the lack of discernment demonstrated by not finding the t-shirt concerning when producing the video.”

Teachers do not have to

use the videos if they find objectionable content in them, Weaver wrote in her second response.

“Reasonable people can certainly differ in their overall opinions of various sources — I have found many of the videos I have watched to be well-done,” Weaver wrote, pointing to one 5-minute video about the writing of the Constitution as an example.

“But to the main point,” Weaver continued, “with this being an optional resource, it seems to me that this provides a wonderful opportunity for teachers to exercise their professional discretion about what to platform or not in their classroom.”

As of Wednesday, 2½ months later, the video with guns on the speaker’s t-shirt was still available on PragerU’s provided list. And the department has yet to publicly post a state-endorsed alternative list, despite multiple assurances that the video would not be included, Kelly told the Gazette. Until the department provides its own list, teachers should not consider the videos officially approved, Kelly said.

Skylar Laird covers the South Carolina Legislature and criminal justice issues. Originally from Missouri, she previously worked for The Post and Courier’s Columbia bureau. S.C. Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

Report: Staffing shortages remain problem for SC DJJ

About half the changes recommended in 2021 have been made, according to follow-up audit

COLUMBIA — The state’s juvenile justice agency still lacks staff to keep officers and youth safe, three years after receiving a list of recommendations to help address problems, state auditors found.

About half the recommendations resulting from the last audit still haven’t been made, according to the follow-up report released Thursday.

Department of Juvenile Justice Director Eden Hendrick told the S.C. Daily Gazette on Friday the agency is contesting that assessment in a written response. She argues that closer to 65% of the recommendations have been implemented, and an additional quarter or so are underway, she said.

Many of the recommendations from the 2021 report that this year’s audit revisited involved bureaucratic improvements, such as revising policies, turning in reports on time, updating job descriptions and developing plans.

The findings are not as severe as those three years ago, which found high rates of violence and a lack of accountability for juveniles who attacked other youth and officers; employees with multiple disciplinary infractions or a lack of training; and little medical care for youth.

The follow-up report recognized improvements the agency has made over the past few years, such as installing more cameras, increasing salaries, appropriately disciplining employees who broke the rules, and efforts to change security policies in order to reduce violence.

Still, the agency should do more to protect the 12 to 19 year olds in its care, said American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) attorney Allen Chaney.

The civil rights group is suing the agency over allegations of unsafe living conditions in the agency’s facilities, including black mold, stopped up toilets and overcrowding so severe children had to sleep on hallway floors.

The report by the Legislative Audit Council “merely confirms what we’ve long known: Children in DJJ custody continue to face devastating, dangerous, and inhumane conditions,”

Chaney said in a statement to the Daily Gazette. “Rather than receiving the therapeutic and rehabilitative environment guaranteed to them by law, children at DJJ are alienated, victimized, and retraumatized.”

But Hendrick said the agency either has imple-

mented suggestions made after the 2021 review or is in the process of fixing the problems pointed out. In many cases, the root problem is a persistent lack of staff and money, she said.

“These recommendations, I guess they help the agency, but some of them are impossible with what we have,” Hendrick said.

Based on federal reports, “DJJ was unable to sustain the progress it had made” in finding and keeping juvenile officers, the council wrote. In October 2023, 15% of the agency’s juvenile officer positions were unfilled. Four months later, in February 2024, that number was 39% Vacancy rates have improved in recent months, Hendrick said. As of Monday, the agency’s officer positions were about 17% empty, she said.

Part of that is likely because of pay increases, Hendrick said.

As of July, officers with no experience start at a min-

imum of $43 806. That’s $6 000 more than the minimum pay two years ago. Employees usually make more than the base wages, due to opportunities for overtime, pay bumps for working in certain facilities, and automatic raises at six and 18 months.

More than hiring, though, the agency faces a problem with retention, the report found.

By August of this year, 93 of the 118 officers the agency hired and trained in 2023 had left their jobs. They stayed, on average, for three months, according to the report.

Retention is an ongoing concern, Hendrick acknowledged.

“There is still, I’m not going to deny, lots of turnover, and unfortunately, we still have quite a few people out on workers’ (compensation),” Hendrick said. “That’s just kind of the nature of the business.”

Staffing is also the

cause of other issues mentioned in the report, Hendrick said, such as a finding that some youth were not taken to off-campus medical appointments.

That’s typically because the agency doesn’t have the officers to spare in escorting children off property.

Statewide, the agency has four officers dedicated to transportation. Anyone else who leaves to escort a juvenile from a detention center must leave their post at facilities that are already understaffed, Hendrick said.

“I would love to dedicate 10 more officers to transport, but that’s 10 less in the dorms, that’s 10 less interacting with the youth,” Hendrick said. “It’s terrible that they miss medical appointments, but also, we’re trying. We’re doing the best we can with what we have.”

In that same vein, officers sometimes put off training courses needed to renew their certification because they don’t have the coverage to step away from their jobs. If they did, the agency doesn’t have the capacity to train many people at once, Hendrick said.

That might be the reason the council marked a recommendation to train all officers with certification as incomplete, she said.

Incentives for employees who keep their certificates current, such as annual bonuses of $2 500 to $4 000 paid out in halves during the year, have helped encourage more people to take the time out of their day to complete the training courses, Hendrick said.

“Honestly, our training department probably needs to increase greatly, but that’s

something that we need to look into for the future,” Hendrick said. “I think this should be way better than it was in the past.”

The agency’s focus has shifted over the last few years from the Broad River Road complex, where convicted juveniles serve their sentences, to more immediate concerns caused by overcrowding at the Columbia detention center, where they await the outcome of their charges, Hendrick said. Those problems only worsened when Richland County closed the juvenile wing of its jail in order to focus on the adult jail, which is under federal investigation following claims of suspicious deaths.

Along with a $200 million request to build a new youth detention center, the juvenile justice agency is asking for $15 million to update its information technology systems, which could help resolve many of the clerical problems the council found, Hendrick said.

Another request that could help is $2 3 million in raises for community workers, who help youth before they are arrested and placed in DJJ facilities, and administrative workers, she said.

“Please give me more money so we can hire people with critical thinking skills, common sense, and work ethic,” the budget request reads.

Skylar Laird covers the South Carolina Legislature and criminal justice issues. Originally from Missouri, she previously worked for The Post and Courier’s Columbia bureau. S.C. Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

GOP spat: SC legislator loses leadership role, asks to be reassigned

COLUMBIA — South Carolina’s 2025 legislative session hasn’t even started, and Republican leaders are already at odds with each other.

Rep. John McCravy, who leads the Legislature’s socially conservative Family Caucus, asked Thursday to be moved off the powerful House Judiciary Committee — which vets many of the bills on his caucus’ agenda — after he lost his role leading a subcommittee.

The highly unusual request came a day after House Speaker Murrell Smith doled out committee assignments for the coming session, which kept McCravy on the same committee he’s sat on since first winning office in 2016 But after House Judiciary met Wednesday to pick officers, newly re-elected Chairman Weston Newton of Bluffton informed McCravy he’d no longer lead a subcommittee.

McCravy, the newly elected second vice-chairman, decided he’d rather move to another committee altogether, since he and Newton clearly “can’t see eye-to-eye on policy,” the Greenwood Republican told the S.C. Daily Gazette.

“We’ve obviously had open disagreements on the floor for years on policy. It’s nothing personal,”

McCravy said. “We just had some irreconcilable differences. … I want to go where I can be effective.”

McCravy, one of the Legislature’s staunchest abortion foes, was more critical in his resignation letter posted on social media. In it, he accused Newton, who became chairman two years ago, of shifting the committee’s focus from anti-crime and anti-abortion proposals to legislation “designed to erode the family.”

“I have come to recognize that my perspective on key issues and values differs significantly from your approach as chairman,” McCravy wrote.

While the letter itself doesn’t specify what he’s referring to, McCravy publicly argued with Newton last session on legislation creating a legal way for South Carolinians to bet on horse races, which passed the House and died in the Senate. They also sparred over several proposals involving alcohol sales — what McCravy calls a “push for 24/7 alcohol.”

In 2023, they fought over what Newton called an “anti-chug law” that allowed travelers to drink a cocktail inside an airport terminal without staying close to a bartender.

In a theatrical floor debate in February, they took opposing sides on a bill allowing home de-

liveries and curbside pickups of alcohol. As evidence that alcohol deliveries already happen without regulation, Newton came to the podium with a cardboard box and pulled out a bottle of bourbon he said he easily shipped to his office.

The House passed the bill — for a second time — over McCravy’s objections that it would make alcohol more accessible, but it again died in the Senate. During the debate, McCravy accused Newton of doing the business of special interests, which he vehemently denied.

But none of that came up Wednesday, Newton told the S.C. Daily Gazette.

“We had no discussion about policy whatsoever,” Newton said about their conversation after the meeting. And “there was no philosophical discussion.”

He just wanted five other subcommittee chairmen, and that’s his prerogative as the committee’s leader, he said.

McCravy said he gets that. “He has a right to put people in who will follow him. That’s his right,” he said. “I’m just asking to go where I can be effective.”

But it’s unclear where — or even if — he’ll be transferred.

Only the House speaker can make committee reassignments. Newton could only “reluctantly agree” to accept McCravy’s resig-

nation as second vice-chairman of Judiciary, leaving McCravy with no leadership role on the committee at all if he stays.

As of Friday morning, Smith had not responded to McCravy’s request, which came after the speaker’s biennial reshuffling of committees. This year, those decisions involved assignments for 19 freshmen.

The only open spot across committees is on what’s known as 3M: Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs.

That’s because there is one vacancy in the chamber after former Rep. Marvin Pendarvis won re-election as the only person on the November ballot for his North Charleston seat, despite resigning from office months earlier. After the election, the Democrat declined the seat he won by default.

The non-powerful 3M committee was traditionally the only one allowed to be chaired by a Democrat following Republicans’ post1994-election control of the chamber. That changed two years ago, after the House gained a supermajority of Republicans, and Sylleste Davis of Moncks Corner became its chairwoman.

“If the speaker decided to send me to 3M, I’d be thrilled about that,” McCravy told the Gazette. Whatever happens, he said, he

remains committed to the majority GOP agenda, saying the disagreement is not a further splintering of the caucus.

“I plan to support it 100%, and I certainly as chairman of the Family Caucus will also be fighting for legislation to protect the family,” McCravy said.

The last two years has seen an escalation in public Republican infighting between the uber-conservative Freedom Caucus and the majority Republicans. On Tuesday, House Speaker Pro Tem Tommy Pope of York urged all sides to stop the sniping on social media. Ultimately, the public kerfuffle over subcommittee chairmen has no impact on what gets done in the chamber, Newton said.

“I understand his frustration. John and I have always worked together, and we’ll continue to do so,” he said. “This is about who’s going to be in subcommittee chairs. It doesn’t have bearing on any legislation of any kind.”

Seanna Adcox is a South Carolina native with three decades of reporting experience.

She joined States Newsroom in September 2023 after covering the S.C. Legislature and state politics for 18 years. Her

The sign outside the Department of Juvenile Justice’s building on Broad River Road. Skylar Laird/ File/S.C. Daily Gazette

State high court schedules hearing on case that challenges timing of SC’s abortion ban

COLUMBIA — The state Supreme Court will hear arguments in February as to whether a 2023 law actually bans abortions in South Carolina at six weeks — or whether the legal cutoff should be at nine weeks instead.

Arguments are set for 10:30 a.m., Feb. 12

It will be the third time since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022 that the state’s highest court will consider a challenge to the state’s so-called “fetal heartbeat” law.

This time, instead of considering whether the law violates the state constitution’s ban against unreasonable invasions of privacy, the justices will decide at what point in a pregnancy abortions become illegal.

In a 3-2 split ruling in January 2023, justices threw out the Legislature’s initial six-week ban as unconstitutional. The Legislature then passed a new law that was nearly identical in what it banned, but with tweaks that addressed one justice’s dissent. Eight months later, a newly all-male high court upheld that law 4-1

Unlike the last two challenges before justices, this one is an appeal of a lower court’s ruling.

After the high court declined to directly take Planned Parenthood’s dispute of the ban’s timing, the or-

ganization sued in Richland County court in February, arguing the law’s language should allow abortions for several more weeks.

The law itself does not set the ban by weeks of gestation. Instead, it bans abortions, with limited exceptions, once an ultrasound detects sounds of “cardiac activity, or the steady and repetitive rhythmic contraction of the fetal heart, within the gestational sac.”

At six weeks, an ultrasound can

detect cardiac activity. But that activity is not steady, repetitive or rhythmic, attorneys for Planned Parenthood argued in front of a Circuit Court judge in May. By six weeks, a fetus has not developed a heart to beat yet, attorneys said. Legislators’ intentions were clear in passing the law, attorneys for the state replied. Opponents and proponents alike have referred to the law as a six-week ban, proving that legislators meant for it to take

effect at that point, they said.

Circuit Court Judge Daniel Coble agreed with the state, writing in his ruling that legislators “could not have been more clear” about what they intended.

Planned Parenthood appealed the ruling. Since justices last heard arguments about the law, their bench is no longer all male.

The Legislature elected Court of Appeals Judge Letitia Verdin in June. She was elected to fill the

Attorneys: Inmate who killed 2 officers in 2003 shootout can’t be legally executed

Steven Bixby’s attorneys say he inherited his parents’ mental illnesses

COLUMBIA — The death row inmate convicted for a 2003 standoff that left two officers dead is asking the state Supreme Court to halt his pending execution while an Abbeville County court determines whether he is mentally competent.

Steven Bixby, 57, is one of four inmates who have exhausted their normal appeals processes and could receive an execution warrant in the coming months. If the high court sticks to its five-week schedule of executions when the process resumes Jan. 3, Bixby would be scheduled to die May 16 His attorneys filed in both Abbeville County and the state Supreme Court on Tuesday.

Bixby was convicted in 2007 of killing two police officers four years earlier during a daylong standoff on his family’s Abbeville property. After state transportation officials tried to use eminent domain authority to expand a highway over a piece of the property, Bixby and his father stationed themselves at the house’s windows and shot at anyone who approached. The deadly shootout on Dec. 8 2003, ended with Bixby and both of his parents permanently removed from the property.

Bixby’s mother, Rita Bix-

by, was sentenced to life in prison for planning the ambush. His father, Arthur Bixby, was found unfit to stand trial because he had dementia. Both died in 2011, his mother in prison and his father in a mental institution.

If the state’s high court agrees to the stay, Bixby would join two other inmates who have no remaining appeals but are waiting decisions about whether they are competent for execution.

Gary Terry, sentenced to death for raping and killing a woman in 1997, is awaiting a decision from a Lexington County judge as to whether the state can execute him. And John Wood is awaiting a hearing to determine whether he is competent to die for shooting and killing a Highway Patrol officer in Greenville in 2000

What happened?

Tensions began days before the shooting, when Department of Transportation officials discovered someone had tampered with the surveyor’s stakes marking the expansion of S.C. Highway 72

The Bixby family told officials they did not believe the department actually held a right of way on the small corner of their property that officials planned to take over, according to court documents. That weekend, the Bixbys repeatedly told friends and acquaintances they would resort to violence to keep

transportation officials off their property. At one point, Bixby told a neighbor that “they’ll take my land over my cold, dead body,” the neighbor later testified.

Bixby told an ex-girlfriend that “if anybody comes in the yard, we will shoot, and if the shooting starts, I won’t come out alive,” she testified.

Fearing the situation might get violent, transportation officials asked local police officers to come with them to the meeting they had scheduled with the Bixbys that Monday morning.

Sheriff’s Deputy Danny Wilson, a 37-year-old father of five, was the first to arrive, around 9 a.m. Bixby shot Wilson as he approached the door, then dragged his body into the house, where Bixby handcuffed him and read him his Miranda Rights, he later said.

Transportation officials arriving later found Wilson’s car in the driveway but no sign of him. They circled the block a few times, noticing peepholes cut into the blinds.

Other police officers arrived, and Bixby shot at them again through the windows. One shot fatally wounded Constable Donnie Ouzts, a 63-year-old father of two whose body other officers retrieved.

For more than 12 hours, the Bixbys exchanged gunfire with local and state law enforcement officers. Using robots, police were able to survey the scene and see that Bixby’s father had been injured. At around 11 p.m., Arthur Bixby surrendered to police, and Steven Bixby gave himself up

soon after, according to court documents. Their bullet-riddled house stood as a reminder of the carnage until 2018, when an Abbeville resident bought the property in a tax lien sale and signed the deed to the county to demolish it.

‘Bizarre and paranoid’

Previous evaluations found that Bixby’s beliefs were unusual but did not veer into mental illness, meaning he could stand trial.

Bixby and his family had extremist views about government authority and the U.S. Constitution, often aligning with those of the “sovereign citizens” movement of people who believe the law does not apply to them, according to court documents.

Under the U.S. Supreme Court’s determination, which finds inmates incompetent only if they are unable to grasp what their execution means or the link between their crime and the punishment, Bixby would still be eligible for execution, wrote forensic psychologist Richart DeMier, who evaluated Bixby between January and May for his defense team.

But under the South Carolina Supreme Court’s definition, Bixby should not face the death chamber, DeMier wrote in a report submitted to the high court as part of Tuesday’s filing.

South Carolina has two methods of determining competency. An inmate can’t be executed if they don’t understand the court proceedings, what they were tried for, the reason for their sentence, or what their sen-

tence means. An inmate can also be found incompetent if they do not have “sufficient capacity or ability to rationally communicate” with their attorneys, according to the high court’s decision in a previous competency case.

During conversations with DeMier, Bixby was able to understand what execution meant and why he was sentenced to death, though he contended that his crime was justified. But his inability to understand the evidence against him makes him unable to understand the case, and his “bizarre and inaccurate beliefs about the legal system” have made him unable to communicate effectively with his attorneys, DeMier wrote.

Bixby’s attorneys can’t trust any information he gives them about his background or his relationship with his parents because he refuses to engage with any potentially negative conversations about his parents and downplays his siblings’ reports of abuse, DeMier wrote.

Bixby has also developed “belief in bizarre and paranoid concepts,” the evaluation found.

The inmate told DeMier that he believed prison officials had injected him with a tracking device, that death row inmates are “traded like hogs on the stock market,” that he often found divine messages in numbers that he used to justify his crime, that officials destroyed his school and medical records, that the blood found on his clothing contains the DNA of Christ, and that crime scene photos show that an angel was present,

DeMier wrote.

“Mr. Bixby’s bizarre beliefs have apparently rendered him totally unable to understand the most basic legal procedures available at this stage of his case,” DeMier wrote. Both of Bixby’s parents showed symptoms of mental illness. Arthur Bixby was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and Rita Bixby was often described as volatile and paranoid. Corrections staff reported that she experienced delusions, according to court documents.

“The content of the delusions was not specified, but it is evident that many of Mr. Bixby’s unusual beliefs were learned from his mother,” DeMier wrote.

Two inmates have been executed since the state resumed in September carrying out death sentences.

Executions were halted for years as the prisons agency struggled to resupply the drugs used for lethal injection. Legislators changed the default execution method to electrocution and added firing squad as an option, which the state Supreme Court upheld as constitutional in July. Lethal injection is also an option again after a law keeping all information about the supplier secret allowed officials to purchase more.

Skylar Laird covers the South Carolina Legislature and criminal justice issues. Originally from Missouri, she previously worked for The Post and Courier’s Columbia bureau. S.C. Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

The South Carolina Supreme Court in Columbia. Mary Ann Chastain/Special to the S.C. Daily Gazette
Bixby

VMFA-251 reactivates at MCAS Cherry Point

Squadron will be Marine Corps’ 1st on East Coast featuring F-35C Lightning II

HAVELOCK, N.C. — Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 251, Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 14 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW), reactivated during a ceremony on Thursday, Dec. 5, aboard Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point, N.C., following a fouryear, seven-month hiatus. VMFA-251, known as the “Thunderbolts” or “T-Bolts,” was previously deactivated during a ceremony on April 23, 2020, aboard MCAS Beaufort after returning from deployment in 2020 in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. The Thunderbolts’ deactivation concluded its 34 years as an F/A-18 Hornet squadron. The squadron was then relocated to MCAS Cherry Point to begin its transition to the F-35

VMFA-251 received its first F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter delivery on Sept. 17 2024, marking a key milestone in the squadron’s transition process. VMFA-251 is the Marine Corps’ first East Coastbased operational F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter squadron. The F-35 is a fifth-generation fighter jet with advanced stealth, agility and maneuverability, sensor and information fusion, and provides the pilot with real-time access to battlespace information.

TU.S. Marines with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 251 march in formation Thursday, Dec. 5, during the reactivation ceremony for VMFA-251 at Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point, N.C. VMFA-251 is the first East Coast-based Marine Corps squadron to employ the F-35C Lightning II, which is designed to operate from conventional aircraft carriers or land bases and provides operational flexibility and persistence to II Marine Expeditionary Force. Lance Cpl.

Orlanys Diaz Figueroa/USMC

It is designed to meet an advanced threat, while improving lethality, survivability, and supportability.

The F-35C is designed to operate from conventional aircraft carriers or land bases and provides operational maneuverability and persistence to the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF). Superior internal fuel capacity results in a significantly increased combat radius and longer on-station times as compared to the F-35B, the F-35’s short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant.

to the day after it was founded, VMFA-251 reactivates as an F-35C Lightning II squadron. The T-Bolts are humbled and honored for the privilege of carrying that proud legacy forward,” said Lt. Col. Evan Shockley, commanding officer, VMFA-251. “Our immediate

focus is working towards initial operational capability, which means that VMFA251 has enough operational F-35C Lightning II aircraft, trained pilots, maintainers, and support equipment to self-sustain its mission essential tasks. Following that, we will turn our attention towards reaching full operational capability to ensure that, when called upon, the T-Bolts will stand ready to serve our great nation.” VMFA-251 is a subordinate unit of 2nd MAW, the aviation combat element of II Marine Expeditionary Force.

“Today, almost 83 years

VA benefits for elderly veterans

his is the second of four articles on 23 VA benefits for elderly veterans. Last week’s article covered the VA's pension program (Regular Pension and enhanced benefits of Aid & Attendance and Housebound), Geriatrics and Extended Care Program, and Long-Term Care Program. It also reminded veterans to sign up for VA healthcare, use a Veterans Service Officer to help them file for their VA benefits and services, and ensure they know their social worker. You can read Article 1, dated December 4 2024, online at https://bit. ly/4grRyEa.

Benefit 3 of 23 — VA Military Service-connected Disability Compensation

A “service-connected disability” is a disability that is related to your active military service. Your disability is assigned a rating (0% to 100%) based on how severely it impacts your daily life. The greater your disability, the higher your rating. VA Disability Compensation is a monthly tax-free payment to veterans who have a service-connected disability. The higher your rating, the higher your monthly payments will be. However, having a disability caused by your active military service does NOT automatically start disability compensation payments. You need to apply for those benefits. It is essential to do this because your service-connected disability status affects the veteran’s VA co-pay and what programs the veteran is eligible for. Work with a VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO) to file your claims for service-connected disability compensation. You can search for a VA-accredited representative (VSO, Attorney, or Claims Agent) nationwide

at https://bit.ly/3QnCk5M or search for a county Veterans Service Office in South Carolina at https://bit.ly/3qbLVSL or visit your local Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) Regional Office for assistance. Veteran Service Officers do not charge for this service. Learn more about VA Financial Benefits/Service Connected Disability at https://bit.ly/3D5XTXI and https://bit.ly/4g8L3qg.

Residential settings and nursing homes

The VA’s “Geriatrics and Extended Care” (Residential Settings and Nursing Homes) webpage at https://bit.ly/41h4Vmj explains the following benefits:

Benefit 4 of 23 — The Community Residential Care program

The Community Residential Care program is for veterans who do not need hospital or nursing home care but cannot live alone because of medical or psychiatric conditions. This type of care occurs in several settings, including Assisted Living facilities, Personal Care Homes, Family Care Homes, Group Living Homes, and Psychiatric Community Residential Care Homes. These places – more than 550 of them across the country – are inspected and approved by VA medical center staff but are chosen by the Veteran. Learn more at https://bit.ly/4g6iKJ4

and by talking to your VA Social Worker.

Benefit 5 of 23 — Medical foster homes

Medical foster homes are private homes where a trained caregiver provides services to a few individuals. Some, but not all, residents are veterans. A medical foster home can serve as an alternative to a nursing home. It may be appropriate for veterans who require nursing home care but prefer a non-institutional setting with fewer residents.

Medical foster homes are private residences where the caregiver and relief caregivers provide care and supervision 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This caregiver can help the veteran carry out activities of daily living, such as bathing and getting dressed. The VA ensures that the caregiver is well-trained to provide VAplanned care.

While living in a medical foster home, veterans receive homebased primary care. Veterans can find a list of current VA Medical Centers (The Ralph H. Johnson VA does not have a program) with medical foster home programs at https://bit.ly/41liRfk. Learn more at https://bit.ly/3ZqEwQF and by talking with your VA Social Worker.

Benefit 6 of 23 — Adult family homes

Adult family homes are private homes where a few residents (six of fewer) rent rooms. The homes have shared common spaces, and veterans might share a bedroom and bathroom with another person.

A trained caregiver is on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This person can help the veteran with daily activities (e.g., bathing

and dressing). The VA may also be able to provide a health professional (e.g., a nurse) to come to the adult family home and give the veteran extra care.

The VA does not pay for the veteran's rent, which usually includes basic services. However, the VA may pay for some additional services, such as nurse visits, that a veteran may need in an adult family home. Learn more at https://bit.ly/3ZONuHN and by talking with your VA Social Worker.

Benefit 7 of 23 — Traumatic brain injury — residential rehabilitation (TBI-RR)

TBI-RR is a residential rehabilitation program that the VA purchases on behalf of veterans with TBI and other brain injuries. Veterans must need neurobehavioral treatment in a protective environment, and their care needs cannot be met in a nursing home or on an outpatient basis to be eligible for this care.

VA purchases the services in these facilities, but the VA is prohibited from paying the full cost. The veteran is responsible for payment of room and board, which is generally $30 to $40 per day.

Veterans must be enrolled in the VA for their health care and be eligible for the VA’s Community Care Program to receive these services. Services include physical, occupational, and speech therapy, behavior management therapy, nursing services, health aide services, and activities.

TBI-RR is not uniformly available across the country, and the veteran may need to relocate to receive these services. The veteran and family should discuss this option with their VA primary care provider and the TBI coordinator

at their local VA medical center. Learn more at https://bit.ly/ 4f8YLs0 and by talking with your VA Social Worker.

Benefit 8 of 23 — Assisted living Assisted living facilities are places where veterans can live in a rented room or apartment. There are some shared living spaces, like a dining room. In some facilities, the veteran could have their own kitchen or kitchenette.

A trained caregiver is on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This person can help the veteran with activities of daily living (e.g., bathing and getting dressed). Veterans may also be able to have the VA arrange for a health professional (e.g., a nurse) to visit and give them extra care. The VA does not pay the veteran's rent, which usually includes basic services. However, the VA may pay for some of the additional services the veteran may need in an Assisted Living Facility. Learn more at https://bit.ly/3ZpTIgZ and by talking with your VA Social Worker.

Continued next week.

Larry Dandridge is a

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