December 5 edition

Arrest video sparks investigation

Women arrested by Beaufort PD on Thanksgiving; one while filming police

By Delayna Earley

The Island News

took place on Thursday, Nov. 28 at the intersection of Palmetto and Boundary streets. On November 30, the Beau-

fort Police Department released a statement saying that they were aware of the video that had been circulating on social media.

“As part of standard protocol, every incident involving a response to resistance undergoes a multi-step review process to en-

‘We are very short on wreaths’

Wreaths Across America Day set for December 14

By Mike McCombs The Island News

Wreaths Across America Beaufort

Coordinator David Edwards hates talking about the numbers. Yet each year, as Wreaths Across America Day approaches, it’s inevitable Edwards will be asked, “How close are they?”

“Just write this,” Edwards said. “… Tell everybody I said, ‘We are very short on wreaths. There’s still time, though. We’ll take order right up until they close the doors on the truck. I know times are tough. I know people gave to Helene, I know people gave to other hurricanes. Everybody’s having a little difficulty.

But if you can help out, please do.”

The Remembrance Wreaths cost $17 and it takes roughly 26 000 to adorn every headstone in Beaufort National Cemetery.

At press time, Edwards and Wreaths Across America Beaufort are about 60 percent of the way to reaching their goal of a wreath on every headstone, a goal they’ve met the past four years.

To sponsor a Remembrance Wreath, click on the QR code on Wreaths Across America Beaufort’s Facebook page or visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/ GA0175P. That code at the end of the web address guarantees the wreaths

purchased make their way to Beaufort.

This year, National Wreaths Across America Day will be held on Saturday, Dec. 14. This is a free event open to all, and the organization encourages community members to participate by volunteering locally or sponsoring a wreath for an American hero.

For more information, visit www. wreathsacrossamerica.org. Once again, to sponsor a wreath for Beaufort National Cemetery, visit wreathsacrossamerica.org/GA0175P.

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

Whistleblower reported deaths of more than 20 monkeys

By Delayna Earley The Island News

The facility in Yemassee from which 43 monkeys escaped last month is under scrutiny once again.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), an animal welfare group, is calling for an investigation into allegations that more than 20 monkeys died at Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center in Yemassee on Castle Hall Road due to a malfunctioning diesel heater that caused temperatures to fatally rise in the building where they were living.

Dr. Lisa Jones-Engel, a primate scientist with PETA, filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) asking the agency to investigate the incident.

According to the statement put out by PETA, Jones-Engel said, “a diesel heater may have malfunctioned at the facility late on [November 22].”

The statement continued to say that the monkeys “likely endured agonizing deaths – either slowly roasted alive or suffocated by deadly carbon dioxide fumes,” per multiple whistleblower reports. PETA was reportedly contacted by the whistleblowers that reported the monkey deaths.

The USDA’s Animal Care, a program that enforces the Animal Welfare Act and Horse Protection Act, told PETA that it would take 30 to 60 days to investigate the complaints.

Alpha Genesis’ facility in Yemas-

SEE MONKEYS PAGE A4

Members of Daisy Girl Scout Troop 83 place wreaths on some of the more than 26,000 headstones during last year’s Wreaths Across America Day at Beaufort National Cemetery on Saturday, Dec. 16, 2023. Bob Sofaly/File/The Island News

Simmons

Johnson

LOWCOUNTRY LIFE & NEWS

Back in October, Mason Meyer snapped some photos of Monarch butterflies and Gulf fritillaries by the marsh. 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 VICENTE PEREZ

American Legion Beaufort Post 207 brings you Beaufort’s Vicente Perez, 24 who joined the United States Marine Corps in El Paso, Texas in 2022. After Boot Camp in San Diego, he trained to be an aviation life support equipment technician.

Today he works at MCAS Beaufort on the systems aboard the F-35 Lightning II that keep the pilots alive. Within two years, he’s been entrusted with the lives of the pilots in our newest stealthy, supersonic, single-seat, single-engine fighter jets that cost more than $80 mil-

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Not a good look

Your columns by Lucas and Manning are not a good look for you and don’t deserve the space they take up. Their content is not factual and never informed or thought provoking. The reaction to the election is comical but hard to watch. The columns are amateurish at best, mean-spirited at worst. More columnists like Graber, Hyde, Lauderdale or Raunch will make the paper grow. Your opinion pages can do better. Thought you would want to know.

– Jerry Floyd, St. Helena Island

Reconsider your opinion

columns

As a close to 4 year resident of Dataw, I have often grabbed The Island News to see what is going on in our area. While it is easy to say as the papers editors — Mr. McCombs and assistant editor Ms. Earley — that the opinions expressed are not necessarily that of the paper, it seems that the opinions of Terry Manning and Carol Lucas and Scott Graber are most often what is in print. Possibly there are no conservative contributors to the paper, or possibly they are just not the views that you put in the paper.

I would strongly urge you to take a look at what just happened with our election and

ON THIS DATE

December 6

understand that conservatives have tended to be less vocal about politics than liberals. Calling those "dummies" (no matter how you interpret the definition of the word) that voted for change are "holding us back" is typical of the left, if you don't agree with us you are a "dummy." Very unifying way of thinking.

I don't think the past four years have moved our country forward in any way; another four years would have been seriously bad for us. Instead of fighting every issue the new administration implements, why not try to see if we can reverse the negativity and give things a chance to show some results. And when positive results happen, put that in your editorial section!

– Andrew Schiavone, Dataw Island re: Wait … don’t jump

Mr. Wainwright, when did you think America was not great? And why use your slogan of MAGA?Carol Lucas and Terry Manning are highly educated and well-informed columnists whom I follow and respect greatly. You tout limited government but insist in legislating the bedrooms of citizens and deigning health care choices to women?

Patriots? Your people attacked the capital chanting “Hang Mike Pence,” and were responsible for hundreds of injuries and five

lion each. He lives with his wife, Daniela in Laurel Bay.

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

deaths. Immigrants have been a hot potato topic for decades. yet no administration has addressed it. Trump wanted to build a wall which has never worked and cost billions. He didn't do it.

Promised to have the best health program in history, didn't do it. Promised to lower taxes for all Americans? Oh he did, for the top 1% wealthiest Americans and corporations adding to our national debt by over $2 trillion. Exxon alone had $800 billion in profit, yet got a $700 million tax refund. Trump promised the greatest infostructure program in history. He didn't [do it].

Trump was so stupid, his dad had to pay off every school he attended so they would pass him. Trump claimed his dad only gave him $1 million to start his business, but was actually more than $4 million. In just a few years he filed bankruptcy. Same with his casinos, the house ALWAYS wins! How do you bankrupt a casino?

Trump is a convicted felon. Fraud, rapists, adultery, taxes and insurance fraud; stealing government documents and then hiding them when FBI served him. Much more as well.

Just a suggestion, pray daily to your God for forgiveness for supporting this fraud gangster.

– Don Cass, Beaufort

2023: Beaufort Police Chief Dale McDorman announces he would be retiring Jan. 26 2024. A member of the Beaufort Police Department since 1995, McDorman became chief in July 2020 following the death of Chief Matt Clancy. December 10

2010: Harriet Keyserling, who, as a champion for women’s issues, represented Beaufort for 16 years state legislature, dies of kidney failure at Beaufort Memorial Hospital at the age of 88. She was elected to Beaufort County Council in 1975. Then from 1977 to 1993, Keyserling spent her time in Columbia focused on energy, nuclear waste, the arts, education, women’s rights and ending the filibuster in the House. She was the mother of longtime Beaufort Mayor Billy Keyserling. – Compiled by Mike McCombs

PAL PETS OF THE WEEK

Dog Of The Week Ghostface has a silly side that will keep you smiling. Whether he's doing a happy dance or playfully chasing his tail, he knows how to bring joy to any moment. Bring home the love of a rescue pet this season. Ghostface is a year old, neutered, up to date on vaccinations, and microchipped.

Cat Of The Week

Donni may look like a bit of a bruiser, but he couldn’t be more sweet and friendly if

he tried. Who can resist that face? Donni is 5 years old and waiting to meet you at Palmetto Animal League’s No Kill Adoption Center in Okatie. He is neutered, up to date on vaccinations, and microchipped.

For more info on Ghostface, Donni of any of our other pets, call Palmetto Animal League at 843-645-1725 or email Info@ PalmettoAnimalLeague.org.

– Compiled by Lindsay Perry

Vicente Perez

SC Court of Appeals denies requests for rehearing

Graham Trask, HBF hoping SC Supreme Court will hear case

By Mike McCombs

The Island News

If lawsuits by Graham Trask and the Historic Beaufort Foundation (HBF) are going to reverse the City of Beaufort’s approvals for developer 303 Associates’ hotel and parking garage in downtown Beaufort, it’s going to require a ruling by the S.C. Supreme Court.

The South Carolina Court of Appeals, on Tuesday, Nov. 19, denied requests filed Nov. 14 by Trask (West Street Farms, LLC and Mix Farms, LLC ) and HBF to reconsider its opinions rendered Oct. 30

Those decisions had 1) affirmed a decision from Circuit Court

Judge Bentley Price in January 2022 denying the appeal of West Street Farms, LLC, Mix Farms, LLC, and Historic Beaufort Foundation that upheld the Historic District Review Board’s approval of developer 303 Associates’ hotel and parking garage in downtown Beaufort; and 2) affirmed a decision by Circuit Court Judge R. Scott Sprouse in June 2023 that denied the request of plaintiffs West Street Farms, LLC and Mix Farms, LLC to overturn approvals granted by the City of Beaufort to 303 Associates, LLC for a new downtown hotel, apartments and parking garage. Judge Sprouse held that the request was improper given that a similar challenge had already been denied in Circuit Court.

The court said, in its Nov. 19 de-

nial, “After careful consideration of the petition for rehearing, this court has discovered no material fact or principle of law that has been overlooked or disregarded, and hence, there is no basis for granting a rehearing. Accordingly, the petition for rehearing is denied.”

“The expediency with which the Court of Appeals rendered its decision on these requests for rehearing speaks to the frivolous nature of the challenges made by the plaintiffs,” Beaufort City Manager Scott Marshall said in a news release. “It’s unfortunate that their persistence in challenging properly made decisions has cost the taxpayers nearly $90 000 in legal fees, and the meter is still running.”

By rule, the plaintiffs have 30 days to petition the S.C. Supreme

Court for a hearing to appeal the decisions rendered by the S.C. Court of Appeals. The S.C. Supreme Court can choose to hear the matter or reject the petition.

It appears it won’t take nearly that long.

“I’ve already give my lawyer the authority to go to the S.C. Supreme Court,” Trask told The Island News on Friday, Nov. 22. Executive Director Cynthia Jenkins, in a newsletter to HBF members emailed later that day, said she hoped the case would be heard by the state’s highest court, as well.

“They can say ‘yay’ or ‘nay,’” Trask said. “If they say ‘nay,’ I guess were done, if they say ‘yay,’ I guess we’ll have our time before the Supreme Court.”

Trask, who has been frustrated by the rulings on appeal, still finds

the decisions intriguing.

“The court has said, in order to appeal [the approval of these buildings], you had to approve it at every step – conceptual, preliminary and finding,” Trask said. “As far as we know, there’s no case law tat supports that. The Beaufort Code doesn’t say that.

“If this stands up, it’s going to be a wholesale change in the way projects are approved statewide,” he said. “Projects would be appealed at every level. It would be a monumental change to real estate approvals statewide.

“This has become a monumental case if this is upheld by the S.C. Supreme Court.”

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

The City of Beaufort holiday festivities line-up

Staff reports

The holiday season in the City of Beaufort gets into full swing this weekend. Here is the calendar for the rest of December:

Thursday-Friday, Dec. 5-6

The “Gullah Kinfolk Christmas Wish” is an interactive musical depicting the last Christmas before the beginning of the Civil War among the enslaved at a South Carolina plantation.

7 p.m., USCB Center for the Arts. Tickets: https://www. gullahkinfolktravelingthe -

ater.org/christmas

Friday, Dec. 6

Celebrate Night on the Town as streets close at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, Merchants will be open, most offering complimentary food and drinks. On Bay Street, there will be plenty of food and activity booths hosted by non-profit organizations, and downtown restaurants will be open. Christmas music and caroling throughout evening. The Parris Island Ma-

rine Corps Band, concert stage, Charles and Bay streets.

6 p.m., Santa photos begin outside Beaufort Candy Shoppe, 103 West Street Extension.

6 p.m., movie on Bay Street.

8:15 p.m., “The Night Before Christmas” reading.

8:30 p.m., tree lighting with snow!

Saturday, Dec. 7

Celebrate and honor Gullah holiday traditions from 11 a.m. to 4

p.m. with the Gullah Taste of Christmas and Rice Cook-off.

Santa photos outside Beaufort Candy Shoppe, 103 West Street Extension, 1 to 5 p.m. The Lighted Boat Parade, hosted by the Beaufort Water festival, begins at 5:30 p.m. Grab a seat along the seawall at Waterfront Park.

Sunday, Dec. 8

The annual Christmas Parade begins at 3 p.m. and typically concludes about 5 p.m.

Pulmonary C are

JOHN KRCMARIK M.D., FCCP

A board-certified, fellowship-trained pulmonologist and intensivist, Dr. Krcmarik draws on more than two decades of widely ranging experience in his specialty to prevent, diagnose and treat acute and chronic diseases and conditions of the respiratory system, bringing particular expertise in the treatment of sleep disorders.

A Chicago native, Dr. Krcmarik had practiced pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine for over 20 years at Munson Medical Center in Traverse City, Mich., and served in several leadership positions, including as medical director of both Respiratory Care Services and the Munson Sleep Disorders Center.

ANDREW STEVENS M.D.

A board-certified pulmonologist, Dr. Stevens’ broad expertise encompasses the treatment of asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), smoking cessation, lung nodule evaluation, lung cancer diagnosis, pulmonary hypertension, and interstitial lung disease.

Santa rounds it out as he sits atop a Beaufort-Port Royal fire truck.

Dec. 6-8

View more than 150 Nativity displays from around the world at First Presbyterian Church of Beaufort, 1201 North St. 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Dec. 6-7; noon – 3 p.m. Dec. 8

Saturday, Dec. 14

Wreaths Across America at Beaufort National Cemetery at noon.

Santa photos outside Beaufort Candy Shoppe, 103 West

Street Extension, 1 to 4 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 21

Santa photos outside Beaufort Candy Shoppe, 103 West Street Extension, 1 to 4 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 26

Chabad Greater Hilton Head holds a Chanukah menorah lighting, 5-6:30 p.m., Waterfront Park.

Tuesday, Dec. 31

Celebrate the end of 2024 and look ahead to 2025 with fireworks at Waterfront Park!

SHAWNA NIEVIEROWSKI

FNP - BC

An experienced and board-certified nurse practitioner, Shawna Nievierowski, works with the practice’s clinical team to prevent, diagnose and treat acute and chronic diseases and conditions of the respiratory system, including lung cancer screening and care coordination. Among her professional interests are chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, complicated pneumonias and interstitial lung disease.

Born into a family of doctors, Dr. Krcmarik earned a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy, summa cum laude, from Loyola University of Chicago and a Doctor of Medicine from Loyola’s Stritch School of Medicine. He completed an internship and residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in pulmonary critical care at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H. He is board certified in the two specialties as well as in sleep medicine and is a fellow of the American College of Chest Physicians.

Originally from Toronto, Canada, Dr. Stevens recently relocated to the Lowcountry after completing a three-year fellowship in Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care Medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, where his patient-centered approach earned him an award for excellence in patient care. His tenure there also nurtured a profound interest in critical care, which he regards as “the purest form of medicine,” due to its emphasis on fundamental issues affecting the entire body. Dr. Stevens pursued a double major in college, obtaining a Bachelor of Science in biology and medical science from Western University in London, Ontario. He earned his Doctorate of Medicine from St. George’s University School of Medicine in Grenada, West Indies, graduating summa cum laude, and completed his residency at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C.

A “fixer” at heart, Mrs. Nievierowski knew she wanted to be a nurse since taking a career aptitude test at the age 12. After completing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing, she worked in Saginaw, Mich., as a registered nurse in urgent, intensive and emergency care, in addition to caring for patients recovering from open-heart surgery, before returning to school to become a nurse practitioner.

After earning her Master of Science in Nursing from Saginaw Valley State University in University Center, Mich., as well as several advanced intensive and critical care certifications, Mrs. Nievierowski was recruited into pulmonary care where she developed a passion for the specialty that she’s now worked in for more than a decade.

Drs. John P. Krcmarik and Andrew Steven s and nurse practitioner Shawna Nievierowski are now seeing patients at 300 Midtown Drive in Beaufort.

Cold weather shelters opened Tuesday night

Staff reports

Below freezing temperatures forecast for Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning in the Beaufort area prompted officials to open two cold weather shelters in the county for those in need of a warm place to stay.

In Northern Beaufort County, Sea Island Presbyterian Church, located at 81 Lady’s Island Drive, Beaufort, opened at 5 p.m. on Tuesday. This shelter was to close at 8 a.m. Wednesday morning, after press time for The Island News. Dinner and breakfast were to be provided, and showers were available. Sea Island Presbyterian Church permits no weapons, alcohol, smoking, or pets, but service animals were allowed.

In Southern Beaufort County, Christ Lutheran Church, located at 829 William Hilton Parkway, Hilton Head Island, opened at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday and was to close at 7:30 a.m., Wednesday morning.

Monkeys

from page A1

see houses roughly 4 000 monkeys.

The whistleblower’s complaint was submitted anonymously and alleged that there was an ongoing cover-up, which PETA included in their submission to the USDA.

The monkeys are used for biomedical research at the facility, and they breed monkeys and provide nonhuman primate products and bio-research services worldwide, according to the company’s website.

In early November 2024, 43 rhesus macaque monkeys escaped from the facility drawing attention internationally. The monkeys escaped after an employee left their enclosure open while cleaning it and feeding the animals. As of the beginning of December there are still four monkeys that have not been recaptured.

Alpha Genesis did not respond to request for comment before press time.

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.

Burton Fire District’s annual Santa visits underway

Staff reports The Burton Fire District’s annual community Santa visits have started and will continue until every street in Burton’s service area has been visited.

With the exception of 2020 due to COVID, the Burton Fire District has been bringing Santa Claus around to every street in the Burton community for more than three decades. Each year, Burton firefighters escort Santa in a fire truck procession to meet area families and children. With each family he sees standing outside, he stops to listen to Christmas wish lists, pose for photos, and leaves a holiday treat.

This is a much-anticipated event each year for firefighters and the community, and for some families it has been a tradition each year

to pose with Burton firefighters and Santa.

“We are now seeing the children, and some grandchildren, of those we met years ago, and to watch a family grow like that is really some-

thing special for firefighters,” Burton Fire Chief Harry Rountree said in a news release.

On school nights, Monday through Thursday, Santa will be out from 6 to 8 p.m. On Fridays and Saturdays, he’ll visit from 6 until 9 p.m. Each day, Burton will post the schedule of streets they plan to visit that evening on their Facebook page, along with any updates. Any streets that are missed due to emergency responses or weather will be made up until every street has been visited.

“Throughout the year, unfortunately, we meet some of our families on their worst day, so this is the time of year we can bring something good and positive, and help increase their holiday spirit,” said Chief Rountree.

100 Women Who care donate $12,400 to Helianthus Project

Staff reports

At the fourth quarter meeting of 100 Women Who Care (WWC) in October, three different nonprofit organizations presented their needs to the group. Ultimately, the group selected the Helianthus Project, whose mission is to assist minor/youth victims of human trafficking within the Lowcountry.

In addition to providing free education regarding human trafficking to the local community and businesses, they also work closely with the S.C. State Human Trafficking Taskforce, as well as the Lowcountry Human Trafficking Taskforce to assist in resource allocation, financial assistance and more.

In November, Laura Riski, coordinator of the Beaufort 100 WWC chapter, presented Rachel McBride, founder and executive director of the

LEGAL NOTICES

In November, Laura Riski, coordinator of the Beaufort chapter of 100 Women Who Care, presented the Helianthus Project, a check for $12,400. Submitted photo

Helianthus Project, a check for $12,400

The monies will be used to help launch an Advocacy Program to create a certified Advocate to work closely with the victim and their family to assist in providing emotional support,

guidance, and resources. They will be able to assist victims and their families financially to assist in covering essential needs such as housing; clothing; food; hygiene; safe and reliable transportation to various counseling sessions and

doctors appointments, including co-pay assistance if necessary.

100 Women Who Care have now surpassed the $500,000 mark in donations to Northern Beaufort County nonprofits. More than 100 local women meet

quarterly and each donate $100 check to the selected non-profit. For more information, visit www.100wwcbeaufort.org.

For more information on the Helianthus Project. visit www.thehelianthusproject. org.

0000

SUMMONS TO THE DEFENDANTS ABOVE-NAMED: YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED and required to answer the Complaint in this action, a copy of which is herewith served upon you, and to serve a copy of your answer thereto upon the subscribers at their offices, 611 Bay Street, Beaufort, South Carolina, within thirty (30) days after the service hereof, exclusive of the date of such service, and if you fail to answer the Complaint within such time, the Plaintiff in this action will apply to the Court for the relief demanded therein.

TUPPER, GRIMSLEY, DEAN & CANADAY, P.A. By: s/James A. Grimsley III James A. Grimsley III (SC Bar #2328) Attorneys for the Plaintiff P.O. Box 2055 Beaufort, South Carolina 29901 (843/524-1116) jimgrimsley@tgdcpa.com Beaufort, South Carolina June 30, 2023 STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF BEAUFORT IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS CASE NO.: 2023-CP-07-01340

$5.23; DONNA SUE HARBIN&SKYLAR PAIGE HARMAN 5910 HORSE PASTURE LN APT 111, CHARLOTTE, NC 28269-3364, 0.0073861610410129%, U1204-W48E,

With the exception of 2020 due to COVID, the Burton Fire District has been bringing Santa Claus around to every street in the Burton community for more than three decades. Photo courtesy of Burton Fire District

Beaufort set to mark 200th anniversary of Lafayette’s visit

Festivities highlighted by Colonial Ball, reenactment of French aristocrat’s arrival, procession through City

Staff reports

Beaufort is getting all worked up about the return of the Marquis de Lafayette.

Historic Beaufort Foundation, the City of Beaufort and other partners are gearing up for the March 2025 200th anniversary of Lafayette’s visit to Beaufort.

Official planning has been underway since August and includes lectures, a First Friday contest and parade for children, and informative display boards for City Hall, the John Mark Verdier House Museum and other locations, living history interpretations, program activities with the Beaufort Country Library, school events and more.

An expected highlight will be a re-enactment on March 18 of Lafayette’s arrival and procession through downtown Beaufort. The events on March 18 will culminate with a Colonial Ball in the Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park reminiscent of the ball held for Lafayette when he arrived in Beaufort in 1825

“The 200-year anniversary of Lafayette’s visit to Beaufort reminds us of how long Beaufort and the Lowcountry have been an important feature in the history of the United States,” Beaufort Mayor Phil Cromer said in a news release

“It is exciting to see all the activities being planned to celebrate this important period in our history, and

to better understand how Lafayette helped bring this country together,” he said.

The Historic Beaufort Foundation, the City of Beaufort, the Beaufort Convention & Visitor Bureau, American Friends of Lafayette and The Lafayette Trail, Inc., are collaborating along with some 50 local, state, regional and national groups and individuals to make March 2025 a very special month.

Joining the effort is the Beaufort County School District, and organizers hope to encourage private, charter, home, and virtual schools to participate as a way to increase knowledge and ap-

NEWS BRIEFS

Arbor Day celebration set for Dec. 6

In honor of Arbor Day, which is observed throughout South Carolina on the first Friday in December, the City of Beaufort and its Public Works Department, working along with the Park and Tree Advisory Commission, will plant two Allee Elm trees to continue to beautify the City. At 10 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 6, the Arbor Day celebration will begin on Palmetto Street just outside the Beaufort Police Department.

For 33 years, the City of Beaufort has been named Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation. Beaufort has received this national award in recognition of its commitment to its trees and urban/community forests. Criteria for this award include having a tree ordinance, a tree board (Park & Tree Advisory Commission), a community forestry program, and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation.

The trees are courtesy of the City of Beaufort and PTAC. For more information, please contact Adam Wellins at 843-525-7054

Beaufort County Assessor

hosting community events

Beaufort County Assessor Ebony Sanders is hosting multiple community events at County Library Branches to allow the pub-

Arrests

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sure compliance with our standards and policies,” the statement said. “We remain committed to transparency, accountability, and upholding the trust of our community.” Before this happened, officers had pulled over a vehicle in the same location and arrested the driver for driving under the influence of alcohol and resisting arrest and arrested his passenger

preciation of our state and national history.

“This promises to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see history come alive in the form of Lafayette’s ‘return’ to historic Beaufort,” HBF Executive Director Cynthia Jenkins said.

“Lafayette’s visit 200 years ago has always been revered by Beaufortonians as one of the most important events in the city’s history. We are working on a multiday celebration culminating in recreating Lafayette’s visit in Beaufort on March 18, 1825,” Jenkins said.

Included in the planning is a visit by Lafayette interpreter and U.S. Army

lic an opportunity to meet with her staff and share questions and concerns regarding real property.

Each community event will be from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. The dates are as follows:

Bluffton Branch Library, 120 Palmetto Way: Thursday, Dec. 5 – Large Meeting Room.

Lobeco Branch Library, 1862 Trask Parkway: Monday, Dec. 16

In the event of an unforeseeable change in the date, time, or location, the Assessor’s Office webpage will be updated to reflect rescheduling. If you have any questions, please contact Liz Rigg, Appeal/BAA Coordinator at BAA@bcgov.net or 843-255-2404

Malkin to speak at December Indivisible

Beaufort meeting

ACLU-SC Advocacy Director Josh Malkin will be the featured speaker at the December meeting of Indivisible Beaufort at 11 a.m., Saturday, Dec. 14 at St. Helena Branch of the Beaufort Public Library at 6355 Jonathon Francis Sr. Road on St. Helena Island.

Sponsored by Indivisible Beaufort, Lowcountry Pride, and FABB, in the Building Movements For Justice program, Malkin will talk about the bills that have been filed for the 2025 South Carolina Legislative Ses-

for public disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.

According to Simmons, the two men who were arrested were her brothers.

Simmons said that she received a call from her brother asking her to come out to the scene to pick up the vehicle they had been driving because they were being arrested.

After arriving at the scene, Simmons said that the car her brother was driving was being loaded onto a tow truck.

Simmons was arrested for allegedly assaulting a

“non-officer” at the scene, who was identified by Simmons as the tow truck driver.

The video begins with Simmons being pulled from her vehicle by a Beaufort police officer.

As the woman is arrested by another police officer and a Beaufort County Sheriff deputy, the passenger, Johnson, can be heard asking why they are arresting the woman while she films the incident.

A Beaufort police officer yelled at Johnson to, “Back up, now!” She responded by saying,

veteran Mark Schneider, recently profiled in The New York Times and other publications. For more than 25 years he has worked at Colonial Williamsburg portraying the French aristocrat who arrived in America at age 19 to help lead the battle for independence.

“Mark is the biggest deal we have. We count on him as an historian and an interpreter, and he is an expert on Lafayette. He has been studying this for more than 20 years,” said Charles Schwam, executive director of the American Friends of Lafayette national organization.

Though little documentation exists, historic anecdotes persist that Lafayette greeted Beaufort townspeople from the steps of the Verdier House on Bay Street. In recognition of his stop in Beaufort, HBF will erect a marker in front of the Verdier House.

The Marquis de Lafayette was a French Nobleman and military officer who volunteered to join the Continental Army, led by Gen. George Washington, in the American Revolutionary War. He commanded the troops in the decisive siege of Yorktown in 1781, the final major battle that secured American Independence, and he is remembered as a “Hero of the Nation,” noted Lise Sundrla, assistant HBF director.

In August 1824, Lafayette

began his “Farewell Tour of the Nation” in Staten Island, N.Y. He was the last surviving major general of the American Revolutionary War. His tour included 24 states, ending September 6, 1825, in Washington, D.C., where he celebrated his 68th birthday at a White House banquet with President John Adams. His 1824-25 visit to South Carolina included stops in Cheraw, Camden, Columbia, Izzard’s Plantation north of Charleston, Charleston, Edisto and ended in Beaufort.

In his 1825 visit to Beaufort, Lafayette arrived to a 13-gun salute by the Beaufort Volunteer Artillery and mounted officers from the St. Luke’s Guard. Carriages then carried Lafayette and his family through a triumphal arch for a welcome address by the Beaufort mayor. Shortly after, a reception and ball ran into the early morning hours.

“We started our research and preparations almost two years ago, knowing it would take our full community to pull together a commemoration worthy of Lafayette’s return 200 years later,” Sundrla said.

People and groups interested in helping with the planning and execution of the bicentennial activities should contact Historic Beaufort Foundation at info@historicbeaufort.org

HBF is also seeking donations and sponsorships

sion and discuss ways to advocate for the issues that matter to all of us.

The event is free and open to the public.

County Veterans Affairs celebrating Operation Green Light

In collaboration with the National Association of Counties (NACO), Beaufort County Veterans Affairs is celebrating Operation Green Light for Veterans for the month of November. Beaufort County's Government Buildings in the County Plaza including the Administration Building, the Arthur Horne Building and the County Courthouse will all be lighted green for the month of November.

FEMA hiring in South Carolina

FEMA is hiring in South Carolina to support recovery from Hurricane Helene. A wide range of skills and expertise are needed.

Positions include Civil Rights Specialist; Disability Integration Advisor; Environmental And Historic Preservation (Environmental Compliance Specialist, Environmental Floodplain Specialist, Environmental Specialist, Historic Preservation Specialist); External Affairs (Creative Specialist (Writer), Digital Communications Specialist, External Affairs Specialist, Intergovernmental/Congressional Affairs Specialist, Media Rela-

“How you gonna tell me to back up?

The officer responded by saying, “Because I just f***ing did.”

Then a separate police officer approached Johnson and told her to stay out of the crime scene before he tells her that he is arresting her for interfering with the arrest.

The video was posted by Simmons to Facebook where it has been shared thousands of times and has garnered hundreds of comments from people claiming that the individuals were

for the event. Partners and contributing organizations to date include City of Beaufort, Historic Beaufort Foundation, American Friends of Lafayette, Lafayette Trail, Inc., Beaufort Convention & Visitor Bureau, Beaufort History Museum, Beaufort County 250th Committee and Sea Island Carriage Tours. Also, Thomas Heyward Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution; Sons of the American Revolution, Lodge No. 36; Beaufort County Library -Beaufort District Collection; Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort; Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island; Society of the Cincinnati; S.C. Rep. Shannon Erickson; and the Beaufort County School District.

Also contributing are USCB-CFA, Liberty Live, Coastal Heritage Society –Savannah, Williams Group PR LLC, Best Western Sea Island Inn and the Davenport House –Savannah. Historic Beaufort Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit education foundation created to preserve, protect, and present sites and artifacts of historic, architectural, and cultural interest throughout Beaufort County, South Carolina. For more information on the entity's mission and history, please visit historicbeaufort.org and follow them on social media, including Facebook and Instagram.

tions Specialist, Program Liaison Specialist, Visual Imaging Specialist); Hazard Mitigation (Community Education Outreach Specialist, Data Integration Specialist, Hazards And Performance Analysis Specialist, Insurance Specialist); Information Technology Specialist; Interagency Recovery Coordination (Community Assistance Expert Specialist, Geospatial Data & Analytics Cell Analyst); Logistics Specialist; Public Assistance (Program Delivery Manager).

Many FEMA employees began their careers in emergency management by helping their own communities recover from a disaster, as a local hire. These temporary positions start as 120-day appointments and may be extended. Benefits include sick leave, health insurance and up to 11 paid annual holidays. Applications are being accepted online. To see all open positions and to apply, visit USAjobs.gov, type keywords “FEMA, Local Hire” and enter your location as “South Carolina.”

Detailed information is provided for each position, including pay and benefits. More information about FEMA’s hiring process can be found on FEMA.gov/careers and the Local Hire career path at LocalHire|FEMA. gov. All applicants must be U.S. citizens and 18 years of age or older. Additional requirements vary by position type.

– Staff reports

treated differently because they were Black and because the passenger was recording the arrest.

According to public records, Simmons, Johnson and one of Simmons’ brothers were all released on personal recognizance bonds on Friday, Nov. 29

Her other brother was released on Saturday, Nov. 30, also on a personal recognizance bond.

Beaufort Police Department spokesperson Lindsey Edwards was not able to answer questions asked by The Island News before

press time on Tuesday, but she told The Island Packet that none of the Beaufort officers have been placed on leave during the internal investigation. Edwards did say that Chief Stephanie Price was out of the office and was not available for comment immediately.

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.

Well-known historical interpreter Mark Schneider, in costume as the Marquis de Lafayette, will be part of Beaufort’s March 2025 festivities. Submitted photo

Parents, public can review proposed school instructional materials online

Staff reports

The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDOE) has invited the public to review instructional materials that have been proposed for use in South Carolina’s public schools.

In a memo to SC District

Superintendents, SCDOE

Deputy Superintendent Matthew Ferguson encouraged district leaders, instructional staff, parents, and community members to participate in this process to “ensure that the selected materials meet the highest quality standards and address the needs of our students.”

The recommended materials are in the following subject areas:

Computer Education Computer Science A, Advanced Placement

Computer Science Principles, Advanced Placement

Mathematics Mathematics, K-5 (includes Immersion Mathematics Programs for Chinese and Spanish)

Mathematics, 6-8

Mathematics, 9-12 Algebra 1 and Algebra 2 with Probability

Applications and Modeling

Calculus

Calculus AB, BC, Advanced Placement

Discrete Mathematics

Geometry with Statistics Precalculus Statistics, Advanced Placement

Reasoning in Mathematics Statistical Modeling

CTE Areas by Career Cluster Art, Audio-Video Technology and Communications

Architectural Design 1 2

Fashion Design and Apparel

Construction

Graphic Communications 1 2 3 4

Interior Design 1, 2 Mechanical Design 1, 2 Media Technology 1 2 3 4

Business Management and Administration

Administrative Support Technology

Digital Publication Design

Entrepreneurship Fundamentals of Human Resource Management Principles of Digital Technology

Professional and Leadership Development

Virtual Enterprise 1 2 3 4

Education and Training Introduction to Teaching 1 2

Exploratory Offerings, Middle Multimedia Basics

Finance

Banking Services

Business Finance

Insurance and Risk Management

Securities and Investment

Government and Public Administration Principles of Public Management and Administration

Health Science Introduction to Health Professions

Hospitality and Tourism Event and Entertainment Management

Introduction to Culinary Arts Management Introduction to Hospitality and Tourism

Human Services/Family and Consumer Sciences

Cosmetology 1 2 3 4

Fashion, Fabric, and Design 1, 2

Housing and Interiors 1 2

Nail Technology 1 2 3 4

Natural Hair Braiding Sports Nutrition

Information Technology

Advanced Networking

Advanced Web Page Design and Development

Computer Programming with C++ 1 2

Computer Programming with Python 1, 2

Computer Repair and Service

Fundamentals of Computing Fundamentals of Web Page Design and Development Introduction and Intermediate Computer Programming Information Systems Networking Fundamentals

Manufacturing Introduction/Intermediate Manufacturing Technology

Marketing Advertising

Fashion Marketing

Merchandising Marketing

The materials will be on display at seven locations thru January 3 2025, with instructions for submitting comments available at each site: Bob Jones University Mack Library, Bob Jones University, 1700 Wade Hampton Boulevard, Greenville S.C. 29614 Coker University Library-Information Technology Center (LITC), 300 E. College Avenue Hartsville, S.C. 29550 Columbia College, J. Drake Edens Library, 1301 Columbia College Drive. Columbia S.C. 29203 Columbia International University Library,

7435 Monticello Road, Columbia, S.C. 292303122

Converse University, Mickel Library, 580 East Main Street, Spartanburg S.C. 29302 Horry Georgetown Technical College, 2050 Highway 501 East Conway S.C. 29526 Winthrop University, Withers Building, 611 Myrtle Drive, Room 307, Rock Hill, S.C. 29733

In addition to the display sites, digital access will be available for the recommended programs on the SCDE website (https:// ed.sc.gov/instruction/instructional-materials/). The materials recommended by the Instructional Materials Review Panels will be submitted to the State Board of Education (SBE) for consideration on Jan. 7 2025. The SBE will receive public comments before a final decision is made on adopting the instructional materials.

Staff reports

In partnership with the National Park Service’s Reconstruction Era National Historical Park, the Saturday, Dec. 7, edition of DAYLO’s monthly Teddy Bear Picnic read-aloud will feature a very special guest reading at 10 a.m., with an encore at 11 a.m., as the Read With a Ranger program returns once more for the holidays.

NPS Park Ranger Katherine Freeman will be reading from the children’s picture book “Okra Stew: A Gullah Geechee Family Celebration,” by Natalie Daise. The book invites young readers to learn about Gullah family traditions and foodways. Inspired by Okra Stew, there will also be an art project for attendees to reflect on their own family traditions, just in time for the December holidays.

“A loving family, a verdant garden, and Gullah Geechee traditions are key ingredients to this delightful stew of a story,” praised Kirkus Reviews is a starred review of Okra Stew.

DAYLO student volunteers will be assisting with Read With a Ranger, and also reading other children’s picture books throughout the morning, from 9 : 30 a.m. to noon, at the Farmers Market by the gazebo in Naval Heritage Park, 1615 Ribault Road, Port Royal.

Founded in 2021 at Beaufort High School, DAYLO, or Diversity Awareness Youth Literacy Organization, is a student-led book club and community literacy service group with chapters across South Carolina. DAYLO has been recognized with awards from the American Association of School Librarians, the

South Carolina Library Association, and the South Carolina Education Association, as well as being featured in national media.

As an ongoing community service project, the five Beaufort-based DAYLO chapters host free read-aloud events — called the Teddy Bear Picnics — for young children and their families at the Port Royal Farmers Market on the first Saturday of each month, in collaboration with the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center.

To learn more about DAYLO, please visit www.instagram.com/ beaufort_daylo. To learn more about the Reconstruction Era National Historical Park, visit www. nps.gov/reer. To learn more about the weekly Port Royal Farmers Market, visit www.portroyalfarmersmarket.com.

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NPS Ranger Katherine Freeman holds a copy of the children’s picture book

“Okra Stew: A Gullah Geechee Family Celebration,” by Natalie Daise. Submitted photo

Bad ideas die hard:

The effort to give America’s public lands to individual states

Deep in Idaho’s Clearwater Mountains, along the beautiful Lochsa River, is a stand of ancient cedar trees. These trees stand hundreds of feet tall and are hundreds of years old. They have seen a lot of American and Idaho history. They were standing long before Europeans arrived in these mountains, back when the Nez Perce traveled through the Clearwater Mountains along what they called the Road to the Buffalo, the route they used to travel from their Idaho home to the buffalo hunting grounds in Montana.

They were standing when explorers Lewis and Clark passed by less than mile away on their 1805-06 historic trek across North America to the Pacific Ocean.

These trees were standing in 1877 when Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce were fleeing the U.S. Cavalry in their heartbreaking effort to reach the safety of Canada.

Conservation historian Bernard DeVoto camped under these trees in the late 1940s while working on his editing of the Lewis and Clark journals. After DeVoto’s death, this grove of cedar trees was named the DeVoto Memorial Cedar Grove, and his ashes were spread on this site.

It’s no accident that these old cedar trees are still standing. They remain standing because they are on public lands. Public lands, in which every American has a stake. Surrounding forests, not on public lands, tell a far different story.

A few miles to east of the DeVoto Cedar Grove are lands that once belonged to a railroad company.

In the 1860 s, railroad companies were given vast tracks of lands in the West to facilitate settlement efforts and ease the way for possible cross country railroad routes. Only a few such routes panned out, so the railroads eventually sold much of their timber lands to private timber companies. These companies, out to maximize profits for shareholders, ravaged these forests, brutally logging these landscapes and leaving behind

eroded hillsides, polluted streams, and miles and miles of stumps.

Even today these denuded lands continue to dump sediment into the headwaters of the Lochsa River.

A few miles to the west of the DeVoto Cedar Grove are forest lands that ended up owned by another entity, this time the state of Idaho. Forests owned by the state are mandated to be managed to produce the maximum revenue for the school system.

This means logging. Lots of logging. The state lands west of the DeVoto Cedar Grove are a jumbled maze of logging roads and clearcuts. Any old trees once there are long gone.

Besides his work on the Lewis and Clark journals, Bernard DeVoto is best known for his conservation advocacy in Harpers Magazine in the 1940s. It was here that DeVoto blew the whistle on the efforts by the national livestock associations to turn all of America’s public lands over to individual states and eventually private ownership. DeVoto’s writing galvanized opposition that helped defeat that effort at that time.

But bad ideas die hard.

There’s always remained

smoldering efforts by private entities and the politicians in their pocket to somehow get their hands on public lands.

The effort is back again. Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador filed a friend of the court brief supporting Utah’s effort to dispose of public land to state ownership. While purportedly focused on lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management, which provide unmatched wildlife habitat and recreation opportunities to all Americans, Utah’s lawsuit raises the question of whether the federal government can hold lands in perpetuity at all.

If this effort were to succeed, you can bet the national forests would be next on the politician’s wish list.

Idaho sold off about one third of the land it received from the federal government upon statehood. Had Idaho gotten more land, it would have simply sold more of it.

It has generally been a short step from state ownership to private ownership. And private ownership has meant, for stands of old forests like the DeVoto Grove on the Lochsa, a quick trip to the nearest sawmill and money in the owner’s pocket. Millions of acres of old

growth forest, and the wildlife, clean water, and recreation opportunities supported by these forests, are gone forever by this route.

We in the West know what state or private ownership means for forests: Stumps, and lots of them. Both entities manage forests to maximize dollars generated.

In contrast, public lands mean trees hundreds of years old, superb wildlife habitat, clear, clean water, and unmatched recreation opportunities. And our heritage.

You would be hard pressed to find many areas owned by states or private corporations where short-term monetary gains are sidelined for the sake of protecting a place of history like the DeVoto Cedar Grove.

Craig Gehrke is an Idaho native who served as the director of the Idaho Office of The Wilderness Society for longer than three decades, and he helped lead the efforts to establish the Owyhee Canyonlands and Boulder-White Clouds Wilderness Areas. This commentary was first published by the Idaho Capital Sun, which like the S.C. Daily Gazette, is part of the national States Newsroom network. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson is among groups and politicians nationwide who signed on to court briefs supporting Utah’s lawsuit.

CRAIG GEHRKE

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

Pandering to fear is not the American way

Recall Thanksgiving afternoon as you watched football and digested turkey after giving much thanks for your freedom, blessings and family.

Imagine hearing the doorbell as you’re dozing. At the door is a young brown woman, heavy with child. She’s wearing a scarf on her head. On the street, you see a beat-up car with a man inside.

The woman holds her belly. “Sir, my husband, Jose, and I have no place to stay tonight. We’re new to this country and haven’t been able to find steady work. We’re cold. We’re hungry. But we’re not any trouble We’re legal — we’re refugees. Can you help us tonight?”

You’re perplexed, torn, conflicted. What should you do? Like most Americans, you’re generous. You’re kind. But this? Somebody else should deal with it, right? What do you know about these people, this woman who claims her name is Maria?

America, a nation made strong by immigrants, is once again confronting nasty, Joe McCarthy-like debates about immigra-

tion — about who should be in the country and who shouldn’t.

Most Americans seem to forget that in just about everyone’s background is an immigrant like Jose or Maria who turned up on these shores to start a better or different life, some as immigrants, some as slaves, and others as refugees from war and violence. With each wave of new arrivals, some Americans were frightened at first, worried by the backgrounds, baggage and competition that the newcomers brought. But over time, each new wave became part of the fabric of the nation, adding new strength to the diversity of people called Americans. With just about every family’s immigrant past, it’s unsettling

how quickly so many forget and fall into xenophobia, the fear or irrational dislike of foreigners. Case in point: Former Gov. Nikki Haley, a brown woman and daughter of Sikh immigrants who in 2015 joined 29 other governors — all but one Republican — in saying Syrian refugees shouldn’t be resettled in the Palmetto State. Really? The overwhelming majority of refugees, all of whom go through extensive background checks, are women and children. Where’s your Christian charity? Where’s your leadership? You could be a spokesman to highlight how America is the land of opportunity for all. Instead, you conveniently join the crowd of pandering politicians and seem to forget how your family was welcomed into the United States.

Meanwhile, GOP presidential candidates turn up the heat with vitriol and rhetoric, inflaming feelings of fear. Chief fearmonger is billionaire Donald Trump, who talks about maintaining databases of Muslims and making them wear identification, the same kind

of labeling done in Nazi Germany to Jews, gays and Communists.

Ladies and gentlemen, this isn’t the America in which I grew up. We’re better than the political nonsense that is fueling the airwaves and social media. The Greatest Generation toiled and fought to preserve freedom for all, understanding what one president said: “The only thing to fear is fear itself.”

Former Washington Gov. Jay Inslee wrote that his state would continue to welcome refugees because it’s part of what being American is:

“The American character is being tested. Will we hew to our long tradition of being a beacon of hope for those chased from their homelands? I have always believed that the United States is a place of refuge for those escaping persecution, starvation or other horrors that thankfully most in America will never experience.”

From 2002 to 2015, South Carolina accepted 1,813 refugees from 30 countries, according to federal sources. More than a third

(680) were from Burma. Iraq was the mother country to 249 and Ukraine to 205. One refugee was from Syria.

Fear, as Inslee notes, is a powerful thing. If we succumb to it, aren’t we letting the terrorists win? Aren’t we letting them change our lives of freedom? We shouldn’t blame people running from terrorists into the refuge of America or France or Sweden for what the terrorists are doing. Instead, we, like other free countries, should welcome them so they can blossom from victims into capitalists.

Andy Brack is editor and publisher of Statehouse Report and the Charleston City Paper. Have a comment? Send it to feedback@statehousereport.com. Published in coordination with StatehouseReport.com with assistance from the S.C. Institute for Independent Journalism.

All South Carolinians lose when we marginalize women’s voices

The problem with the South Carolina Legislature is women: There aren’t enough of them.

The House and Senate are largely boys’ clubs and have been for a long time.

After the recent elections, women make up only 13% of the House and Senate. Meanwhile, women comprise 51 4% of the state’s population.

In other words, our Legislature is laughably unrepresentative of South Carolina.

Governing bodies should reflect the people they serve. Our House and Senate do not.

The problem becomes acutely obvious when a Legislature that is 87% male dictates abortion laws.

Women have a voice in South Carolina politics, but it’s drowned out by the mansplaining boys.

Elections this year drove our Legislature even further toward a full-blown bro-ocracy. We went from having 27 women in the state Senate and House to only 22 women, according to Rutgers University’s Center for American Women and Politics.

Among the women defeated this year were the three Republican “sister senators” who helped block a near-total ban on abortion. A six-week ban ultimately became law.

With no Republican women in the state Senate, lawmakers could enact a total ban or at least stronger restrictions on abortion next year.

Our state ranked 47th in the nation in the percentage of female legislators before Nov. 5. We may rank even lower now.

Women get things done

Women bring distinct perspectives and life experiences to the Legislature, inspiring a richer policy conversation.

Women in state legisla-

tures nationwide tend to be less hyper-partisan and more pragmatic than men. They’re consensus-builders, said Jean Sinzdak, associate director of Rutger’s center.

The antidote to many of South Carolina’s ills could be pretty simple: We need more women in state elected office to broaden the debate and expand the practical answers to our problems.

As Margaret Thatcher famously opined: “If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman.”

Think of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer telling her male-dominated Legislature to stop dithering and bickering over road issues.

“Fix the d— roads!” she said.

Research has shown that female legislators file more bills, pass more laws, and bring more dollars back into their districts.

Former Republican Sen. Katrina Shealy, one of the ousted “sister senators,” had the Senate’s most winning record, with 14 of her bills becoming law in 2023-24 according to the Gazette.

In addition, female legislators bring an array of issues to the table that men often completely overlook.

Consider this: When state House Speaker Murrell Smith and four House GOP caucus leaders, all men of course, recently penned their top legislative priorities for next year, there was not a word about the sort of crucial issues female legislators often emphasize, such as domestic violence, childcare, food programs for children, and healthcare for struggling families.

Sen. Katrina Shealy, R-Lexington, holds up Wednesday, June 26, 2024, with white gloves, the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award given in fall 2023 to the five bipartisan “sister senators” who helped block a near-total abortion ban. Of the five, only Sen. Margie Bright Matthews, D-Walterboro, (far left) will return in 2025. Jessica Holdman/S.C. Daily Gazette

South Carolina has the nation’s sixth-highest rate of domestic violence. As for childcare, U.S. News in 2022 ranked South Carolina near the bottom for affordability.

These are the sort of issues women care about because they often touch their lives directly or at least indirectly.

Women, as the traditional caregivers of society, tend to be compassionate and practical-minded on healthcare and family issues. If women had a stronger voice in the Legislature, South Carolina might have expanded Medicaid for struggling families long ago.

Our state remains one of only 10 states that have refused to expand Medicaid. Not surprisingly, several of those states are, like South Carolina, are at the bottom in legislative gender parity.

South Carolina also ranks among the worst states in

the nation for children, according to the annual Kids Count.

I’d bet a Legislature dominated by women would actively address children’s issues and, for an encore, they’d fiercely advocate for the summer food program for poor kids that Gov. Henry McMaster refuses to support.

But what are the priorities of GOP caucus leaders? They plan to focus their energies on school vouchers and “historic income tax cuts.”

The real education crisis

In short, if women dominated the Legislature, I’d wager that they’d govern differently and more humanely.

GOP leaders, in announcing their legislative goals, spoke about controversial school vouchers, which have produced mixed results in other states. But

they completely neglected to address the real crisis in K-12 public education: The teacher shortage that left more than 20 000 students without a highly qualified teacher in the classroom last school year.

If women had a stronger voice in the Legislature, they’d probably draw more attention to South Carolina’s high rate of gun violence which devastates families.

It’s true that women don’t necessarily march in lockstep. And we shouldn’t vote for a candidate merely for her gender.

There’s no reason that male lawmakers can’t address issues often important to women: Childcare, domestic violence, children’s well-being, education, health care and gun violence.

But they don’t, at least not adequately.

It’s pretty clear the reason

we elect fewer women to state office is because we, like other conservative Southern states, often cling to traditional gender roles. That means minimizing women in public elected office even as they make gains in the private sector. That leaves us poorer and lingering at the bottom of most national rankings of well-being.

The lessons are clear: When we marginalize women’s voices, we all lose.

Paul Hyde is a longtime journalist and teacher in the Upstate. He worked 18 years for the Greenville News as a columnist, editorial writer, education reporter and arts writer. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Clemson and Harvard universities. He has written for the Houston Chronicle, Dallas Morning News and USA Today, among other publications. He currently is a regular contributor to the Greenville Journal, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Classical Voice North America.

ANDY BRACK

PAUL HYDE

Editor’s

Be a moderate misfit

It is Wednesday, early, and overcast. This morning I have my coffee, Donut Shop Medium Roast, and half of a Publixmade blueberry-infused muffin. I have the Wall Street Journal — several days old — that features an entire section on Artificial Intelligence.

As some of my readers know, I am retired from a 50-year-long hitch with the legal profession. I was around when Xerox copiers arrived; when the first computers showed up, and when cellphones infected and diminished every waking moment. For the most part I accepted these changes thinking that these sleek devices made me more productive and also thinking that “productivity” was America’s secret sauce.

Notwithstanding these digital devices I clung to the notion that the law was the fundamental compact among our tribe — and finding a solution using these

agreed-to principles was my primary function; and during the process a blackrobed person — sometimes flawed — was the unsmiling referee.

I also believed that one might take different routes through the maze, be counterintuitive and sometimes skeptical — and still succeed.

The days-old Journal could have titled its AI section as, “Get in. Buckle up. Artificial Intelligence Changes Everything.” Artificial Intelligence is going to give us billions of bits of information that have been curated into a “truth” that will sell burgers,

build highways and solve legal disputes. At the same time there has been an explosion of coding “boot camps” that will fill-up the (now empty) office buildings in Manhattan with kids who speak the language. But will this new truth finding system give us a better life?

The Journal’s AI section gives us a piece titled, “The Many Ways Readers Are Using AI In Their Daily Lives” — that says ChatGPT helped two friends prepare for their marriage by outlining the ceremony and “suggesting specific Bible verses.” This piece also says ChatGPT found a vacation destination (Museum of Musical Instruments) that resolved a simmering family dispute and turned out to be a “hit.” And that AI helped a struggling artist with contrast, sense of scale and showed her “where the building cast shadows.”

While I’m skeptical about the notion of any ultimate,

unimpeachable digital wisdom when it comes to choosing the perfect Bible verse for two secular teenagers; or the notion of a perfect vacation destination — years ago I found the Kansas Barbed Wire Museum entirely on my own — it was the AI-assisted painter that gave me pause.

It was ChatGPT helping the young artist with contrast, shadows and giving her the suggestion of “a few floating leaves to guide the viewer’s eye into the painting …”

One has to wonder whether those data driven improvements should come by way of the “trial and error” technique that helped Michelangelo, Donatello and Matisse?

Years ago there those “experts” who said that it was repetition that came with doing a Madonna and Child 1 000 times that gave Giotto his genius. And yes, those Renaissance masters like Titian and Raffaello

had mentors, but a big part of what they accomplished was the result of error and then learning from their mistakes.

You may be saying to yourself, “I’ve always known Scott was a Luddite, but why in the world can’t he agree that AI is the future? And what kind of sick person encourages endless repetition, the ruination of perfectly good canvas? Come on gramps, get on board.”

We know there are professions that prohibit trial and error — cardiologists and gastrointestinal surgeons come to mind. Those folks are not supposed to make mistakes. And when they do there is a huge cohort of medical malpractice attorneys ready to leap into action. Most of the American medical community blames the high cost of medical care on medical malpractice insurance.

There are, of course, other professions that do not en-

courage experimentation or trial and error — structural engineers come to mind.

But I, myself, believe that life is littered with mistakes and that misfortune can be a “teachable moment.”

Then, as I was leaving the Journal’s AI section my eyes spotted, “Be a moderate misfit.”

“Amid all the changes AI is bringing, companies want fresh thinking. So one route to success is to be a ‘moderate misfit,’ unhappy with the status quo and ready to innovate says Chamorrow-Premuzic. By moderate he means ‘you fit in well enough but are not so bland and risk averse as to lose the desire for change and progress.’”

“Misfit” in the age of big, bottomless data? But will our new world permit mistakes?

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

Here’s to health, happiness, confidence in new regime

Ihave had every intention to try and back away from writing about politics, at least until the beginning of next year. “Give it a rest,” I admonished myself. “You are making yourself crazy or at least more so than you already are.”

But we all know that the road to hell is paved with those good intentions. Furthermore, as 2024 careens to the finish line, the fodder on the political front is ever growing and truly difficult to ignore.

I find myself especially intrigued by the choices president-elect Trump is tossing out for approval, and at one point I had to ask myself if he is playing some kind of bizarre game or has he totally lost his senses. You can determine that one for yourself, dear reader.

Me? I’m toying with the notion that Trump is making a concerted effort to bring the country to its knees. That doesn’t preclude his loss of all that is sensible, nor does it exonerate him from the possibility that he sees this as a game, one of revenge, if you will.

And yet, I have to give him this much credit: he told the country what he was going to do, so there is no element of surprise

Every nominee that has come forth, and heaven knows there has been a continuum of them,

starting almost immediately after the election, has generated controversy. While I often question Donald Trump’s cognitive skills, I have to wonder whether or not these picks are made to purposely create chaos and fear.

For starters, let’s recognize and accept that many of these choices lack the qualifications to successfully tackle the job for which they are nominated. I will address that deficiency later.

For now, simply accept Trump’s own words: he demands loyalty, and he seeks revenge and retribution. And, yes, he aspires to be a dictator (the first day, if you really believe this), thus the loyalty clause. By the way, I heard his dictatorial ambition statement with my own ears, despite disclaimers previously stated.

I believe what the president-elect is striving to accomplish is the creation of an infrastructure of people who support

authoritarianism, he being the authority, and this is best done by demanding total support from them, first and foremost. Qualifications be damned!

So let’s parse some of these suggested appointees from the tsunami of names submitted.

Of course, we cannot forget the first volley, that of Matt Gaetz, previously the subject of a federal sex-trafficking investigation. I must ask if those of you who feel Trump can do no wrong, do you approve of Gaetz? Because if you do, I have to question your sense of morality as well. Sorry, but as my Mom used to say, you are judged by the company you keep.

Moving on, let’s consider the nation’s health, which certainly is, or should be, of primary import.

Trump was “thrilled” to announce his nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the former independent presidential candidate and prominent anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

Add Dr. Oz as cohort with Kennedy. In a statement announcing his pick, Trump said Dr. Oz would “work closely with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to take on the illness industrial complex, and all the horrible chronic diseas-

es left in its wake.” Trump also noted that Dr. Oz had “won nine Daytime Emmy Awards hosting “The Dr. Oz Show,” where he taught millions of Americans how to make healthier lifestyle choices.”

Well that certainly clarifies any questions regarding expertise. Feeling better already about your future health scenario?

This past week, Trump’s pick for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, came under scrutiny as well as fire. It seems the Fox News host (there is expertise at its finest) feels that women aren’t fit for combat roles. Did he come to that conclusion before or after the allegation of sexual assault?

Didn't she put up enough of a fight? Even Mama says she’s ashamed of him and his abuse of women for many years. Good grief! If your own mother doesn’t support you, why does Donald? Oh, that’s right … birds of a feather!

Kash Patel for Director of FBI?

That merits a complete article on its own. Let’s just state that proof has been brought forth regarding his coordination in the 2020 attempted coup.

William Barr, initially a Trump cohort, stated, "Patel had virtually no experience that would qualify him to serve at the highest level of the world's preeminent

law enforcement agency."

Linda McMahon, Trump’s nominee for Education Secretary, has already been caught in a lie which should exclude her from consideration. She claimed to have a degree in Education, which she does not. She is a billionaire professional wrestling mogul who served for one year on the Connecticut Board of Education. Wrestle that one around. I fail to address Elon Musk or Vivek Ramaswamy; this is material for another day. I will toss into the final mix, however, Pam Bondi, Trump’s pick for Attorney General. It seems that as Florida’s attorney general, her office opted not to pursue a fraud investigation into Trump University. Furthermore, in 2016 news emerged that Trump had paid a $2 500 fine because his foundation improperly donated $25,000 to Bondi’s political election committee. Hmmm

The president-elect has proposed bypassing the traditional Senate confirmation process, as well FBI background checks. I wonder why?

But as I often say, “I digress.”

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 inability to communicate in a high-tech

T

he ability to communicate with one another has reached a level that only a few decades ago would have seemed impossible.

Billions are spent each year here on earth and on satellites orbiting the earth to improve connectivity throughout the world. Many parts of the world, which until recently had very little ability to communicate outside their immediate environment, can now get on a cellphone and contact others in different parts of the world or even watch sporting events or news shows via the internet.

With communication abilities expanding at such a tremendous rate, why

do some feel that in some ways communication has actually gotten a lot worse in some arenas?

I am not talking about communications with one another on a personal basis but with larger organizations. When contacting a store, business, manufacturer, or governmental entity we do so either by mail, phone, text, or email. Some

sites have a contact form to fill out. Others have instructions on contacting specific individuals or departments within the organization. And many just have a general email address to which one can send a complaint, question, or comment. Sometimes an auto response is sent back stating that someone will get back to you soon, in one or two days, or some similar message. Often one sends an email or text and gets no immediate response.

Everyone has different experiences on how easy or difficult communication is with certain organizations from time to time. In my experiences, I would estimate that 50% of the time I

have received no response to a message I have sent. If the message is regarding a service I have not been happy with or a product I have had a real problem with, I would estimate the percentage of no responses to exceed 90% Often, if I have a complaint, I am not looking for a refund but more to let the company know I am a little or a lot dissatisfied with a purchase or service. If one takes the time to let a supplier, etc. know about a problem with a product or service, would it really be that hard or that time-consuming for them to send a simple response acknowledging your concerns and simply say that they were sorry that it did not meet

your expectations?

Even if they do not offer some sort of restitution (i.e. take the product back, etc.) a simple response would very often be appreciated. Maybe complaining about the lack of people responding to emails, text messages, etc., these days is overly sensitive or seems trivial, but I have made it a personal decision to deal as little as possible with those companies, especially those where I have purchased a somewhat defective or inferior product.

Sometimes we don’t have a choice. Some products in general, such as clothing made overseas, just does not seem to have the same quality as when made in the United States.

world

However, finding some U.S.-made products at competitive prices has become more and more difficult. Maybe others have always been able to get prompt, courteous responses. But I think for many of us these days, those are more the exception and probably gone for good. That is until artificial intelligence takes over as it already has begun to do.

Dan Reider worked for 40plus years as a mechanical engineer designing

SCOTT GRABER

CAROL LUCAS

DAN REIDER

Buying a home blood pressure monitor?

Six things you need to know

Steer clear of bells and whistles—simple, affordable monitors are all you really need

Maybe your blood pressure has been creeping up over time, or you’re starting treatment for hypertension. Your doctor suggests you buy a home blood pressure monitor to help keep track between office visits.

Here are six tips on what you need—and what you don’t need— in a home blood pressure monitor. How to monitor blood pressure at home:

Let’s review how to take your blood pressure at home. The American Heart Association has a few suggestions to make sure your readings are accurate: Avoid activities that raise blood pressure 30 minutes before testing. That means no caffeine, cigarettes, or exercise.

Positioning matters. When you’re testing your blood pressure, you need to pay attention to your posture. Sit upright with your back supported, and make sure your arm is raised to heart level. Your arm should be supported by something like a cushion or armrest. Chill out a bit. Try to relax for five minutes before turning the monitor on. Chatting with friends, checking your phone—anything that could stress you out or get you excited, really—can impact the accuracy of your reading. Don’t hold it. Weird fact of the day: Needing to pee raises your blood pressure! That’s another reason (though, we hope you didn’t need one) to make time for a bio-break.

Have a routine. Blood pressure fluctuates a lot during the day, so you’re most likely to get useful data if you test at roughly the same times every day. Notice the “s” there: Testing once a day won’t give you

or your doctor the same kind of insight that you’ll get from checking several times a day at consistent times.

Of course, you can do everything right and still get an inaccurate blood pressure reading if you’re working with a sub-par monitor.

With so many blood pressure monitors on the market, how do you decide what to pick? And how do you know that your monitor’s working properly? According to experts, you need to keep six things in mind.

1. Choose arm cuffs over wrist cuffs. You can purchase a blood pressure monitor at any drugstore or online. No matter where you buy yours, get a monitor with an automatic cuff that wraps around your upper arm. It’s called a brachial blood pressure monitor. Don’t get one where you need a stethoscope, an automatic cuff is best.

What about those monitors with wrist cuffs? Or finger cuffs? The American Heart Association recommends against both for people who are able to use an arm cuff. It’s the best option and tends to provide the most accurate readings.

2. Size matters. The size of the cuff is the most important feature to check when you’re selecting a blood pressure monitor. In fact, a 2023 study found that “miscuffing” resulted in “strikingly inaccurate BP measurements.”

The size you need is determined by the circumference of your upper arm. A cuff that doesn’t fit properly may give you inaccurate readings, leading to a misdiagnosis.

This is one of those situations where it’s worth it to pull out the tape measure. You need to measure the circumference of the middle of your arm—exactly halfway between our shoulder and elbow.

The different cuff sizes are:

Adult small: Arm circumference of 22 to 26 centimeters (about 8 5 to 10 inches).

Adult average: Arm circumference of 27 to 34 centimeters (about 10 5 to 13 inches).

Adult large: Arm circumference of 35 to 44 centimeters (about 13 5 to 17 inches).

Adult extra-large: Arm circumference of 45-52 centimeters (about 17 7 to 20 5 inches).

3. Keep it simple. Forget the bells and whistles. They boost the cost of the monitor and are often unnecessary. Sure, Bluetooth connectivity and storing your readings in the cloud are cool features, but you don’t really need them.

You shouldn’t have to pay more than $40 to $60 for an appropriate, physician-approved blood pressure monitor that will do the job just fine.

4, Skip the apps. If you look at any app store, you’re likely to find dozens of blood pressure measurement apps for your smartphone. Reviewing physicians are blunt about this: “These products don’t work and have not been rigorously tested.”

5. Check for validation and inspect for accuracy. You might be feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the things you need to keep in mind when selecting a monitor.

Have no fear: There’s a website out there that can help cull that list for you! It’s called the US Blood Pressure Validated Device Listing. This independent review committee tests blood pressure monitoring products for accuracy and gives specific models their

stamp of approval. It’s a quick way to find a product you can trust. The committee reviews all blood pressure monitors, including the stations you see at grocery stores and pharmacies.

Of course, even the best blood pressure monitors aren’t always going to be perfect. Manufacturing errors, wear and tear, battery depletion—there are plenty of issues that can cause inaccurate readings. That’s why it’s important to test your device against other monitors on a regular basis.

Most monitors you find in a drugstore or online are fine, but it doesn’t hurt to take it to your doctor’s office and check yours against the office monitor. If the systolic blood pressure (the top number) on your cuff is within 10 points of the monitor, then it’s generally accurate.

Most home blood pressure machines last for about two or three years. After that, check it at your healthcare provider’s office annually to make sure it’s still accurate.

6. Three is better than one. There’s one extra feature you might consider seeking out to help boost a monitor’s accuracy: Taking three measurements automatically. Some monitors do this each time you check your blood pressure. They take a first reading; wait 30 to 60 seconds and take a second reading; then wait 30 to 60 more seconds and take a final measurement.

In conclusion, if you find yourself in a situation where you need to regularly monitor your blood pressure, the last thing you need is uncertainty—about the product you’re buying, your testing procedure or the readings you’re getting. If questions come up, don’t be shy about checking in with your healthcare provider. If they’re asking you to check your blood pressure regularly, they’re going to be just as invested as you are in making sure it’s done right!

Source: Excerpted from the article at https://health.clevelandclinic.org/buying-ahome-blood-pressure-monitor-6-thingsyou-need-to-know

Telling your story is good for the soul

There’s something very satisfying about reflecting on your life and putting your story down on paper. The process of thinking back in time and bringing forward important moments to share with others can be a deeply personal, even cathartic process. It can also be intimidating! Where to start? What to say? Will anyone want to read it?

“Memoir is about handing over your life to someone and saying, ‘This is what I went through, this is who I am, and maybe you can learn something from it,’” says one bestselling author. Her memoir was based on tremendously personal stories about her troubled family life. Thankfully, not everyone has to live through a difficult upbringing or traumatic adolescence. In fact, many memoirs are positive, uplifting, and inspirational. Each of us has experienced important life moments, and those moments are what make us who we are. Those are moments you can focus on

when thinking about the story you want to tell.

A memoir is different from an autobiography. Providing every detail of your life would be overwhelming to write, difficult to read, and probably not particularly captivating. Focusing on a pivotal moment or particular time and place allows you to provide more detail and richness. Truman Capote’s short story, “A Christmas Memory,” is a good example of this

type of remembrance. Your memoir could center on a personal accomplishment, including its run-up and aftermath. You could write about a particularly happy time, a turning point, or an extraordinary event. Anything in your past that triggers strong emotions should be considered as a focus of your memoir. The best memoirs have a central theme. Choosing the theme of your story can be difficult, especially

If you have varied interests and experiences. Perhaps you’ve enjoyed traveling and have some wonderful stories to tell about a particular city or country. If you’re an avid angler, there’s probably a great fish story that needs to be told. Maybe you have wisdom to share about your profession or an enlightening volunteer experience. Nothing is off-limits when it comes to a memoir. Seemingly small moments can come roaring

to life when recounted with detail and emotion.

Help the reader see what you saw and feel what you felt. The more descriptive you can be when telling your story, the better. For example, if writing about travel, choose language that describes how the place you visited looked, sounded, and smelled. Share how the food you enjoyed tasted, or about an unusual dish that you’d not care to have again! Write down as many details as you can—the season, the time of day, the weather, the political climate—whatever will be useful to flesh out your experience and put the reader in your shoes.

Use storytelling tools from your favorite fiction novels. When recalling moments from your personal history, think about how they might play out in a work of fiction. Use dialogue to detail how you spoke to someone and how they replied. Describe any action that takes place in the scene you have in your mind’s eye.

Experienced writers refer to this as “show, don’t tell.” De-

scriptions and dialogue help bring your story to life. Write every day. Commit to a pre-determined number of words or period of time that you will devote to your writing every day. Experienced writers and published authors spend hours polishing, honing, revising, and improving their drafts. The more time you spend writing, the easier it becomes. When reviewing your words, you’ll likely think of even more details to add and improvements you can make to tell your story more clearly and with greater depth. You’ll find expert guidance online to get started with your memoir that goes far beyond the simple points mentioned here. Remember that everyone has a story to tell. Taking the time to reflect on and recount your most important life moments for your family and friends to enjoy is a gift only you can give.

Source: https://blog. aarpmedicaresupplement.com/ write-your-memoir-and-leave-aheartfelt-legacy-for-family/

Cleaning dirty items — Gross facts and cleaning suggestions

Kitchen Sponge and

Dishcloth

Gross: Dishcloths and sponges contain the largest amount of E. coli in the average home because they aren’t replaced often.

Clean: Wash dishcloths weekly in the washing machine. Clean sponges in the dishwasher or heat wet sponges in the microwave for 60 seconds.

Purses and Handbags

Gross: Researchers found that the average purse or handbag is three times dirtier than an office toilet seat. Purse handles carry the most bacteria, but hand and face creams, and lip products were dirty too.

Clean: Keep your purse and other bags off the floor in bathrooms. Wash cloth bags regularly in the washing machine and use disinfectant wipes wash to clean plastic or leather bags.

Kitchen Faucet Handles

Gross: Your kitchen faucet handles can have twice the number of bacteria as bathroom faucet handles.

Clean: Use a disinfecting cleaner daily to disinfect and clean the handles and entire sink.

Washing Machine

Gross: Clothes and towels can spread germs when they are used by more than one person, when the person handling the dirty laundry doesn’t wash his or her hands, and if not washed properly. Underwear can have over 100 million E. coli bacteria, a cause of diarrhea.

Clean: Wash clothing worn by a person who has an infectious illness, used in food preparation and health care work, and those with sweat, vomit, blood, and feces separate from other items and at a high temperature with a bleachbased detergent. Disinfect your machine by pouring two cups of bleach into the detergent compartment and run empty on the hottest water cycle, then wipe dry.

Cutting Board

Gross: Raw meat can add 200 times more fecal matter than on a toilet set onto a cutting board.

Clean: Wash plastic and dishwasher-safe cutting boards in the dishwasher using hot water, or

wise WORDS ©

wash with liquid dish detergent and water, then soak thoroughly in a solution of two teaspoons bleach and 1 gallon of water. Wash wooden boards with dish detergent and water, and soak in two tablespoons of bleach per gallon of water, but don’t soak overnight. Remember to use separate cutting boards and utensils for raw meat and other foods. Replace cutting boards that are worn or have hardto-clean grooves.

Pet Food Dish

Gross: A dog can pick up over 2 000 bacteria per square inch from his unclean dish.

Clean: Just as you wash your dishes every day, wash all pet food

Tips on eating healthy for the holidays

One of the best things about is the holiday season and how it brings people together, families come in from out of town and everyone is able to celebrate.

But it’s a great time to overindulge and sometimes you don’t even realize you are doing it, right.

Every time you go to a Christmas or holiday function, there’s cookies and there’s cheeses, and there’s all sorts of meats and delicacies and everything else and whether or not you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa or whatever it may be, everybody brings a feast to every single event.

So be careful not to overindulge and do your best to try to eat more plants during this time period.

So become friends with the fruit and veggie tray rather than the meat and cheese spread.

Remember, that one little cube of cheese or that one little cube of a processed meat can have loads and loads of salt and calories,

provider with

whereas handfuls of carrots, celery, cucumbers, whatever it is you like to eat has much less calories.

So, fill up before you go to these parties, eat mostly fruits and vegetables to stay full and eat those at the parties and only indulge a small amount, so that way you don’t gain a lot of weight and get a lot of salt and get a lot of calories and potentially bad foods. The bad news is, pro-

cessed red meats now have been labeled by the World Health Organization as cancer causing as cigarettes and the centerpiece for many of these functions is ham or some sort of beef dish.

Be careful that you don’t eat too much or any of it because it could potentially lead to a problem down the road.

Visit njhealth.org/cardiology for more information.

bowls after every meal with hot water and soap to prevent bacteria from building up.

Electronic Devices –computer keyboard, smart phone, tablet computer

Gross: Studies show that 92 percent of cell phones have bacteria on them. Bacteria thrives on the warm screen and can be transferred to fingers, eyes, nose, ears, lips, and skin. This increases your chance of getting infected.

Clean: Don’t use a disinfectant wipe as it can damage the screen. Fill a small spray bottle half with water and the other half with 70 percent isopropyl alcohol. Lightly spray this solution on a soft cloth

to clean your device weekly and leave it out of the bathroom.

Light Switch

Gross: A bathroom light switch can have as many germs as a trash can.

Clean: Use a disinfecting spray or wipe, ideally a new one for each item cleaned.

Carpet

Gross: Carpet collects food particles, pet dander, pollen, and other items as well as about 1 5 million dead cells per person per hour. That means your carpet has nearly 700 times more bacteria than your toilet seat.

Clean: Vacuum often and once a year, have a professional cleaning service deep clean your carpet.

Money/Credit Cards

Gross: One in every 12 bank cards and one in seven dollar bills are contaminated with fecal matter.

Clean: Wipe your credit cards with a disinfecting wipe after using them. Wash your hands or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer after handling money.

Remember to Clean Your Hands! You can get sick from getting germs on your hands and then touching your eyes, nose, or mouth. One of the best ways to protect yourself from serious infections is to clean your hands frequently and thoroughly.

Source: https://www.nationaljewish. org/education/health-information/healthlifestyle-tips/cleaning-dirty-items

We humans are amazing beings

We may not always like to talk about them, but everyone has to deal with bodily functions on a daily basis. Here is interesting information about the involuntary and sometimes unpleasant actions of our bodies. This excerpt article is meant to be humorous, and some comments may not be medically exact.

Bodily Functions:

Sneezes regularly exceed 100 mph. There’s a good reason why you can’t keep your eyes open when you sneeze—that sneeze is rocketing out of your body at close to 100 mph. This is, of course, a good reason to cover your mouth when you sneeze.

Coughs clock in at about 60 mph. Viruses and colds get spread around the office and the classroom quickly during cold and flu season. With 60 mph coughs spraying germs far and wide, it’s no wonder.

Women blink twice as many times as men do. That’s a lot of blinking every day. The average person, man or woman, blinks about 13 times a minute.

A full bladder is roughly the size of a soft ball. No wonder you have to run to bathroom when you feel the call of the wild. The average bladder holds about 400-800 cc of fluid, but most people will feel the urge to go long before that at 250 to 300 cc.

Approximately 75% of human waste is made of water. While we might typically think that urine is the liquid part of human waste products, the truth is that what we consider solid waste is actually mostly water as well. You should be thankful that most waste is fairly water-filled, as drier harder stools are what cause constipation and are much harder and sometimes painful to pass.

Feet have 500,000 sweat glands and can produce more than a pint of sweat a day. With that kind of sweat-producing power it’s no wonder that your gym shoes have a stench that can peel paint. Additionally, men usually have much more active sweat glands than women.

During your lifetime, you will produce enough saliva to fill two swimming pools. Saliva plays an important part in beginning the digestive process and keeping the mouth lubricated, and your mouth produces quite a bit of it on a daily basis. The average person expels flatulence 14 times each day. Even if you’d like to think you’re too dignified to pass gas, the reality is that almost everyone will at least a few times a day. Digestion causes the body to release gases which can be painful if trapped in the abdomen and not released. Earwax production is necessary for good ear health. While many people find earwax to be disgusting, it’s actually a very important part of your ear’s defense system. It protects the delicate inner ear from bacteria, fungus, dirt and even insects. It also cleans and lubricates the ear canal.

Source: Very Cool Facts About the Human Body blog

You have the right to know what’s happening in your community.

Public notices – information local governments are obligated to provide citizens – are required to be published in local newspapers to provide a public record that’s accessible to everyone.

Public notices keep you informed about your government. But, in some states legislators are trying to keep public notices from appearing in local newspapers. This severely impacts government transparency and, in turn, limits the public’s right to hold them accountable for their actions.

Let your state legislators know that you value being able to access notices in your newspaper and that they are worth the investment.

Former WB star among top FCS stars

By Justin Jarrett LowcoSports.com

Irv Mulligan was leading the Southwestern Athletic Conference when he injured his ankle last October against Alabama State last October, and the former Whale Branch Early College High School star missed spring practice, fall camp, and the first two games of the season while working his way back to full strength. It took a few games for Jackson State’s Mulligan to hit full speed,

but once he did, no one has been able to stop the train. On Wednesday, Mulligan was named one of 10 finalists for 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.

Earlier in the week, Mulligan was 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 eased his way back into action with limited carries in a reserve role in his first two games this fall, then reclaimed his starting spot in the backfield and became the Tigers’ work-

horse during an eight-game win streak that propelled JSU to a 10-2 record and a spot in the SWAC championship game.

With five games of 100-plus rushing yards, Mulligan leads the SWAC with 1,052 rushing yards and is the league’s only 1 000-yard rusher and only the 13th player in JSU history to reach that mark. He ranks seventh in the nation in yards per carry (6 74), ninth in rushing yards per game (105 8), and 21st in rushing yards (1,052)

– all conference-leading numbers. Mulligan and the Tigers, including freshman defensive back KJ Chisholm, a fellow Whale Branch alum, will face Southern in the SWAC title game at 2 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2

Justin Jarrett is the sports editor of The Island News and the founder of LowcoSports.com. He was the sports editor of the

Bucs edge Warriors for boys title

The Bridges Prep boys basketball team entered the season ranked fifth in Class 2A by the South Carolina Basketball Coaches Association, the Bucs backed up their lofty preseason expectations with three wins to capture the boys title at the annual Earl Campbell Preseason Tournament in Seabrook.

Bridges rolled past Royal Live Oaks, 81-38, in the opening round and held off a scrappy Allendale-Fairfax team for a 63-51 win in the semifinals before edging host Whale Branch, 62-56, in the championship game. It was a tight game for most of the first half, but the Bucs busted out to a 15-point lead early in the

third quarter before Quincy Fields heated up from behind the arc to keep Whale Branch within striking distance. Eddie Gonzalez hit a deep three from the left wing to pull the Warriors within 47-44 in the fourth quarter, but Whale Branch couldn’t complete the comeback.

Seniors Amarion Wilson, Christian Arroyo, and QJ Young all averaged double-digit scoring for the Bucs in the three-game tournament.

JPII boys off to hot start

After taking a big step forward a year ago, John Paul II’s boys are off to an impressive start this season, including a 47-46 win at Hilton Head Prep. Garrett Heathcott hit a trio of 3-pointers en route to 19 points to

lead the Golden Warriors to the win over the two-time defending SCISA 3A champions despite 31 points from Dolphins star Ty Harpring.

JPII (4-0) travels to Sea Pines for a rematch with HHP on Wednesday.

Dolphins stumble in Savannah Battery Creek’s boys opened their season at the Savannah Hoops Showdown at Enmarket Arena, falling 50-39 to Calvary Day.

Tyrese Smith scored 16 points and fellow sophomore Michael Williams added 10 points for the Dolphins, who have three games on tap this week, including rivalry matchups with Whale Branch and Beaufort High.

Irv Mulligan

Bridges Prep’s Ivan Grey (2) attempts to steal the ball away from Whale Branch’s Isaiah Evans (33) during the Earl Campbell Preseason Tournament at Whale Branch Early College High School on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News

ARTS

Artists Sunday

BAA to feature McSweeney’s clay pottery

Staff reports

The Beaufort Art Association’s Featured Artist’s show, running from Jan. 5 2025 through March 2 2025, will showcase Daniel McSweeney’s original pottery, as well as BAA members’ impressionist-style paintings.

“I have been in love with clay since I was a child, finding it in the river beds behind our house in Virginia,” McSweeney says. “That love of clay is the best thing I can teach my students.”

A native of the southeast and resident of many places, artist Danny McSweeney is truly a teacher of pottery. After formalizing his skills at the Kansas City Art Institute, Danny returned to

South Carolina to make pottery his own way, mixing his own clay and glazes and even digging clay from local riverbeds for some of his work.

McSweeney has exhibited his work in the Midwest and throughout the Southeast, including Nina Liu and Friends, Carolina Clay Gallery, and Margo Kaufman Gallery. His work can currently be found at the Beaufort Art Association and at his studio in Beaufort, S.C.

McSweeney is also a skilled pottery teacher, having worked with young and adult students alike at his own galleries; The Art Garage in Columbia; and Spark Studios and Gallery in Charles-

ton; the Kansas City Clay Guild, Columbia Parks and Recreation, and Blythewood Parks and Recreation. McSweeney was also the ceramics instructor and taught classes to home school and after-school children, evening classes to adults, and family classes for both at the Artist’s Loft School in Mount Pleasant. At present, McSweeney runs his own studio, McSweeney Clay Studio, offering classes to children and adults in Beaufort and surrounding areas. In his spare time, McSweeney enjoys spending time with his family, consisting of his wife, Anna and two daughters, Eleanor and Evelyn. The many rivers and

creeks of the Lowcountry serve as his inspiration and second home. McSweeney enjoys fishing, sailing, and camping and prefers the serenity of nature to city life.

McSweeney is sharing his show with Beaufort Art Association Exhibiting Artists showcasing their impressionist-style paintings inspired by the Impressionist Masters. Join us for an opening night reception at BAA Gallery on Friday, Jan. 10, from 5 to 8 p.m., at the Gallery of the Beaufort Art Association, 913 Bay Street, downtown Beaufort, under the black awning. For further information, please visit the BAA website at www.beaufortartassociation.com.

Submitted photo

Filmmaking grant helps train college students while promoting SC stories

By Skyler Laird SCDailyGazette.com

CHARLESTON — When

Joshua Parks was a child, he was always drawn to his family’s history.

That was how he came to learn the family legend about his grand uncle, who disappeared at sea one day on a flat, wooden bateau boat he and his father made. Parks’ uncle remained missing until another relative had a dream pinpointing his exact location near James Island.

“This story was just kind of burning in me,” said Parks, who lives in Charleston.

So, he and his partner wrote the short film “Bateau,” which Parks will receive a $45,000 state grant to produce this coming year.

The grant, administered by the state Film Commission, is a joint effort to promote indie filmmakers from South Carolina and offer onthe-job training for Trident Technical College students, said Brad Jayne, who helps run the program.

“Bateau,” which follows a boy’s spiritual transformation as he searches for his missing grandfather, was one of two films to win the Indie Grant award this year. The other film, “Sapling,” is about a single mom who discovers unsettling family lore while grieving her own mother’s death, according to the program’s website.

The writers, directors and producers who wrote the two films are all either from South Carolina or live in the state.

That’s a prerequisite for the award, which has been

offered for over a decade and is meant to recognize stories with a Palmetto State connection, made by people with history here. The goal is for each to be about 10 minutes long, which is typically the length film festivals look for when selecting entries, Jayne said.

Part of the requirement for receiving the grant is that each film must employ a certain number of students from Trident Technical College’s film production major, which the college touts as the only program of its kind in the state.

Between six and 10 of the school’s 100 or so film production majors get spots doing whatever works they’re best suited for, Seale said.

Many students work as grips, meaning they help set up camera equipment and lighting for each shot, though

they have also worked in departments such as costumes and props, Seale said.

Whatever the work, students get to make connections with professionals and have a completed film on their resume, giving them a leg up when trying to break into a notoriously tight-knit industry, he said.

“Our students get an opportunity to work with professionals and prove their work ethic and their attitude, and then they’re able to move into entry level positions in the film industry,” said Glenn Seale, dean of the technical college’s film, media and visual arts department.

The grant is also one way of encouraging people to film projects in South Carolina.

The Film Commission, a division of the state Department of Parks Recreation

and Tourism, also incentivizes TV shows and movies to set up shop in the Palmetto State with rebates on supplies and wages, as well as the option for productions to pay no sales tax. This year, state legislators set aside $10 million in the state budget for the incentives.

Some short films made using the grant have debuted at major film festivals and been featured on major streaming platforms. “Talk Black,” a 2020 grant winner, is available on HBO’s Max app after being part of the network’s showcase during the 2022 American Black Film Festival.

Although writer and director Destiny Macon was planning to make the film with or without the funding, the support from Indie Grants propelled the project to new heights, she said.

The 32-year-old was able to work with professional-quality cameras, and she met her director of photography through connections she made as part of the grant.

Because the production was qualified under the Screen Actors Guild, she could hire more experienced union actors, she said.

Since then, Macon has worked as an actors’ assistant on two movies, Hallmark’s “Girlfriendship” and “Summer Camp,” starring Diane Keaton. Macon is working on turning “Talk Black” into a full-length feature film, which she hopes to get made using the connections she has made on those sets.

“It’s a good bridge from no-budget indie filmmaking to introducing you to the world of professional filmmaking,” Macon said.

The amount of experience each team has varies.

Some come in after having worked on other professional productions, while others have primarily made home movies with their friends, Jayne said.

Neither Parks nor Macon studied filmmaking.

Macon is an engineer who pursued filmmaking as a hobby before the grant, and Parks got a degree in political science and history before eventually making video content for the International African American Museum in Charleston.

The application process is relatively intensive to make sure that the winners, regardless of what they’ve done before, can actually pull off the project they

want to make. Along with a completed script, the application requires a thoughtful production plan, including budget, schedule and other technical considerations, Jayne said. An anonymous, independent panel of people who have worked in the film industry review the applications. This year, “Bateau” and “Sapling” beat out about 70 other projects for the funding, Jayne said.

“The bottom line is (the judges) just found them to be very compelling stories — stories that were structured and sort of planned out in a way that was very doable,” Jayne said.

For the filmmakers, the money can mean the difference between making a film with no budget and having a full production team, with the advice of seasoned professionals, Jayne said. Like Macon, Parks and his production team were going to make the short film regardless of whether they won the award, he said. But with it, “you don’t have to worry,” he said.

“You don’t have to struggle through it the way we would have struggled through it if we didn’t have a budget, or if we had a very, very small budget,” Parks 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.

Mark Sviland, a local woodworking artist, creates little wooden tops during the Artists Sunday in downtown Beaufort from the historic Arsenal to Bay Street on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News

Tatiana Tatum, a local artist, talks with a customer during the Artists Sunday in downtown Beaufort from the historic Arsenal to Bay Street on Sunday, Dec.r 1, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News

The Beaufort Art Association’s Featured Artist’s show will showcase Daniel McSweeney’s original pottery.

Two short films to receive $45,000 this year to make their movies in state

Destiny Macon directs short film “Talk Black” in Greenville in 2021. Photo courtesy of Destiny Macon

Creek girls fall in tourney final

LowcoSports.com

The new era of Battery Creek girls basketball got off to a strong start when first-year head coach Terria Scott-Aiken’s squad knocked off two rivals before falling in the championship game of the Earl Campbell Preseason Tournament at Whale Branch.

The Dolphins beat Bridges Prep, 49-30, and rallied past Whale Branch for a 42-32 win to reach the final, where they fell 55-39 to May River.

Amari Daise had eight points and four rebounds to lead Battery Creek before fouling out against May River and scored nine points against the Warriors. Audrey Jefferson scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds in the win over Whale Branch.

Gauntlet unkind to Beaufort

Beaufort High’s girls came into the season with high expectations after a strong fin-

Playoffs

from page B1

Battery Creek’s Makayla Wilson (21) and May River’s Jayden Deets fight for the ball during the Earl Campbell Preseason Basketball Tournament at Whale Branch Early College High School on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. Amber Hewitt/The Island News

ish to last season and the addition of some young talent in the backcourt, but a brutal early-season schedule means the results will have to wait.

The Eagles (1-5) have already played three of the top-10 teams in Class 5A Division I with lopsided losses to Summerville and Ashley Ridge and a narrow defeat to Sumter. Beaufort also suf-

fered close losses to Socastee and Burke and earned a win over Class 5A Stall.

The degree of difficulty eases up significantly this week with home games against Whale Branch and Battery Creek, and don’t be surprised if freshman guard Jania Heyward and the Eagles start piling up wins soon.

4th Round Upper State Final Lewisville at Abbeville Lower State Final Lake View at Cross 2024 SCISA FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS

45, Mullins 12 Kingstree 34, Whale Branch 18 2nd Round Upper State Clinton 48, Chester 20 Batesburg-Leesville 49, Andrew Jackson 14 Fairfield Central 41, Chesnee 6 Central 26, Saluda 15 Lower State Barnwell 21, Timberland 0 Cheraw 35, East Clarendon 0 Manning 28, Hampton Co. 27 Philip Simmons 40, Kingstree 24 3rd Round Upper State Clinton 31, Batesburg-Leesville 14 Fairfield Central 48, Central 28 Lower State Barnwell 28, Cheraw 27 Manning 34, Philip Simmons 21 4th Round Upper State Final Fairfield Central at Clinton Lower State Final Manning at Barnwell CLASS 1A 1st Round Upper State Abbeville 48, C.A. Johnson 0 Blackville-Hilda 45, McCormick 6 Lamar 62, Whitmire 0 Lee Central 27, Calhoun Co. 13 Hunter-Kinard-Tyler 54, McBee 21 Dixie 42, Williston-Elko 0 Lewisville 66, Calhoun Falls 0 Ridge Spring-Monetta 45, Ware Shoals 28 Lower State Cross 48, Green Sea Floyds 0 Ridgeland 26, Scotts Branch 20 (OT) Hannah Pamplico 43, Military Magnet 6 Denmark-Olar 22, Carvers Bay 16 Lake View 36, Hardeeville 7 Johnsonville 43, Branchville 41 Bamberg-Ehrhardt 65, Bethune-Bowman 0 Baptist Hill 16, Latta 0 2nd Round Upper State Abbeville 41, Blackville-Hilda 13 Lamar 22, Lee Central 12

Hunter-Kinard-Tyler 46, Dixie 13 Lewisville 39, Ridge Spring-Monetta 0 Lower State Cross 54, Ridgeland 0 Hannah Pamplico 40, Denmark-Olar 6 Lake View 21, Johnsonville 14

Bamberg-Ehrhardt 36, Baptist Hill 20 3rd Round Upper State Abbeville 48, Lamar 38 Lewisville 31, Hunter-Kinard-Tyler 6

Lower State Cross 12, Hannah Pamplico 7 Lake View 42, Bamberg-Ehrhardt 32

SCISA 4A First Round Hammond 35, Cardinal Newman 6 Porter-Gaud 44, Heathwood Hall 13 Northwood Academy 49, Laurence Manning 20 Augusta Christian 17, Ben Lippen 7 Semifinals

Hammond 55, Augusta Christian 7

Porter-Gaud 21, Northwood Academy 7 Championship

Hammond 28, Porter-Gaud 21

SCISA 3A First Round

Northside Christian 53, First Baptist 28 HHCA 42, Florence Christian 7 Wilson Hall 25, John Paul II 14

Pinewood Prep 49, Trinity Collegiate 13 Semifinals

Pinewood Prep 35, Northside Christian 21 Wilson Hall 21, HHCA 9 Championship Pinewood Prep 24, Wilson Hall 21

SCISA 2A First Round Bethesda Academy 36, Orangeburg Prep 0 Calhoun Academy 42, Hilton Head Prep 27 Pee Dee Academy 56, Spartanburg Christian 19 Greenwood Christian 28, St. John's Christian 14 Semifinals

Pee Dee Academy 69, Greenwood Christian 33 Bethesda Academy 38, Calhoun Academy 21 Championship

Pee Dee Academy 52, Bethesda Academy 14

SCISA 1A First Round Beaufort Academy 23, Carolina Academy 21 Dorchester Academy 45, Colleton Prep 7 Thomas Heyward 55, Lee Academy 12 Williamsburg Academy 55, Patrick Henry 6 Semifinals Williamsburg Academy 21, Beaufort Academy 0 Thomas Heyward 49, Dorchester Academy 14 Championship

Thomas Heyward 23, Williamsburg Academy 8

SCISA 8-MAN First Round Jefferson Davis Academy 46, WW King 22

22

34,

16

44

6

28

SC DJJ to rent jail for youth in Greenville to reduce overcrowding

Agency’s Columbia detention center at nearly double capacity

By Skyler Laird SCDailyGazette.com

COLUMBIA — The state’s juvenile justice department will rent a closed wing of the Greenville County jail

in a bid to relieve overcrowding at its Columbia detention center for youth awaiting sentencing.

The plan, which a committee of legislators approved Monday, follows years of overcrowding, understaffing and dangerous conditions for both officers and youth at the Department of Juvenile Justice’s facilities.

The five-year lease on the Greenville building, which could start Jan. 1 if the state and county are able to come up with an agreement by then, is expected to cost the state nearly $3 3 million.

Greenville County closed its youth detention center in March 2022, moving the officers overseeing the children there to the jail’s adult wing. The move was supposed to be temporary as the county searched for more detention officers, but two years later, the facility remains closed.

Richland County closed the juvenile wing of its detention center over the summer, also to put more detention officers in the adult side of the jail, which is under investigation by the federal Department of Justice over deaths, claims of understaffing and filthy living conditions.

The closure of Richland County’s youth detention center sent about 45 chil-

dren and teens to DJJ custody. Some are in the juvenile detention center, and others are in a “secure satellite location,” said agency spokeswoman Michelle Foster, declining to be any more specific.

The pre-trial juvenile detention center on Shivers Road in Columbia had 141 youth Monday, nearly double its capacity of 72, Foster told the SC Daily Gazette.

Richland County’s decision “has only compounded this already bad situation,” DJJ Director Eden Hendrick said in a letter to the Department of Administration requesting permission to lease the Greenville facility.

The 22,000-square-foot Greenville detention center can hold up to 47 children, but its true capacity will depend on how many staff the agency can hire to oversee the children housed there. The plan is to hire enough people to watch 40 juveniles, Foster said.

Based on how long it typically takes to hire qualified officers, “40 youth will not be able to be in the Greenville facility for quite some time,” Foster said in an email.

That still wouldn’t bring the number of youth at the complex down to the facility’s capacity, but it would reduce some of the burden on staff there, “creating a safer environment,” she added.

“Continuous overcrowded conditions at (the juvenile detention center) have placed unprecedented ex-

pectations on the agency to serve double the amount of youth, many of whom have serious medical and mental health needs,” Foster said in an email. “The overcrowded conditions are a safety threat to both the youth and the staff who work at (the detention center).”

Teens have destroyed cinderblock walls in an effort to get to staff and other youth, making it impossible to secure dorms, the agency wrote in requests for contracts to repair the damage earlier this year. A lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) claims that black mold has made the juveniles housed in the agency’s facilities sick, that toilets have been stopped up for weeks and that overcrowding forced children to sleep on hallway floors.

Counties are not legally

obligated to house youth, and sending them to staterun facilities is often cheaper, at a cost of $50 per youth per day instead of the hundreds it often takes to actually care for a teenager. Charleston County runs the only other juvenile jail in the state, which it opened in 2022

Budget request

Also in an effort to reduce overcrowding, the agency is asking legislators for $200 million in this upcoming budget cycle to build a new detention center.

The agency’s current detention center was built to hold youth for no more than 30 days, but because of court backlogs, some stay months, or even years. The building has no inside recreational space or private rooms for youth to meet with attor-

neys or therapists. The current classrooms and infirmary are not big enough to treat the number of people housed there, according to the budget request.

Along with fixing some of those problems, the new facility would hold up to 120 children ages 12 to 19, helping reduce overcrowding, the department wrote.

Last year, legislators allocated $17 million to repair the buildings on the agency’s Broad River Road campus, which houses youth who have been sentenced.

But around 60% of the agency’s 155 buildings remain “in various stages of disrepair,” the department wrote in its budget request.

The $200 million, if the agency received its entire request, would add onto $16 million the Legislature put toward building a new de-

tention center in the 20232024 budget. That would kickstart a years-long plan to fix problems at the existing facility.

A May 2024 assessment, which was part of that plan, “found that the agency would need to spend millions of dollars to maintain the current state of facilities, but this will not resolve the many operational inefficiencies and safety deficiencies,” the request reads.

A new detention center would resolve at least some of those problems, the 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.

Renovations to start at SC’s

newly leased health complex

By Jessica Holdman SCDailyGazette.com

COLUMBIA — State-paid renovations on the future, rented home of South Carolina’s public health agencies are expected to begin in early spring.

The state Department of Administration, which serves as a clearinghouse for all state property, reported to the Legislature’s fiscal oversight committee Monday, Dec. 2, that it plans to lock in a construction contract in February.

The contractor will remodel the interior of a former utility company campus to meet the needs of more than 1 700 state employees moving from downtown Columbia to Lexington County.

The $5 5 million project is scheduled for completion in May, according to the committee documents. That would be a month before the end of the first year of lease paid on the property.

The 14-year-old complex, previously home to the South Carolina offices of Dominion Energy, will house the state agencies for public health, mental health, disabilities, and alcohol and drug addiction treatment.

The state, in late 2023, inked a 20-year lease — worth about $380 million — with Columbia-area real estate developer and S.C. Ports Authority Chairman Bill Stern for the property.

The lease started July 1 with

the beginning of the current budget year, but improvements still need to be made before all the agencies can move in.

The renovations and moving costs were part of the $30 million that legislators put toward the first year of leasing the property.

The rent alone is $11 million for the fiscal year ending June 30

Other expenses include the utilities and county property taxes, which the state doesn’t pay on property it owns.

The deal followed a legislative mandate that broke up the state’s massive public health and environmental agency.

Members of the House then attempted to take things a step further, with plans to merge the new, separate public health agen-

cy with the state departments of Disabilities and Special Needs, Mental Health and Alcohol and other Drug Abuse, as well as those overseeing services for the elderly and patients covered by Medicaid.

But those efforts were thwarted by an ultra-conservative faction within the state House in the final minutes of the regular legislative session.

The House Freedom Caucus blocked the merger bill. But the planned move of state offices out of the redeveloped BullStreet District in downtown Columbia proceeded.

Lease renewed Also on Monday, the fiscal overseers gave the nod to a seven-year

lease renewal by one of the agencies considered in the merger.

The state Department on Aging will stay in the downtown Columbia office tower across from the Statehouse where it has been for the last 20 years, increasing the space it leases to 14,300 square feet.

The agency will spend $2 67 million over the course of the lease, which will begin July 1, 2025. As part of the deal, the agency will contribute $350 000 to renovate the space, covering a little over half of the costs of improvements.

Senate President Thomas Alexander raised questions over why the state was paying for improvements to the privately-owned building before voting in favor of the lease agreement.

The former Dominion Energy campus pictured on Sept. 6, 2024. Jessica Holdman/S.C. Daily Gazette

Helping refugees make SC their home

By Skylar Laird SCDailyGazette.com

COLUMBIA

When Mohammad Sultani got on the plane from Qatar a year ago, he didn’t know anything about South Carolina, the place that would come to be his new home.

Sultani, who was fleeing his home country of Afghanistan, was one of a growing number of refugees that Lutheran Services Carolinas has helped place in the state in the past few years, fueled by crises overseas and more friendly federal immigration policies, said Columbia refugee resettlement director Seth Hershberger.

In 2020, the nonprofit organization helped 40 people settle in Columbia. In 2024, it helped around 450, Hershberger said. Including the nonprofit’s offices in Greenville, Charleston and Myrtle Beach, the group has resettled 1 335 people in South Carolina so far this year.

“It’s just grown exponentially,” Hershberger recently told the S.C. Daily Gazette. “If there are people to help, we always want to help them.”

With the possibility of the Trump administration reinstating lower refugee admission ceilings, though, the number of refugees the group might be able to help in the coming years is unclear.

Lutheran Services has the capacity to help as many as 500 refugees in the Midlands alone in the coming year. The question will be whether the federal government will allow enough people into the country to hit that number, Hershberger said.

Everyone the agency helps is entering the country legally, meaning they wouldn’t be subject to President-elect Donald Trump’s promised deportations of illegal immigrants.

Other policies, though, could strip funding from programs such as Lutheran Services Carolinas. The nonprofit, which works with one of the 10 agencies nationwide cleared to resettle refugees, runs primarily on federal grants, with donations supplementing some needs, Hershberger said.

Until any new rules are in place, the group will stay the course. The goal always has been and always will be helping as many of the thousands of people who need to leave their countries as possible, Hershberger said.

“We’re just here to help people,” Hershberger said. “We’re not here to play the politics game or anything.”

Getting to the U.S.

When the Taliban retookcontrol of Afghanistan in 2021, following the U.S. troop withdrawal, Sultani knew to be afraid. As a Hazara, a persecuted ethnic minority, the now-31-yearold feared for his life and the lives of his wife and children, he said.

The university where Sultani taught English and information technology suggested applying to flee to the United States, so in 2021, that was what Sultani did.

Like others Lutheran Services helps resettle in the United States, Sultani and his family underwent intensive background checks, multiple rounds of interviews and health screenings.

Unlike asylum seekers, who request access at the U.S. border or after already entering, refugees apply for help often years in advance. They are not admitted into the country until their application is accepted, while asylum seekers in the Biden administration can enter the country while waiting for a final decision, which can take years. Refugee programs also differ from special immigrant visas offered to people who helped the U.S. government overseas.

Refugees are “the most vetted people that come into the United States, quite literally,” Hershberger said.

To qualify for resettlement as a refugee, a person must face persecution in their home country because of their race, nationality, political opinion or participation in a social group. That includes people fleeing the war in Ukraine, which has sent at least 500 people to Upstate South Carolina in the past year, and Afghans like Sultani.

Lutheran Services Carolinas placed more than 400 Afghan refugees in South Carolina in 2021, most of whom have stayed in the state since then, Hershberger said.

Once refugees get the OK from the federal government, they are referred to one of 10 resettlement agencies. That includes Global Refuge, under which Lutheran Services Carolinas operates.

Before selecting a local nonprofit, each agency considers sites across the country, evaluating factors such as the job market, existing communities of refugees and whether anyone on that office’s staff speaks their language.

For instance, a lot of refugees from Myanmar and Ukraine end up in Columbia because the area has large Burmese and Ukrainian populations, both through refugee resettlements and people moving to the area, Hershberger said.

South Carolina is also a popular choice because the cities, which offer access to medical services

and jobs, are relatively affordable, Hershberger said.

Sultani knew nothing about these conversations. When he, his wife, and their two young children got on a plane from Qatar in November 2023, he knew nothing about where they were headed.

Settling in

When the Sultanis arrived, a representative from Lutheran Services Carolinas picked them up from the airport and took them to a hotel. The family spent about a month there before the nonprofit found them an apartment near Lake Wylie in York County, Sultani said.

The nonprofit covered the rent and utilities at the new apartment, where the Sultanis lived with another refugee family. Groceries, clothes and other necessities were covered by the group as well. When the Sultanis decided they wanted to move to Columbia, to be closer to the help Lutheran Services provides, the nonprofit paid all the bills at the new place.

That’s the case for every family resettled in the state. Lutheran Services Carolinas covers every expense families need for their first eight months in the country as the adults get used to their new home, learn English and find a new job, Hershberger said.

Few people end up needing help for the entire eight months. Hershberger estimated that about 70% of people are fully independent before the support expires.

“They want to work. They want to be able to give back and contribute and pay taxes and have a job and speak English,” Hershberger said. “Our goal is to help make that happen and help them become self-sufficient and independent as soon as possible.”

Manufacturing is a popular job choice for refugees because of the sheer number of open positions. Some people have become plumbers or phlebotomists, learning how to draw blood.

Others work in fast food, most often at Chick-fil-A, which offers a program to teach employees English, Hershberger said.

The first job a person gets in the U.S. typically doesn’t match the career path they were on before.

That was the case for Sultani, who has been searching for a job in information technology since he arrived. Without an equivalent certification to what many companies require, though, he has struggled to find anything, he said.

Instead, he found a job working overnight in a Sleep Number warehouse, he said.

“The most important thing is that I’m very new here,” Sultani said. “I don’t have credit here.”

Despite concerns about immigrants taking jobs away from other workers, employers in fields such as manufacturing often partner with the nonprofit because they can’t find people to fill positions, Hershberger said.

“There are a lot of misconceptions about how they’re affecting the economy and whether or not they’re safe or here legally, whatever that means,” Hershberger said.

New refugees also get a cultural orientation to help them settle in and explain the fact that some people are opposed to immigration. Part of that involves informing refugees of their rights, including making sure they know they are in the country legally, Hershberger said.

That’s especially important as the federal administration cracks down on immigration, he added. After Trump took office in 2016, some immigrants said they stopped using public assistance programs out of fear that they might lose their legal status, according to a study by health research nonprofit KFF.

So, Lutheran Services Carolinas ensures refugees know they are entitled to public assistance programs. The nonprofit helps sign refugees up for programs such as Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to help pay for groceries. Other bureaucracy, such as helping people get state identification cards, also often falls to the nonprofit, Hershberger said.

“It’s hard to navigate those systems when, you know, you haven’t had those systems, when you’ve been living in a refugee camp,” Hershberger said.

After the end of the eight months, the nonprofit continues following up with refugees, often to connect them with resources. For instance, refugees who eventually decide to buy a house might turn to the group for help finding a bank to do the mortgage loan. Or, they might reach out for help finding another job that pays more once they have some experience under their belts.

How much the group helps depends on the person. Some get settled in right away and want to handle everything themselves. Others ask for more help, Hershberger said.

“I love working with the clients, but if I don’t hear from a client for a long time, that’s actually a lot of times a good thing for me because it means that they’re becoming selfsufficient,” Hershberger said.

‘I prefer to be here’

Only a few days after moving in, Sultani was at a grocery store with his family when a woman approached. This was already odd to Sultani, who wasn’t used to people in Afghanistan talking to strangers.

The woman introduced herself and asked if the family needed anything. They exchanged phone numbers, and she started coming over to check on the children. When Sultani and his family moved to their new apartment, she helped them pack and move everything, he said.

That sort of kindness has been more common than the occasional rude comments Sultani hears about immigrants. Generally, he has found South Carolina to be a nice place to live, he said.

“The very most important thing is that I have been treated as a human here,” Sultani said. “There are bad people, but most of the people here, when I talk, they are very kind. They are really accepting.”

The Sultanis miss their family back in Afghanistan. Both Sultani and his wife left behind parents and siblings, and they’re not sure when they might be able to return to see them.

Their 5-year-old son, Siawash, and 4-year-old daughter, Aelena, are learning English quickly, even just through watching TV, Sultani said. But he and his wife fear they will forget their native country and the language their grandparents speak, he said.

In the U.S., though, Aelena can go to school, which wouldn’t have been possible under Taliban rule. If Sultani’s wife wants to pursue a college degree, she can do that. The family doesn’t have to live in fear of being killed for their ethnicity, which was the reason Sultani and his wife wanted to leave, he said.

(The Taliban forbids education for girls past 11 years old and prevents women from working. Its rules have led to a decline in girls’ primary education too.)

“I wish I could go back to my country,” Sultani said. While he technically could return, “I cannot because I have no option to live there.”

The way things are now, “I prefer to be here,” Sultani 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.

Mohammad Sultani in his Columbia home on Oct. 7, 2024. Skylar

Laird/S.C. Daily Gazette

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.

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.

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

WHAT’S HAPPENING

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 Movie Night Meets Night

On The Town

6 to 9 p.m., Friday, Dec. 6, 1301 Bay Street, in front of the Best Western, Beaufort. Movies include The Grinch and Disney’s The Santa Clause. Bring your own chairs. Free hot chocolate and popcorn. Sponsored by Stokes Honda Cars of Beaufort; Harvey & Battey, Attorneys at Law; and The City of Beaufort

13th annual Nativity Celebration

10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday and Saturday, Dec. 6 and 7; Noon to 3 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 8, First Presbyterian Church of Beaufort, 1201 North Street. Public is welcome for this free community eventcelebrating the Christmas story with more than 150 nativities from around the world.

Smile For Santa

9:30 a.m. to noon, Saturdays, Dec. 7, Dec. 14, Port Royal Farmers Market Gazebo. Sponsored by the Beaufort Garden Club. Adults, Children, Grandchildren or Pets.

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.

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.

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-of-the-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 843-2556540 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 843-255-6458.

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 843-255-6458.

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 off-road/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 843-838-7437. 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 843-255-6458 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.

Staff reports

UUFB officially selects new minister

The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Beaufort (UUFB) officially welcomes Rev. Nathan Woodliff-Stanley as its new minister. UUFB, which celebrated its 25th anniversary in Beaufort County this fall, hired Woodliff-Stanley following the retirement of Rev. Lori Hlaban. He has served as minister of UUFB since October 14. He was offered the position following a thorough search. He also serves part-time as Executive Director of the South Carolina UU

Justice Alliance (SCUUJA).

Rev. Nathan WoodliffStanley

Woodliff-Stanley is also affiliated as a community minister with the Unitarian Church in Charleston, where he continues to reside. He moved to Charleston in 2021 after his wife Ruth became the first woman elected Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina. Originally from Iowa, Woodliff-Stanley completed academic

degrees from Swarthmore College, Yale Divinity School, and the Yale School of Management. He was the founding director of the Mississippi Center for Nonprofits providing management support for charitable organizations there for 10 years. He was ordained as a Unitarian Universalist minister in November 2004 at First Universalist Church of Denver. He has served in various locations as a minister, activist for social justice and as a leader in charitable causes.

Woodliff-Stanley is also a singer

and songwriter and enjoys engaging with others in community activism and service.

In keeping with the Unitarian Universalist traditions of social justice, love and compassion, the Fellowship is involved in several causes including the ACLU, Citizens Climate Lobby of S.C, Diversity Awareness Youth Literacy (DAYLO), Penn Center, Marshview Farm, Hopeful Horizons, Family Promise, Planned Parenthood, the S.C. Coalition Against Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence, Thumbs Up and offers

meetings of Parents and Friends of Lesbians, Gays and Transgender people (PFLAG).

UUFB also operates a food pantry in partnership with Second Helpings on the first, third and fifth Saturdays at 11 a.m. at its facility. 178 Sams Point Road, Lady’s Island, one mile north of Harris Teeter. All are welcome to attend services each Sunday at 10 a.m. in the UUFB Sanctuary Hall, also located at 178 Sams Pt. Road. For more information visit www.uubeaufort.org.

Making the decision to live God’s way

Many are convinced that this life has been given to them to do whatever they want, and technically it’s true that God has given every human a free-will to choose. Most will agree this is one of the greatest gifts mankind has been given, but the problem is that our carnal human nature does not want what God wants.

You see, the Lord desires to use us exceedingly abundantly above all we could ask or imagine but the only way we can truly please Him is to do what He says. This sounds simple, but it’s no secret that humans are experts in the areas of compromising and negotiating.

When the subject of freedom is discussed, we think how amazing it is to have the liberty to live independently and make our own decisions, but this is based on human logic. When we make the holy vow to receive Christ as our Lord and to obey Him in everything, we no longer follow our own agenda. This spiritual reality is the most difficult challenge within the Christian life.

Since we have also been given a clever mind, it is here where the real battle of good and evil is engaged. Allow me to clarify, only those who have a passion to know and love God and are sensitive to His voice choose to participate in spiritual warfare. It’s elementary to say that being a Christian is a dedication to living for God, but this is not as easy as it seems. There is no greater personal event than receiving Jesus as He transforms us into a child of God and secures our future in heaven among many other amazing blessings. The rest of our life is devoted to learning God’s word and our responsibility to obey Him. We love to hear about all the benefits of being born again but become uncomfortable when we realize we are accountable

for our lukewarmness and rebellion. For some, the only time they are serious about talking to God is when they need something. He has a purpose for all of us that is far beyond our dreams but until we invite Him to be our Lord and give Him control, we will not fully enjoy this astonishing covenant relationship He wants with us. God does not force us to do what is holy, and sometimes it seems we are getting away with saying and doing wrong things, but we are not. The reason we hear so much about the im-

portance of walking in the Holy Spirit is that we are constantly being tempted to make bad decisions. Yes, life is about choices. Some we’re proud of, and some we regret that will always haunt us. For those who are saved and abide in God’s presence, the Holy Spirit convicts the conscience as a reminder to repent, which keeps our hearts content and in perfect peace. However, when we allow our fleshly nature to control our thoughts we become miserable as the weight of intentional sin becomes a dark heaviness.

Has there ever been a time in your life when you seriously wondered what else God has in store for you? We may be thinking about our career, considering a change, and trying to second guess about different opportunities around the next corner.

Others might be trying to find love as they seek a trusted mate they can enjoy this life. And then some are facing serious challenges with their health and are worried and stressed about how this is going to affect their future. Whatever our trials and

circumstances, it was never intended for any of us to walk through these places alone. His answer may not be exactly what we have dreamed about, but it will be a response that fits with His plans. When troubled about something, it's common to search everywhere we can think of for help. From reading books to listening to advice, we want to know as much information as we can so we can make the most informed decision possible. There is nothing wrong with this, but God also wants us to trust that He is the one with all knowledge and understanding. We can be assured He has designed goals for us that are filled with hope and success (remember Jeremiah 29:11). He patiently waits for us to give Him control of our thoughts, and as we yield to this decision to submit to His desires, we will become His faithful servant.

Billy Holland is an ordained minister, certified chaplain, and Christian author. Read more about the Christian life at billyhollandministries.com.

BILLY HOLLAND

Local graduate honored

U.S. Marine Corps Pfc. John A. Vigil Jr., a native of Beaufort, S.C., graduates as the honor graduate for platoon 2072, Hotel Company, 2nd Recruit Training Battalion, Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island on Nov. 1, 2024 Vigil earned this distinction by outperforming other recruits in his platoon during a series of training events design to test their basic Marine Corps skills. Lance Cpl. Kevin J. López Herrera/USMC

VA benefits for elderly veterans

This is the first of four articles on 23 VA benefits for elderly veterans. What you do not know about VA benefits and services will hurt you — and your family. As a veteran advocate, past Veterans Service Officer, wounded warrior, 100% service-connected veteran, and elderly veteran, I know how valuable veterans' benefits are. Therefore, I am writing again to remind veterans, veterans' family members, veterans' spouses, veterans' survivors, and veterans’ caregivers to please make an appointment with a local VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO). I am writing again to remind veterans to have their VSO review their veterans benefits and how to claim those benefits before it is too late. I am reminding veterans to enroll in VA healthcare.

Do not let being a retired military service member prevent you from filing for VA benefits. Do not let being wealthy or comfortable prevent you from filing for VA benefits. Do not forget that filing for your VA benefits helps other veterans get their benefits and helps create justification for complete funding of your veterans’ benefits.

Elderly veterans According to the VA webpage titled “Veterans” found at https:// bit.ly/4im1ilw and the 2015-2019 American Community Survey, the veteran population aged 65 or older numbered more than 18 2 million. These Veterans served in conflicts around the world, including World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and even the Persian Gulf War. As veterans age, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will provide benefits and services that address various issues, including the changing health risks elderly veterans face and financial challenges through VA benefits and health services.

VA Benefits in general

Elderly Veterans may be eligible for a wide variety of benefits available to all U.S. military veterans (young and elderly). VA benefits include: Pension, disability compensation, education and training, health care, Home loans, insurance, Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E), and burial.

Elderly veterans must know their VA social worker

VA social workers are not just passive caregivers; they are innovative in finding ways to help their patients and their patient’s family members. After a veteran signs up for VA health care and chooses their main VA medical facility (see https://www.va.gov/ find-locations/), the VA will assign the veteran to a healthcare multi-functional care team called a Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT), which will include a Social Worker. The VHA Social Work webpage at https://bit. ly/49mZFzz shows Raven Neal to be the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center Social Work Leader at 843-577-5011 and email Raven. Neal@va.gov. Learn more at: The Island News article “Veterans Must Know Their VA Social Worker,” dated Oct. 23 2024, https://bit.ly/3VllutR.

“How to Apply for VA Health Care” is at https://bit. ly/3B7x5Dz. “VA Social Work” homepage at https://www.socialwork. va.gov. “Your VA Primary Care Pro-

vider and PACT Team,” found at https://bit.ly/3VmK9Om.

VA Benefits for elderly veterans

Two VA programs, the “Aid and Attendance Program” and the “Housebound Program,” provide specific elderly veterans with an additional monetary amount if they are eligible for or receiving a “VA Pension” benefit.

VA pension

The VA's pension program (Regular Pension and enhanced benefits of Aid & Attendance and Housebound) provides monthly benefit payments to certain wartime veterans and their survivors who have financial needs. Learn more by watching the VA YouTube video titled “Enhanced Pension Benefits (Aid & Attendance and Housebound Benefits)” at https://bit.ly/4fXRlJ8 and by reading the information at https://benefits.va.gov/pension/ and https://benefits.va.gov/pension/index.asp. Contact the VA at 1-877-294-6380 and ask your VSO to explain your benefits. Aid and Attendance (A&A) is an increased monthly pension amount paid if the veteran meets one of the conditions below: The veteran requires help performing daily functions, including bathing, eating, or dress ing. The veteran is bedridden. The veteran is a patient in a nursing home.

• The veteran’s eyesight is limited to a corrected 5/200 visual acuity or less in both eyes or concentric contraction of the visual field to 5 degrees or less.

Housebound is an increased monthly pension amount paid if the veteran is substantially confined to your immediate premises because of a permanent disability.

Learn more about these benefits on the VA Aid & Attendance Ben-

efits and Housebound Allowance webpage at https://www.va.gov/ pension/aid-attendance-housebound/.

VA Health care for elderly veterans

According to the VA webpage “Veterans (Elderly Veterans)” found at https://bit.ly/4im1ilw, Geriatrics is health care for elderly veterans with complex needs. Extended care, also known as long-term care, is a program for veterans of all ages who need another individual's daily support and assistance. Elderly veterans can receive geriatric and longterm care programs at home, at VA medical centers, or in the community.

VA programs for elderly veterans include but are not limited to the following:

1. Geriatrics and Extended Care Program: The VA provides eligible veterans with Home and Community-Based Services, Residential Settings and Nursing Home Care, Advanced Care Planning, Mental Health Care, Memory Loss Care, Brain Health Care, Health-Fitness-Rehabilitation Care, Caregiver training and Support, access to Community Resources, and more. Learn more at https://www.va.gov/geriatrics/ and ask your VSO and VA Social Worker for help.

2. Long-Term Care: Long-term care includes a wide range of services, such as help with everyday tasks and support for managing an illness. It is provided for an extended period when someone cannot do everyday tasks themselves. It can be provided in many settings, such as a person’s home, community sites, residential settings, and nursing homes. Longterm care may include support for family members or other caregivers who help people who are ill or disabled. For detailed descriptions of long-term care services and settings within the VA, veterans

should review the VA webpages below:

• “Nursing Homes, Assisted Living, and Home Health Care” at https://bit.ly/49hQ6Cd. “Services at Home and in the Community” at https://bit. ly/3ZldWIr and • “Residential Settings and Nursing Homes” at https:// bit.ly/41h4Vmj. Veterans may be able to pay for long-term care services through VA, Federal (Medicare), and State (Medicaid) programs, insurance, or private funds.

Veterans' eligibility for longterm care services provided in any long-term care setting will be determined based on their need for ongoing treatment, personal care, assistance, and the availability of the service in their location. Other factors, such as financial eligibility, the veteran’s service-connected (VA disability) status, insurance coverage, and/ or ability to pay, may also apply. If you still have questions after reviewing the above websites, call toll-free, 1-877-222-VETS (8387), Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (CST), or contact your VA social worker.

Continued next week.

Larry Dandridge is a Vietnam War wounded warrior, disabled veteran, ex-Enlisted Infantryman, ex-Warrant Officer Pilot, and retired Lt. Colonel. He is a past Veterans Service Officer, a Patient Adviser at the RHJ VA Hospital, the Fisher House Charleston Good Will Ambassador, and the VP for Veteran Affairs for the local Army Association Chapter. Larry is the author of the

LARRY DANDRIDGE

U.S. Marine Corps Col. Matthew D. Bain, commanding officer of Headquarters and Service Battalion, Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, presents a gift to Sgt. Maj. Anthony N. Page, the guest of honor, on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2024, during the 249th Marine Corps Ball at Hilton Head Island, S.C. The Marine Corps birthday ceremony honors the history, legacy and traditions passed down from generation to generation since the founding of the Marine Corps on Nov. 10, 1775. Cpl. Tanner Pittard/USMC

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jakai A. Santiago, the youngest Marine present, with Headquarters and Service Battalion, Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, holds the first slice of cake Sunday, Nov. 1, 2024, during the 249th Marine Corps Ball at Hilton Head Island, S.C. The Marine Corps birthday ceremony honors the history, legacy and traditions passed down from generation to generation since the founding of the Marine Corps on Nov. 10, 1775. Cpl. Tanner Pittard/USMC

SERVICE DIRECTORY

ATTORNEY

Christopher J. Geier

Attorney at Law, LLC

Criminal Defense & Civil Litigation

16 Professional Village Circle, Lady's Island Office: 843-986-9449 • Fax: 843-986-9450

chris@bftsclaw.com • www.geierlaw.com

AUDIOLOGY & HEARING

Beaufort Audiology & Hearing Care

Monica Wiser, M.A. CCC-A

Licensed Audiologist

38 Professional Village West, Lady's Island monica@beauforthearing.com www.beauforthearing.com | 843-521-3007

Hear the Beauty that Surrounds You

The Beaufort Sound Hearing and Balance Center

Dr. Larry Bridge, AU.D./CCC-A 206 Sea Island Parkway, Suite 31, Beaufort thebeaufortsound@gmail.com www.thebeaufortsound.com | 843-522-0655

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