March 6 edition

South Carolina under statewide burn ban

shed and its contents on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025, on Bruce K. Smalls Drive in Burton. Photo courtesy of Burton Fire District

LOWCOUNTRY LOWDOWN

Safe Harbor Marinas sold

PORT ROYAL

Two weeks ago, The Island News headline announced, “Port Royal, Safe Harbor reach agreement.”

Those who have watched the evolution of development at the former S.C. Ports Authority property for the past four decades were a little skeptical but willing to accept that maybe, just maybe, the proposed marina project and accompanying commercial and residential projects might actually take place.

Well, hold on there.

Word came late last week, via the internet, that lo-and-behold, the international Safe Harbor Marinas, LLC is being sold by Sun Communities to an even larger conglomerate, asset manager Blackstone Infrastructure for $5 65 billion.

Since Safe Harbor, which purchased the Port Royal waterfront property in 2021 for $20 5 million, owns and operates 138 marines across the county, no one

cause trouble locally while wildfires plague much of state

By Delayna Earley The Island News

Several families were displaced from a Beaufort apartment complex on Thursday, Feb. 27, after what started as a brush fire.

The City of Beaufort/Town of Port Royal Fire Department got called to Garden Oaks Apartments

just after 2 p.m. for a brush fire.

According to Beaufort/Port Royal Deputy Fire Chief Ross Vezin, the fire quickly spread to one of the buildings on the property and was upgraded to a structure fire after it spread to several AC units and the apartment building.

Beaufort/Port Royal Fire Department, Beaufort County EMS, the Red Cross, Beaufort Police Department and Dominion Energy all responded to the fire, which was extinguished in five minutes, according to Vezin.

Despite the quick response time

in getting the fire under control, five families were displaced following the fire due to “Dominion securing the power to the building.”

While the origin of the fire is still under investigation, Vezin said that he is positive that the fire spread as quickly as it did due to the dry conditions that most of the state of South Carolina is experiencing currently.

S.C. Governor Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency Saturday, March 1, due to the wild-

community. All proceeds

local

Beaufort Charities celebrates 50th in style

Staff reports The masses converged on Live Oaks Park in Port Royal over the weekend for hot oysters, cold beer and live music at the 50th annual Beaufort Charities Festival.

before adding a second day in recent years, celebrated 50 years of dedicated service to the Beaufort County community.

The two-day event, which began as a golf tournament in 1976 and morphed into an oyster roast

"Reaching this 50-year milestone fills us with immense gratitude," Beaufort Charities President Kevin Livingston said in a media release.

"This isn't just about an organiza-

tion; it's about the unwavering spirit of Beaufort County. Every volunteer, sponsor, and attendee has woven a tapestry of generosity that has empowered us to give back for half a century." As usual, all proceeds will directly benefit local nonprofit organizations.

Firefighters with the Burton Fire District work to extinguish a brush fire that destroyed a

The Southern Heat Band opens up for the headliner during the Annual Beaufort Charities Festival on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025 at Live Oaks Park in Port Royal. The two-day festival, which began as a golf tournament in 1976 and morphed into an oyster roast before adding a second day in recent years, celebrated 50 years of dedicated service to the Beaufort County

directly benefit

nonprofit organizations. Amber Hewitt/The Island News

LOWCOUNTRY LIFE & NEWS

Beaufort’s Kristy Wood, kneeling at center, and friends were part of the group of protesters against Elon Musk and the Trump Administration on Monday, March 3, 2025, in front Beaufort City Hall on Boundary Street. Asa Aarons Smith/The Island News. 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 JACQUELINE JOHNSON

American Legion Beaufort Post 207 brings you Beaufort’s Jacqueline Johnson, 28, who joined the U.S. Navy in Chicago in 2017 After Boot Camp in Great Lakes, Ill., she trained as a Culinary Specialist at Fort Lee, Va. Her first duty station was aboard USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) during which she rode the ship from Norfolk, Va.,

around the world, stopping in Spain, Croatia, Oman, Bahrain, traveled across the Indian Ocean to Hawaii and finally arriving at its new home port in San Diego. She then worked at Naval Station Coronado before transferring to Naval Hospital Beaufort, where she contracts food service for the hospital’s admitted pa-

tients. She lives in Laurel Bay and is a published author of poems including “Mend Me,” available on Amazon.

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

March 7

2022: S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster is the keynote speaker as the first South Coast Cyber Summit is held at Tabby Place in downtown Beaufort.

March 8

1971: Joe Frazier defeats Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden in New York City to improve to 27-0, win the vacant The Ring

world heavyweight title and retain the WBA and vacant WBC world heavyweight titles.

March 9

1874: The Town of Port Royal is incorporated with the State of South Carolina.

March 10

1913: Harriet Tubman dies of pneumonia in Auburn, N.Y.

March 11

2019: Beaufort weightlifter Dade Stanley sweeps silver medals in the 81kg weight class at the IWF Youth World championships in Las Vegas. Stanley lifted 133kg on the Snatch, 155kg on the Clean & Jerk and 288kg Total, all silver-medal efforts.

– Compiled by Mike McCombs

Kimmel named PRSF Director of Conservation

Staff reports

The Port Royal Sound Foundation (PRSF) announced, in a news release, the appointment of Courtney Kimmel as its full-time Director of Conservation, which is also a new position for the organization. According to the release, Kimmel will lead PRSF’s efforts to advance environmental stewardship and conservation initiatives in the Port Royal Sound watershed.

Prior to joining the Port Royal Sound Foundation, Kimmel, a social ecologist, served as Vice

Courtney Kimmel

President of the Captain Planet Foundation. She is also a Professor of Practice at Virginia Tech, where she earned her Ph.D. in Human Dimensions of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability.

Kimmel’s background in both the academic and nonprofit sectors makes her uniquely qualified to further PRSF’s mission of conserving the natural

PAL PETS OF THE WEEK

Cat of the Week

Barney is a buff and white, fullfigured girl who has mastered the art of the snuggle. While she may look a little rough around the edges, we assure you that Barney is incredibly sweet and loving. She enjoys spending time with people and other cats. She’s also fond of good food and fluffy beds. Barney is 5 years old, spayed, up to date on vaccinations, and microchipped.

Dog of the Week Ghostface is a charming, 1-year-old dog who thrives on attention. He has a silly side

beauty and ecological health of the Port Royal Sound region. In her new role, she will focus on fostering innovative partnerships and developing impactful conservation strategies that engage local communities and stakeholders. Originally from the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Kimmel grew up on the Chesapeake Bay, which sparked her lifelong dedication to environmental sustainability. She now resides on Battery Creek in Beaufort, with her wife Jill, and their dog, Fisher.

“We are thrilled to welcome Courtney as our full-time Director of Conservation,” PRSF Executive Director Jody Hayward said in the release. “Her experience, knowledge, and passion for conservation will be invaluable as we continue to strengthen our efforts to protect and conserve the Port Royal Sound and its surrounding ecosystems.” For more information about the Port Royal Sound Foundation and its programs, visit PortRoyalSoundFoundation.org.

that will keep you smiling. Whether he's doing a happy

dance or playfully chasing his tail, Ghostface knows how to bring joy to any moment. His zest for life is contagious, and his outgoing nature means he's always up for an adventure. He is neutered, up to date on vaccinations, and microchipped.

For more information on Barney, Ghostface or any of our other pets, call PAL at 843-645-1725 or email Info@ PalmettoAnimalLeague.org.

– Compiled by Lindsay Perry

Jacqueline Johnson

By Delayna Earley The Island News

The Town of Port Royal has announced that Sands Beach will be temporarily closed effective immediately as they begin work on the Causeway Project.

The beach will remain closed until the work is completed, which they expect will be on or around April 25, 2025

The town’s post on its social media pages about the closing was immediately met with mixed comments from citizens, some who were excited about the changes being made and some who were angry about the lack of notice.

The causeway is being built to solve a problem of access to the beach when the tide is high.

High tide has been known to trap visitors on the beach, and the daily influx of water has caused portions of the road and parking lot to have large holes.

To address the problem, the town is constructing a 150- to 200-foot-long timber bridge that will rise and fall to accommodate tides and provide a safe walkway for both pedestrians and vehicles.

This will join the boardwalk, observation deck and boat ramp that already exist at the location.

According to Town Manager Van Willis, this is a more permanent solution than trying to fix the road

Sands Beach closed to build causeway

and parking area, which is difficult since just fixing potholes requires permits from the state because of the marsh and surrounding environment.

Retaining walls will also be built that will allow the town to legally grade uneven areas without having to get a permit.

The project is being funded by the American Rescue Plan Act, ARPA, which guaranteed funding to local municipalities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The expected cost of the project will be $1 5 to $1 6 million.

While the causeway is being built, access to the boat landing will remain open, according to the Town of Port Royal.

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.

Layout showing the plans for the causeway that is to be built for safer access to Sands Beach in Port Royal. The beach was closed on Monday, March 3, 2025, and is expected to reopen on April 25. Photo

THE MOST ADVANCED CARE OPTIONS

At Beaufort Memorial, our advanced orthopedics and spine care team is committed to helping you be your best and enjoy life without pain.

Whether neck or back pain is slowing you down or your activities are limited due to hip or knee pain, our board-certified specialists will personalize your care using sophisticated diagnostic and treatment options. Our advanced techniques and technologies, including Mako SmartRoboticsTM and VELYSTM robotic-assisted joint replacement, will improve function and relieve pain quickly. Many surgical patients even go home the same day.

Visit BeaufortMemorial.org/Ortho for help addressing your pain.

At Beaufort Memorial you’ll also find:

• Joint preservation therapies

• Numerous non-surgical treatment options

• A personalized approach to restoring mobility and joint function

• Pre-operative education classes that engage patients and caregivers in the healing process

• An Optimization Program that follows you through the process to ensure the best outcomes

• Outpatient and in-home rehab services to get you back to doing what you love faster

Rendering of the causeway being built to provide safer access to Sands Beach in Port Royal. Photo courtesy of Town of Port Royal

courtesy of Town of Port Royal

March LIBPA Meeting

Beaufort County Planning and Zoning

Director Robert Merchant will be the guest speaker when the Lady’s Island Business & Professional Association meets at 8 a.m., Tuesday, March 11 2025, at the Beaufort Realtors’ Association Headquarters at 22 Kemmerlin Lane on Lady’s Island. Stop by for coffee and conversation concerning our community.

HELP of Beaufort hosting

fundraiser

HELP of Beaufort is hosting a Smoked Ham fundraiser. The northern Beaufort County food pantry is selling Smoked Hams for $45. Order and pay online at www. helpofbeaufort.org, or call 843-524-1223

Pickup date is from 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, April 19 at the Piggly Wiggly Shopping Center at 1347 Ribaut Road in Port Royal.

2025 Beach Walk to benefit CAPA of Beaufort County

The Low Country Kappa Delta Alumnae Chapter will host the fitth annual Beach Walk to benefit CAPA of Beaufort County at 10 a.m., Saturday, March 8. The walk will begin at Coligny Beach Park, 1 North Forest Beach Drive on Hilton Head Island.

A minimum donation of $10 per person is suggested. If you are unable to join the walk in person, you can participate by walking in your neighborhood and making a donation to support CAPA.

Please make checks payable to Low Country KD AC and send to Jennifer Kaple, 301 Central Avenue, Suite 122, Hilton Head Island, S.C. 29926. You may also donate via Venmo to Jennifer-Kaple-SC1

In the past four years, the Kappa Delta Beach Walk has raised more than $10 000 for CAPA.

CAPA (Child Abuse Prevention Association) is a local nonprofit organization that offers a variety of programs to the community to help raise awareness about child abuse and its effects on the community. CAPA offers community and school-based outreach programs, safe sleep education, home visitation, and foster care.

The fundraiser is part of National Kappa Delta’s Shamrock Project initiative in support of Prevent Child Abuse America. To date, Kappa Deltas have raised nearly $30 million to prevent child abuse in our country.

Friends

of Hunting Island hosting an interactive event

The Friends of Hunting Island are hosting an interactive event with the S.C. Sea Grant Consortium at 3 p.m., Sunday March 9 at Shellring Ale Works.

S.C. Sea Grant Consortium is a state agency concerned with all things coastal. Sea Grant partners and supports local universities, NGOs and other agencies to help initiate, fund and monitor programs protecting fisheries, marine resources and water quality. This is a must see event for anyone concerned with the health and future of our coastal and marine environments.

For additional info and sign up, contact FOHIConservationOutreach@gmail.com.

County’s plastic pollution surveys to remain open until April 1

In 2018, Beaufort County Council passed an ordinance that was intended to limit the number of plastic bags that end up in our fragile environment. The County is considering revisiting the ordinance to ensure that it is having the intended effect and is being fairly implemented.

Counties, municipalities, and countries around the world are at a pivotal point in the battle against plastic pollution. Global production and use of plastics has outpaced

Burn from page A1

fires that are burning across the state. This action by the governor’s office followed a statewide burn ban that was issued by the South Carolina Forestry Commission (SCFC) on Saturday.

An executive order put out by the governor states that the burn ban will remain in effect until further notice and prohibits all outdoor burning – to include yard debris, campfires and prescribed burning.

“This means you can and will go to jail for starting a fire outdoors in South Carolina. Period,” the executive order from the governor said.

More than 60 Rotarians and guests were in attendance on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, when Frank E. Gibson III, was recognized and honored for 50 years of service as a Rotarian. Additionally, he was recognized as a Rotary Foundation Major Donor – Level II, for having donated more than $50,000 to the Rotary International Foundation. Gibson joined the Beaufort Rotary on Feb. 14, 1975, and is credited with 34 years of perfect attendance. Among Gibson’s numerous achievements: He is a business executive, a retired South Carolina Army National Guard officer, a former NCAA football referee, a former president of the Rotary Club of Beaufort, and the 2022 recipient of the Club’s most prestigious award, The Rotary Bowl. Selfless service is the hallmark of Rotary’s motto of “Service Above Self,” and that describes Gibson. He (left) is pictured with the Rotary Club of Beaufort’s Foundation chair, Ethan James (right) who presented him with Rotary International’s recognition crystal. Submitted photo

population growth, and 8 million pieces of plastic pollution make their way into the ocean every day. Beaufort County aims to create healthier, safer, and livable communities through the reduction of environmental pollutants.

The survey found at https://bit.ly/4jycSdV, has two options: one for consumers, the other, for business owners.

Both surveys are brief and there are also two fact sheets that can be downloaded for further information. One fact sheet involves plastic bag bans and the other is entitled Lowcountry Plastics Fact Sheet.

The survey has been extended and will be available until Tuesday, April 1

‘Dining

Under The Stars’ to benefit CAPA

Dining Under the Stars: A Night of Culinary Compassion, to be held from 5:30 to 9 p.m., Sunday, March 9 in downtown Beaufort, is a one-of-a-kind fundraising event to support the Child Abuse Prevention Association (CAPA) and local dancer Nick Borreggine’s fundraising efforts for the annual Dancing With Our Stars. The night takes place on Bay Street, offering enchanting views of the historic Woods Memorial Bridge and the Beaufort River beyond.

Guests will enjoy a five-course plated dinner curated by eight of Beaufort’s most celebrated chefs, including talents from Old Bull, Breakwater, Saltus, Beedos, Scratch Italian Kitchen, POP, Locals Raw Bar, BlackSheep, and Shellring Ale Works. Each meticulously crafted dish will be paired with a fine wine to elevate the experience.

“We all want to give back,” said Nick Borreggine, the visionary behind the event.

“What’s better than supporting such an amazing cause with an unforgettable night that brings the whole community together?”

Currently, most of the wildfires that are burning are located in Horry, Union, Pickens, Oconee and Spartanburg but factors such as lack of rain, low humidity across the state, strong winds mean that there are no areas that are exempt from the danger of a wildfire, according to the S.C. Forestry Commission.

Beaufort/Port Royal Fire Department sent one of their engines along with three firefighters to the PeeDee area to help with putting out and controlling the wildfires.

“It’s just so dry,” said Vezin. “They put out a fire and within five minutes it has popped back up again.”

Vezin said locally there have been a few calls about people burning since the burn ban was issued on Saturday.

“Mostly it is just people that didn’t know about the ban and once we told them they were very understanding,” said Vezin.

The Burton Fire District responded to two brush fires within two hours on Thursday, Feb. 27, that spread and damaged structures and threatened homes. Both were caused by “out-of-control yard debris fires” according to a media release.

The first happened just after 12:30 p.m. on Thursday afternoon. The Burton Fire District, MCAS Fire, the Emergency Services and Beaufort County EMS and the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office responded to the report of a yard debris fire that had spread to a shed that contained a motorcycle on Bruce K. Smalls Drive.

The evening doesn’t stop at exceptional food and wine. Guests will be greeted with champagne and hors d’oeuvres, enjoy live classical music, and leave with a stunning commemorative print by renowned local artist Amiri Farris, created exclusively for the event.

Tickets are $350 per person (inclusive of tax, excludes gratuity) and can be purchased at https://bit.ly/4kqNWp4. With tickets limited to just 185 seats, the chance to be part of this unique evening is exclusive.

Friends of Fort Fremont Oyster Roast

On Friday, March 14, from 5:30 to 8 p.m., Friends of Fort Fremont, in partnership with the Native Plant Society, will host its annual Oyster Roast at Live Oaks Park in Port Royal. Chili, appetizers and desserts will be available.

Bring your own chairs and adult beverages and enjoy the music by the Sweet Ferns. The silent auction has great items, such as Savannah Banana tickets and a special fishing trip

The price is $40 per person. The last day to order tickets is Friday, March 7. No tickets will be sold at the door. They may be purchased by check mailed to Friends of Fort Fremont, P.O. Box 982, St,. Helena, S.C., 29920 or online at wwwfortfremont.org

Rotary Club of Sea Island Blood Drive

The Rotary Club of Sea Island is hosting a blood drive from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, March 18, in the Sea Island Presbyterian Church parking lot at 81 Lady’s Island Drive, Lady’s Island. Walk-ins are welcome. Appointments can be scheduled online at oneblood.org for Whole Bloodor Double Red Cell donations.

When firefighters arrived on the scene, they found the shed, which was located behind the main residence, fully engulfed in flames in addition to a brush fire that was very quickly spreading across the yard.

Firefighters extinguished the shed fire while working to contain and extinguish the brush fire, but while they were battling those fires, they noticed that they roof of a neighboring home was smoking as well.

Another crew responded to the neighboring home and extinguished a small fire on the roof of that home that had been caused by embers from the shed fire.

There were no injuries reported. The shed and its contents were destroyed and the neighboring home sus-

Donors receive a $20 eGift card and a OneBlood gift.

Beaufort Twilight Run needs sponsors

The 15th Annual Beaufort Twilight Run (March 22) still needs sponsors. This is an opportunity not only to help support the students at Riverview Charter School but also to promote a business or place of employment.

Each sponsorship goes directly to our Capstone Field Trip Fund, which helps lower costs for all field trips, especially the Capstone experiences and reduces the financial burden for families. Sponsorships at every level make a meaningful difference. For example, a $2 500 sponsorship can help:

• Send one 8th grader to Costa Rica Send two 5th graders to Washington, D.C Send 10 2nd graders to Barrier Island. For more information, contact Haley Romeo, BTR Sponsorship Chair at haley. romeo@riverviewcharterschool.org. Review the sponsorship packet at https://bit. ly/3WhcAy2 or complete the sponsorship form at https://bit.ly/42cx4LX. Thank you for your support of the Beaufort Twilight Run and Riverview Charter School.

Tickets available for Community Foundation of the Lowcountry’s annual community meeting

Community Foundation of the Lowcountry (CFL) has announced that tickets are available for its Annual Community Meeting to be held from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 26 2025, at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina on Hilton Head Island. While the event is free, tickets are required. The only place to get tickets is by calling the Arts Center Box Office at 843842-2787 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

The Annual Community Meeting’s theme is “Local Impact, Lasting Change,” with special guest speakers representing local nonprofits and scholarship recipients, plus CFL staff and board of directors. CFL is extremely honored to have Carrie Cook, Vice-President and Community Affairs Officer for the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, as the Keynote Speaker. We are also very fortunate to have WSAV-TV Anchor Andrew Davis return for the third straight year as the Master of Ceremonies, and Novant Health on board as the Presenting Sponsor.

Please contact Rob Ennamorato with any questions at rennamorato@cf-lowcountry. or or 843-681-9100

County VA to offer End of Life Planning Seminars for veterans, families

Beaufort County Veterans Affairs is hosting End of Life Planning Seminars for veterans and their families.

These seminars address things veterans and their families can do today to ensure their personal effects are in order. They also discuss Veterans Affairs benefits that surviving spouses may be entitled to receive. They will be offered at either 9 a.m. or 1 p.m., at convenient locations around Beaufort County:

• Tuesday, May 20: Hilton Head Branch Library, 11 Beach City Road. Tuesday, May 27: Beaufort Library, 311 Scott Street.

RSVPs are required for space and resource purposes. Please contact Crystal at 843-255-6880 to reserve your seat. For questions and more information please contact Beaufort County Veterans Affairs at 843-255-6880

– From staff reports

tained only minor damages. The fire started from a trash fire that had been extinguished but had reignited. Then just after 2 p.m. on Thursday, Burton firefighters responded to a brush fire on Kato Lane that was rapidly spreading when they arrived on scene. It had already spread across two additional yards from where it originated and had threatened two homes.

That fire was quickly contained and there were no injuries reported. A neighboring home sustained minor damages to their porch.

This fire started because a resident was burning outdoor yard debris and threw some cardboard onto the fire. Embers from the cardboard were blown in the

wind which caused the fire to spread.

So far this year, Burton Fire District has responded to 24 brush, trash or otherwise unsafe fires, some of which spread and damaged structures and property, according to a release.

Vezin said the biggest thing that people can do right now is just don’t burn anything outside at all and hope for rain.

“There will be plenty of time throughout the year to burn things,” Vezin said. “This is not the 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.

Staff reports

Port Royal man convicted on drug, gun charges

A 52-year-old man who served a lengthy stint in federal prison is behind bars again, this time for dealing fentanyl and other drugs out of a Port Royal mobile home.

A Beaufort County General Sessions Court jury found David Fields Jr. guilty of eight offenses, stemming from two sets of charges. He was sentenced Feb. 27, to 25 years in state prison and fined $75 000

“This defendant essentially ran a pharmacy for illicit drugs, complete with a drive-up window in the front of his mobile home,” said Deputy Solicitor Mary Jordan Lempesis of the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office, who was the lead prosecutor on the case. “Investigators recovered a staggering amount of drugs, along with an

arsenal of handguns he needed to guard his nefarious inventory. “Law enforcement got these dangerous drugs off the streets, and now this jury has helped take a dangerous dealer off the streets, too.”

In 1988, Fields was convicted in federal court for charges that included distribution of cocaine and money laundering. He received a life sentence, but his penalty was reduced after a change to federal drug laws.

He now returns to state prison for offenses related to a July 18 2019, search and seizure of his residence on Port Royal’s Wayside Lane and surveillance oper -

ations that preceded the search. The offenses were: Trafficking cocaine; Trafficking crack cocaine; Distribution of crack cocaine; Possession with intent to distribute fentanyl; Possession with intent to distribute oxycodone;

• Possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine; Possession of a weapon during commission of a violent crime; Possession of handgun with an obliterated serial number.

Fields represented himself during the proceedings. The jury needed just 75 minutes to reach its verdict.

Lempesis and Assistant Solicitor James Sharpe, who assisted

with the prosecution, called seven witnesses during three days of testimony at the Beaufort County Courthouse. The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office Crime Suppression Unit conducted a months-long investigation after a confidential informant reported that crack was being sold from a mobile home on Wayside Lane in Port Royal, often through a window at the front of the residence. The informant made several controlled buys and identified Fields as the seller. Surveillance revealed heavy vehicle traffic to and from the property.

Traffic stops were conducted on two such vehicles, and controlled substances and paraphernalia were found.

Authorities obtained a warrant to search the home and arrest

Lowdown

from page A1

seems sure yet what the sale will mean for its local entities, which also include the lease of the city of Beaufort marina and the Port Royal Landings marina.

Port Royal leaders haven’t indicated they even heard one peep about the pending sale during those extensive mediation meetings they had with Safe Harbor recently to reach the most recent apparent agreement.

In the cases of the Port Royal property and the City of Beaufort Marina, there are legal documents binding on the different parties. Of course, the city’s lease agreement with Safe Harbor signed in 2019 has now been questioned in a lawsuit filed in

November by a new nonprofit Protect Beaufort.

While the impact of this latest sale works its way down the corporate chain, it’s a sure bet the lawyers are going to be busy.

In the meantime, local citizens, particularly those in Port Royal whose may have bet their futures on development of that project, will have to continue to wait.

Blackstone’s public relations did issue this statement, for what that’s worth:

“Our approach to infrastructure investing is one that focuses on responsible stewardship and stakeholder engagement to create value for our investors and the communities we serve. ”

We shall see.

Get ready for Lafayette

BEAUFORT – It’s March and the Marquis de Lafayette is com-

Fields. They confiscated: 31 485 grams of fentanyl; 144 81 grams of cocaine; 16 49 grams of cocaine crack; 37 tablets of oxycodone; 948 pills of various types and mixed compounds; 1 85 grams of methamphetamine; Five pistols, two of which were reported stolen; $3 381 in cash, including bills a confidential informant used in a controlled purchase.

Fields’ criminal record dates to 1989 and includes convictions for assault and battery, shoplifting, filing a false police report, resisting arrest, DUI and driving under suspension.

Circuit Court Judge Robert Bonds handed down the sentence.

ing to town.

In case you’ve missed the massive planning effort that’s underway to produce a re-enactment of the Lafayette’s visit to Beaufort 200 years ago, it’s definitely happening.

Led by the Historic Beaufort Foundation, the City of Beaufort and a host of other organizations and individuals, the program, which has been in the planning stages since last summer, will include multiple lectures around town, a fancy-dress ball and a potential cast of hundreds.

On March 18, the actual date of Lafayette’s arrival in 1825 there will be a procession from the waterfront through downtown Beaufort to the Verdier House on Bay Street, where the French visitor greeted his hosts.

Well-known historical interpreter Mark Schneider will be

portraying the Marquis. Lafayette’s “Farewell Tour of the Nation” began in Staten Island and included 24 states. His South Carolina stops included Cheraw, Camden, Columbia, Izzard’s Plantation north of Charleston, Charleston, Edisto and ended in Beaufort.

For more information, or to get involved, contact the folks at Historic Beaufort Foundation or take a look at historicbeaufort. org.

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

“Word came late last week, via the internet, that lo-and-behold, the international Safe Harbor Marinas, LLC is being sold by Sun Communities to an even larger conglomerate, asset manager Blackstone Infrastructure for $5.65 billion.”

LOLITA HUCKABY WATSON, on the uncertainty surrounding the sale of Safe Harbor Marinas and its impact on Port Royal.

attorney (and The Island News columnist) Scott Graber marked his official retirement last week with the removal

Joining Scott in the acknowledgment were, from left, daughter-in-law Rhianna, wife Susan, son Zack, and grandson Wolfe. Photos courtesy of Pat Dinkler.

FAITH

Carteret Street UMC hosting Lenten services, lunches

Staff reports

Beaufort’s Carteret Street

United Methodist Church

will hold weekly 30-minute Lenten services beginning Monday, March 10 at noon. Each service will be followed by a 30-minute lunch of soup, salad and dessert. All service attendees are welcome to lunch.

Lent is known worldwide as a time of personal reflection in preparation for Easter.

Carteret Street United Methodist Church established weekly Lenten programs in 2007, which are open to the community. For more information, visit the church website (www.carteretstumc. org ), the church’s Facebook page (Facebook.com/csumcbeaufort) or call the church office at 843-524-3841

The schedule of services and speakers are as follows:

March 10 – Dick Clarke, Lay Speaker, Carteret Street United Methodist Church

March 17 – Rev. Rebecca Bruff, Retired United Methodist Minister

March 24 – Brad Smith, Lay Speaker, Carteret Street United Methodist Church

March 31 – Rev. Anne Bridgers, Pastor, Port Royal United Methodist Church

April 7 – Rev. Terry Pfeiffer, Associate Pastor, Carteret Street United Methodist Church

God is transmitting but are we dialed in?

As followers of Christ, we have the opportunity to become as close to God as we desire, and the result is an increased spiritual sensitivity where we can recognize and understand what God is saying. I’ve spoken with many Christians about this, and very few develop a habit of intentionally listening to the Holy Spirit for an increased spiritual awareness of His presence?

Discerning wisdom that is hidden from our earthly understanding is having a desire to be led by God according to what we sense He wants to reveal to us.

The Lord asked Solomon what he desired, and the king replied “Spiritual wisdom and discernment” which pleased God.

The majority who were raised with traditional Christian doctrines accept Biblical prophecy, but for the most part, believe this ability has passed away. Since many are taught cessationism theology they naturally do not seek to be used in these gifts, all the while singing songs about opening our spiritual eyes and being filled with His Spirit. Which, by the way, is the empowerment for spiritual fruits and gifts.

In John 16:13 we read, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will

BILLY HOLLAND

tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future.” This subject is critically important as it’s directly involved with our personal relationship with our Lord.

For example, when we hold a tiny baby in our arms, can we literally discern how devoted they will be to God, or do we just feel the natural and physical possibilities with our emotions? In Luke Chapter 2, we read about an individual named Simeon who was a spiritually dedicated man of prayer and fasting and is described in Verse 25, as “righteous and devout with the Holy Spirit upon him.”

He was there when Mary and Joseph brought baby Jesus (who was probably no more than a month old) to be dedicated at the temple, according to the Law of Moses. God had promised this elderly man that he would not pass away until he had seen the King of Kings, and on the day that Mary and Joseph went to the temple, Simeon encountered the divine appointment of meeting this special family.

When he looked at Jesus, he reached out and held him and said, “For with my eyes I have seen the Lord’s salvation.” Simeon proceeded to prophesy over the child, and even though Mary and Joseph were already aware that Jesus was the Savior of the world, they still marveled at Simeon’s words. How did he know?

Allow us to pause a moment and realize this man could have only recognized the Christ child if he had been walking with a high level of spiritual sensitivity. Mary and Joseph appeared to be just another normal family that blended in with the massive crowd and yet Simeon immediately identified the one called Emmanuel.

Later in the same chapter, we learn about an elderly prophetess named Anna who also worshiped and prayed to God in the temple night and day. She was there and also recognized baby Jesus as the Son of God. Anna, who some have calculated to have been more than 100 years old, not only knew who He was but boldly prophesied how this child would be the redeemer of God’s people.

Strangely we do not read of anyone bowing down to worship the Messiah. Those who passed by probably thought, “Now isn’t that sweet, a nice elderly lady making over a new-

born baby” and then went on about their business. However, let us make note of why no one else was ecstatic. Since they were not walking in discernment they were unable to perceive that God was right in front of them.

First Corinthians 2:14 says, “But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them, and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.”

I believe the Lord is try-

ing to say that our lack of spiritual sensitivity is the reason why many times we do not notice His presence in our everyday lives. Yes, we are very busy, and our minds are filled with all the things we need to do, while sadly our most important responsibility is ignored. How can we hear God’s instructions if our receiver is not dialed to the right frequency?

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

By Skylar Laird SCDailyGazette.com

SC House passes bill to revive K-12 vouchers

COLUMBIA — House Republicans on Wednesday, Feb. 26, easily passed their plan for reviving K-12 private tuition payments in South Carolina, as the floor debate provided new insight into how parents are using their taxpayer-funded scholarships.

The vast majority of what the Legislature allocated last year won’t be used — at least, not this school year.

The bill approved 79-38 mostly along party lines — no Democrat voted for it — is purposely similar to the voucher law partially thrown out by the state Supreme Court last September. Republicans expect a do-over before the state’s high court with whatever they pass. And this proposal “is what we need” to get a ruling that allows private tuition payments to resume, House Education Chairwoman Shannon Erickson, R-Beaufort, told her colleagues.

At issue is the state constitution’s ban on public dollars directly benefiting private education. The House bill attempts to get around that by putting a trustee in charge of the transfers.

Rep. Justin Bamberg, a Bamberg County Democrat, likened the move to money laundering.

“The state effectively money launders it through this third-party trustee, and then they go to a private business,” he said.

Rep. Neal Collins, who was among five Republicans to vote against the bill, argued the scholarships are still funded with public money and, therefore, still unconstitutional.

“You really have to do some mental gymnastics to think this public money is not public money,” said the Easley Republican.

Where the money went

Numbers he provided from the podium offered the first public details on how parents used their allotments this school year, which the Department of Education has previously declined to provide the S.C. Daily Gazette.

The September court ruling came after the state transferred the first of four, quarterly $1,500 allotments to parents’ accounts. While the ruling abruptly stopped all private tuition payments, it kept the rest of the law intact, meaning the transfers continued for still-allowed expenses.

As of mid-January, computers and other “technological devices” made up the single biggest category of parents’ spending, at $1 5 million total over 4,387 transactions, according to a spreadsheet the Department of Education provided the Gazette after Collins’ floor speech.

That represents just under half of the $3 1 million spent by Jan. 17 through the online portal. (Parents direct how their money’s spent through the portal. They do not receive cash or reimbursements.)

It’s great that students received roughly 4,400 computers, Collins said.

“What I’m concerned about is, nothing stops anybody from returning these computers” and

pocketing the money, he said.

According to the education agency, that’s not possible. Any returns result in a credit to the parents’ account rather than a cash refund or gift card. Students are allowed to buy a computer that costs less than $1,500 every other year.

The transactions would include printers, keyboards and other allowed expenses. Gaming computers are not allowed, according to the program handbook.

The second biggest category was school tuition, at about $970,000 over 947 transactions.

The spreadsheet doesn’t provide any breakdown on how many students were involved in those transactions. At least some of them could be for fees charged by public schools for students who transferred from another district.

The ruling didn’t stop those.

What the numbers clearly show is just how much of the $30 million the Legislature allocated for the program’s first school year will go unused.

Even before legislators finalized the state budget last year, it was clear the full $30 million wouldn’t be necessary.

While up to 5 000 Medicaid-eligible students could participate the first year, most applicants didn’t qualify. Less than 2 900 students were enrolled by the deadline, the Daily Gazette reported last May. A $6 000 scholarship for each enrolled student meant less than $17 3 million total could be spent by parents this school year.

As of mid-January, the department had transferred about $6 7 million to the accounts for 1,845 students statewide, according to the spreadsheet. The third, $1 500 installment of the scholarship was set to be transferred to parents’ accounts by Jan. 31

Erickson attributed the low participation to private tuition payments stopping in September and parents being unaware of the pro-

gram in its fledgling year.

The spreadsheet, which breaks down the number of participants per county, shows students in all 46 counties received scholarships.

Richland County, home to the state capital, accounted for the most students in a single county, by far, at 304; followed by Greenville (the state’s most populous county), at 160 students. Fifteen counties were in the single digits, with rural Bamberg and McCormick counties tying for the smallest number of students, at two each.

“We’ve got students in every single county using it, and those numbers will continue to grow,” Erickson said. “We barely got to roll it out with good information last year, and we know that there are other children that are interested in coming.”

But that wouldn’t explain why more than 1,000 of the students enrolled last May dropped out of the program entirely. (While 2 880 students were enrolled, the state shows 1,845 participants.)

Collins and other opponents offered possibilities: Rural students have few, if any, local private school options. A lack of transportation may be an obstacle for getting students to options that do exist. Private schools may not be accepting students who don’t meet their criteria, such as high grades, or if they have a behavioral issue. And even with a $6 000 scholarship, poor parents can’t afford schools that can charge several times that.

Under the 2023 law, eligibility expands in the upcoming school year to 10 000 students with family incomes up to 300% of the federal poverty level, which is about $96,000 for a family of three.

The application period closes March 15 under existing law.

More than 4,700 students have already applied, according to the state Department of Education.

Wednesday, Feb.

What the bill would do

Republicans’ proposals, both in the House and Senate, would nix the application deadline but maintain the existing law’s income eligibility rules for next two school years. In 2026-27, 15,000 students from families who make up to 400% of the poverty level can participate.

Under the House bill, there won’t be any income limits starting in school year 2027-28, though there will be an application priority window for families up to 300% of federal poverty guidelines.

“That’s a handout,” said Rep. David Martin, R-Fort Mill. “That’s not helpful. That’s free money for rich people.”

And unlike existing law, both the House and Senate plans would open up eligibility to students already attending private schools. The 2023 law required students to be leaving a public school or entering kindergarten.

“I consider this a tuition discount for people who already send their kids to private schools,” said Rep. Heather Bauer, D-Columbia.

Rep. Jeff Bradley, chairman of the House education K-12 subcommittee, stressed that the program’s cost is a tiny fraction of the more than $14 billion going into South Carolina’s K-12 public schools this year from local, state and federal taxes.

State aid accounts for $6 7 billion of that total, representing an increase of $1 4 billion over five years, according to the state Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office.

“I think given the total amount we spend on education, it’s worth taking a risk to see if we can do something better about it,” said Bradley, R-Hilton Head Island.

Opponents argued that money would be better spent on bigger increases in teacher salaries.

The voucher money could be used to pay off school debt burdening rural residents, he said.

“At this point to me, it’s so obvious,” Bamberg said. “This isn’t about giving everybody choice.”

An 80-32 vote Thursday returned the bill to the Senate, which can either agree to the House changes and send the bill to Gov. Henry McMaster’s desk or insist on its version.

S.C. Daily Gazette Editor Seanna Adcox contributed to this report. Skylar Laird covers the South Carolina Legislature and criminal justice issues. Originally

Bamberg noted state funding for the scholarships will rise to an estimated $96 million in 2026-27 and potentially keep going up. That amount may be comparatively small to overall spending statewide, he said. But it’s a huge amount for poor, rural school districts that pass along massive amounts of debt to pay for renovations or new schools, which Bamberg argued should be a state responsibility. In districts with little tax base, residents pay higher property taxes on their homes and vehicles to pay for school construction debt, because there’s no industry to pay the tab.

Rep. Neal Collins, R-Easley, explains his opposition to K-12 vouchers during floor debate on

26, 2025. Screenshot of SCETV legislative livestream

BCSD school choice program applications being accepted now

Staff reports

The Beaufort County School District is now accepting school choice applications for the 2025-26 academic year, the 10th year of the district’s expanded choice initiative.

School choice applications are open on the district’s website and must be submitted online by Friday, April 11, 2025, at 5 p.m. Parents who don’t have internet access may request application assistance at any district school.

“We want parents to know

Staff reports

that Beaufort County School District is the best choice for their children,” Superintendent Frank Rodriguez said in a media release. “Our offerings are extensive, innovative, and engaging. There’s something to match every student’s interests and future career plans.”

Curriculum options approved by the Board of Education include such instructional choices as Advanced Math, Engineering, and Science (AMES), Montessori, International Baccalaureate, arts integration, language

Deadline to apply is April 11

immersion, Cambridge Academy, Early College, MedTech 7 Medical and Technology pathways, and leadership programs.

Expanded options for this year include BCSD Tides, a dual enrollment partnership for rising 9th grade students, and select Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. To learn about each of the district’s school choice program offerings please see the BCSD School Choice website page (https://www.beaufortschools.net/families/

school-choiceprograms) where a complete Guide to School Programs Booklet can be viewed.

Choice schools serve children who live in their attendance zones in addition to students from outside the zone who apply to attend. Beaufort County students who attend choice programs do not pay extra tuition, although families are responsible for their students’ transportation if they live outside of school attendance zones.

“There are even more op-

portunities for students and families to choose from with academic school program pathways that were previously limited to individuals residing in-zone,” Chief Instructional Services Officer

Mary Stratos said. “This year, there are only four schools that are at or above capacity and do not have availability for students outside the attendance zone to apply for school choice, Okatie Elementary School, Robert Smalls Leadership Academy, Pritchardville Elementary School, and River

Ridge Academy (Grades 6-8).”

A lottery will be held if the number of choice applications at a school would cause the school to exceed its overall enrollment capacity, or if approved applications would push an individual choice program beyond its capacity. All district schools maintain a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics focus, as well as a core curriculum that includes the arts, world languages, and technology.

BCSD, TCL offer expanded dual enrollment opportunities

Beaufort County School District

(BCSD) and Technical College of the Lowcountry (TCL) will be accepting applications in March for BCSD Tides, a dual enrollment partnership that will allow qualified BCSD rising 9th-grade students to enroll in a full-time dual enrollment cohort at TCL’s New River Campus or Beaufort Mather Campus.

Like traditional dual enrollment courses, students in each 2025-2026 cohort will earn both high school and college credit for completing TCL classes taught by TCL instructors. Dual enrollment classes are free to district students. Uniquely, BCSD Tides students will complete the program as a cohort beginning in 9th grade and can graduate high school with two associate degrees and a technical certificate from TCL.

“The BCSD Tides program reflects a deepened partnership between BCSD and TCL in providing district students with more innovative and unique opportunities to excel while in high school as well as advance their academic and professional futures,” BCSD Superintendent Dr. Frank Rodriguez said in a media release.

“Our partnership is a great way to leverage college resources to benefit more students. TCL’s college classes, along with our stateof-the-art technology, business, and health sciences programs, are perfectly aligned with Beaufort County School District’s commitment to provide its graduates with post-secondary opportunities and our own commitment to meet the region’s workforce needs,” TCL

President Dr. Richard Gough said. Accepted students choose one of two associate degree pathways as a major for their 9th- and 10thgrade years and then will declare

VIDEO To watch a video about Beaufort County School District and Technical College of the Lowcountry’s expanded dual enrollment opportunities go to https://bit.ly/4i1lgBd.

an associate degree minor with a technical program emphasis for their junior and senior years.

“What’s most exciting to me is that by the time these students finish their 10th-grade year, they will have already completed an entire associate degree – or two years of college,” TCL Vice President for Academic Affairs Laura Dukes said. “Then, they have a chance to earn another associate degree with an emphasis in a specific technical area, fully preparing them for whatever college or career path they choose after high school.”

“BCSD Tides’ extended dual enrollment model is the cumulative result of both learning institutions’ commitment to elevating student learning experiences through technology and teaching,” BCSD Chief Instructional Services Officer Mary Stratos said.

The program’s rigorous faceto-face instruction meets South Carolina requirements for a high school diploma, Stratos said.

BSCD Tides

Majors

Associate of Arts: University Transfer Pathway

Associate of Science: University Transfer Pathway Minors

Associate of Applied Science/Computer Technology-Programming

Associate of Applied Science/Computer Technology-Networking

County School District Superintendent

and Technical College of the

Submitted photo

Associate of Applied Science/Cybersecurity

Associate of Applied Science/Business Administration

Associate of Science/Allied Health Science

Associate of Science/Allied Health Science - Medical Assisting Associate of Science/ Allied Health ScienceEntrepreneurship/Small Business Certificate

Qualifying students attending Bluffton, Hilton Head Island, and May River High Schools will be

eligible for the cohort housed on TCL’s New River Campus and will have the opportunity to participate in extra-curricular activities and athletics at their home high school. Qualifying students attending Whale Branch Early College, Beaufort, and Battery Creek High Schools will be eligible for the cohort housed on TCL’s Beaufort Mather Campus and will have the opportunity to participate in extra-curricular activities and athletics at their home high school. Rising 9th-grade students who are interested in BCSD Tides and are currently enrolled in private, charter, or a homeschool organi-

zation are also encouraged to apply. Eligible students can apply to attend BCSD Tides during the 2025-2026 School Choice window through April 11, 2025 by visiting https://bit.ly/3L46mMZ. Student eligibility is based on the following: Enrolled in BCSD

Must be a legal U.S. citizen or legal resident

Must have a 3 0 GPA (on a 4 0 unweighted scale) A qualifying PSAT score

Additional criteria as determined by TCL Admissions and BCSD

For more information on how to apply, interested parents/guardians and students are encouraged to attend an informational session:

Northern Beaufort County Beaufort Mather Campus 5:30-6:30 p.m., Monday, March 17, Building 12 Auditorium

Attend in person (RSVP is required.)

Southern Beaufort County New River Campus 5:30-6:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 19, Room 126 Attend in person (RSVP is required.)

Parents and students are also encouraged to take a tour to learn more. Registration for a school tour is required (click here). All tours are held at TCL’s New River Campus in Bluffton. Or visit https://bit.ly/4h2sL9S. For more information, please contact Scarlett Mooney, Director of BCSD Tides at 843-379-7823 or scarlett.mooney@beaufort.k12 sc.us, or Taylor Welborn, Executive Director, Admissions, Enrollment, & Student Success at 843-525-8336 or dualenrollment@tcl.edu.

JPII freshman nominated for Congress of Future Medical Leaders

Staff reports

John Paul II Catholic School freshman

Nathan Miller has been nominated as a Delegate to the prestigious Congress of Future Medical Leaders taking place this summer at the University of Massachusetts Lowell campus.

This recognition, signed by Nobel Laureate Dr. Mario Capecchi, underscores Nathan’s exceptional academic achievements, leadership potential, and dedication to serving others.

“Nathan’s nomination is a milestone not only for him personally but also for our entire school community,” JPII Director of Counseling & Student Support Services

Cara Buckland said in a media release. “It highlights the dedication of his parents to his educational journey, and it speaks volumes about the supportive and challenging environment that JPII provides. Our commitment to nurturing young minds is clearly reflected in Nathan’s accomplishments, and we celebrate his determination to excel in the field of medicine and beyond.”

Students are identified to become Delegates by their teachers, counselors, and principals based on their dedication to entering the medical field as physicians

or medical scientists (biomedical, technological, engineering, and mathematical), their leadership potential and their academic excellence.

The Congress of Future Medical Leaders is an honors-only program that gathers the nation’s brightest high school students with aspirations in medicine and medical research. Throughout this three-day event, participants will have the opportunity to interact with Nobel Laureates, National Medal of Science recipients, and distinguished leaders in the field of medical research. They will receive valuable insights from top Ivy League and premier medical school deans, learn about cutting-edge advances

in medical technology, and gain firsthand perspectives from patients who have experienced medical miracles.

“Nathan’s achievement is a testament to the strong foundation his family has built and the educational excellence we strive to deliver at John Paul II Catholic School,” JPII Principal Heather Rembold said. “His nomination is an inspiring example of what can be accomplished when we combine academic rigor with a compassionate heart. We are honored to support students like Nathan, whose future endeavors, whether in medicine or another field, will undoubtedly make a positive impact on our community and society.”

Beaufort

Frank Rodriguez

Lowcountry President Richard Gough.

Nathan Miller

31st annual Goodwill Tournament

Competitors from around the Lowcountry converged on the Beaufort High School gymnasium on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025, for the 31st annual Goodwill Tournament hosted by Chuck Elias’ Club Karate. Elias touts the tournament as more than just a competition, but a celebration of martial arts and community. He says it has become a platform for martial artists of all ages and skill levels to showcase their talents, learn from each other, and foster a sense of camaraderie. “Nothing but happiness, a good experience,” Elias said when asked what he hoped a first-time participant would take home from the event. “It’s an opportunity to find out their strengths, their weaknesses and what they need to work on.”

Photo courtesy of Ken Szarek

New SCETV documentary honors remarkable legacy of Harriet Tubman

Staff reports

“Harriet Tubman -- From the Railroad to a Spy” is now available for online viewing, and South Carolina ETV and Public Radio (SCETV) will distribute the program to public television stations across the U.S. in March, bringing Tubman’s extraordinary story to viewers nationwide.

Beaufort resident Harriet Tubman is widely known for her courageous work on the Underground Railroad, but her role as a Union Army scout and spy during the Civil War remains one of the most overlooked chapters of her remarkable life. “Harriet Tubman -- From the Railroad to a Spy” sheds light on her daring missions, including the 1863 Combahee River Raid in South Carolina, which freed more than 750 enslaved people in the largest single emancipation event of the war.

“Harriet Tubman’s courage and resilience continue to inspire generations. This documentary provides a deeper understanding of her extraordinary contributions beyond the Underground Railroad. We are honored

to share her story with audiences nationwide, ” SCETV President and CEO Adrienne Fairwell said in a media release.

The one-hour documentary takes viewers beyond Tubman’s well-documented legacy, exploring her time in Beaufort County, where she worked alongside Union forces in intelligence-gathering and military operations. The film recounts her collaboration with Colonel James Montgomery and the 2nd South Carolina Infantry, showcasing the strategic prowess that made her an invaluable asset to the Union cause. Montgomery himself once described Tubman as “a most remarkable woman and invaluable as a scout.”

“Many people know Harriet Tubman as the leader of the Underground Railroad, but her efforts as a military strategist and scout are just as compelling,” SCETV Director of National Content and Regional Operations Don Godish said in a media release. “This film shines a light on her lesser-known achievements and her crucial role in the Civil War.”

Otterbein

Choir

As 2022 marked the 200th anniversary of Tub man’s birth, this documenta ry serves as a tribute to her profound impact as a freedom fighter, military leader and advocate for human rights. From her early years escaping slavery to her in strumental role in liberating others, “Harriet Tubman -From the Railroad to a Spy” presents a comprehensive look at a true American hero. The documentary is a production of Sankofa Com munications and Lowcoun try Gullah.

In addition to airing local ly, “Harriet Tubman -- From the Railroad to a Spy” will be distributed to public television stations across the country through the National Educational Telecommuni cations Association (NETA).

Viewers outside South Car olina should check their local listings for air times on their local public television station beginning in March. The documentary will also be available for streaming in the PBS app and on scetv.org.

For more information about “Harriet Tubman -From the Railroad to a Spy,” visit scetv.org.

coming to Beaufort March 10

Staff reports

MARCH

COSTUME CONTEST 18th/19th Century dress AGES 16 & Under 5:30 p.m.

Revolution Ballroom Dance Demonstration

The Otterbein University Concert Choir from Westerville, Ohio, will perform at 7 p.m., Monday, March 10, at St. Helena Anglican Church at 507 Newcastle Street in Beaufort. The performance is part of the choir’s March 7-14 spring break tour that also includes stops in Athens, Ohio; Charlotte, N.C.; Newberry; Charleston, W.Va.; and Gahanna, Ohio. The ensemble’s tour program, “Holding the Light,” features the music of Brittney Boykin, Jocelyn Hagan, Marques Garrett, and Elaine Hagenberg. All performances are free and open to the public. For more information, call 614-823-1508

The Otterbein Concert Choir tours annually to destinations domestic and abroad, with recent itineraries including Estonia, Lithuania, Washington D.C., New Orleans, and Germany. The ensemble has been invited to perform at prominent locations abroad such as St. Casimir’s Church in Vilnius, Nikolaikirche in Leipzig; St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin; Beijing Central Conservatory; and Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

How to deal with a sore throat

As our local weather patterns erratically zig from cold to hot then zag back again and the annual pollenpalooza has already begun, sore throats become a common health issue.

Common causes include allergies, a viral infection— such as a cold or the flu, and a bacterial infection. Most sore throats are not serious, but severe symptoms can make breathing difficult.

How a person deals with a sore throat depends on its severity and cause. Usually, home remedies can soothe the discomfort until it goes away. Tips for soothing a sore or scratchy throat include using a humidifier, sucking on popsicles, and taking honey. However, sometimes, medical treatment is necessary.

Viruses and bacteria are two common causes of sore throats.

Viruses: Many sore throats are due to viral infections, such as common colds, influenza, the Epstein Barr virus (EBV) which may lead to infectious mononucleosis, and sometimes known as glandular fever or mono. A blood test can confirm this, or COVID-19

Bacteria: Strep throat is a common type of throat infection due to exposure to a strain of Streptococcus bacterium. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), strep throat accounts for 30% of sore throats in children and around 10% in adults.

The person may need antibiotics to fight the infection and prevent complications. Without treatment, strep throat can increase the risk of rheumatic fever or kidney inflammation in children.

Other causes: Other common causes of a sore throat include: allergies

• irritation due to dry heat, pollutants, or chemicals reflux, which is when stomach acids come up into the back of the throat cold air

More severe but less common conditions that can involve a sore throat include: HIV infection tumors of the throat, tongue, or larynx epiglottitis

A note on epiglottitis: Epiglottitis is a rare but potentially dangerous throat infection where inflammation and swelling of the epiglottis can close the airway, making it difficult to breathe.

Epiglottitis is a medical emergency. If a child or adult has the following symptoms, they need immediate medical attention: a severely sore throat difficulty swallowing and breathing a high-pitched sound when breathing in drooling skin that looks blue, or gray in darker skin, due to a lack of oxygen

A person may also experience a scratchy sensation in the throat or pain that becomes worse when swallowing or talking. The accompanying symptoms can vary depending on the exact cause. Other symptoms that might accompany a sore throat include: difficulty swallowing sore or swollen lymph nodes in the neck or jaw area swollen red tonsils a hoarse or muffled voice coughing, sneezing, and a runny nose fever

If a person is experiencing a sore throat due to a virus or bacteria called group

A Streptococcus, or strep throat, the accompanying symptoms might be similar. However, according to the CDC, the following symptoms might suggest that the cause is viral: cough runny nose voice hoarseness conjunctivitis

Strep throat is more common in children than in adults. The exact symptoms depend on the age, but, as well as a sore throat, they may include: a fever tender, swollen lymph nodes in the neck an irritated mood a reduced appetite swollen tonsils with signs of pus small red spots on the roof of the mouth a headache abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting, especially in children

People with strep throat often have pain and fever without a cough. Most sore throats go away on their own and home

How to help kids cope with reality

We all want our kids to feel happiness, to experience success, and to be excited about life. However, if we want our children to be truly happy in the world, then they have to learn how to function within it.

Using strategies to keep our children constantly content 100% of the time robs them of the ability to adjust, cope, and selfsoothe. However, there are skills that need to be part of every adult’s toolkit. They teach how we can help to get our children to cope with reality, and the fact that the world often says “no” when they long for something.

Deborah Ann Davis, award-winning author, parenting skills coach, mother, and former high school educator of 20+ years, offers adjustment advice on how parents can help teach their child how to adjust, cope, and self-soothe in any situation: If you want your child to handle disappointment eloquently, it’s not automatic. You actually have to train them to change their habits and reactions. Here’s a simple strategy for you to share with them ahead of time:

Say to them, “Sometimes you get what you want, and sometimes you don’t get what you want. When you don’t get what you want, it may feel bad, but that’s okay. You’ll be all right. And you may get your way next time!” Then, in the following days, pick out several moments when they want something easy, and say, “Sometimes you get what you want, and sometimes you don’t get what you want. This is one of those times when you’re getting what you want.”

You can plan for these moments— when they want to wear mismatched socks, or want more broccoli, or want to move furniture to make a fort. Capitalize on things you were already willing to say “yes” to anyway. Repeat it. Say it as many times as you can. Calm repetition is your friend! You will be laying the groundwork for the next inevitable disappointing “no”. As each situation rears its ugly head, you’ll be ready. It may feel forced or awkward to you to repeat the same thing, but for them it will feel familiar (perhaps annoying at times, but familiar). If you are first employing this strategy with a tween or teen, your training must also undo her old habits and expectations. But don’t worry. As long as you are consistent, the learning curve will be shorter. For more information, visit https:// deborahanndavis.com

treatment is usually sufficient. Sometimes, however, medical treatment is necessary. A person should speak with a doctor if they have the following symptoms: symptoms that worsen or do not get better within a few days breathing difficulties swallowing difficulties blood in the saliva or phlegm dehydration rash excessive drooling, in young children joint swelling joint pain

A doctor will ask a person about their symptoms and perform a physical examination. They may also take a swab sample to identify the cause. The doctor can take a sample simply by touching the back of the throat and tonsils with a cotton-tipped applicator.

Sometimes, a sore throat can develop for another reason, such as a tumor. If the problem does not go away, the doctor will perform more tests to find the cause.

Most sore throats resolve without treatment, but this will depend on the cause. If a sore throat is due to a bacterial infection, a doctor may prescribe a course of antibiotics. People should always take the complete course, even if they feel better before finishing all the medication.

Sore throats due to a viral infection do not usually need medical treatment. Acetaminophen or mild pain relievers may help with the pain and fever, and children can use pediatric versions of these medications. A pharmacist can advise which ones to use and correct dosages. It is important always to follow the instructions on any medication and not to take more than the guidelines suggest.

A few home care strategies may help relieve sore throat symptoms, including: getting plenty of rest drinking plenty of fluids to keep the throat moist and prevent dehydration

using a humidifier or vaporizer having cold treats, such as popsicles gargling with warm, saltwater using honey to soothe a sore throat, except for children under 12 months lozenges or hard candy to soothe a sore throat and a cough for children over 2 years and adults

Some simple steps can help prevent infections that cause a sore throat. Wash the hands often, including after sneezing and coughing. Use alcohol-based hand sanitizers if soap and water are unavailable. Cough or sneeze into a tissue, throw it away, and immediately wash both hands. Avoid touching the nose or mouth. Avoid close contact with people who have an infection and stay away from others if you have an infection. Disinfect frequently touched surfaces, such as tabletops. Follow a diet and exercise plan that helps boost overall health. Seek advice on COVID-19 testing if symptoms may indicate a SARS-CoV-2 infection. A sore throat can be uncomfortable, but most are not serious and usually go away without treatment. Home remedies and overthe-counter medication can soothe the symptoms. Speak with a doctor if symptoms are severe or persistent or there is difficulty breathing.

Source: https://www. medicalnewstoday.com/ articles/311449

How hearing affects your brain health care TALK ©

If you find yourself having difficulty following conversations or issues with memory and thinking skills, you may want to get your hearing checked. Age-related hearing loss may be linked to an increased risk of cognitive decline. Several large studies have shown that people who have a degree of hearing loss, even in midlife, have an increased risk of developing dementia later in life.

Dr. Ronald Peterson, a neurologist and director of the Mayo Clinic Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, says the exact reason why there's an increased risk is not known. "It could be that there are actually effects on the brain. Some studies have been shown that if people have a hearing loss over many years, certain parts of the brain, in particular the temporal lobe involved in

hearing, but also involved in language and memory, may actually be smaller," says Dr. Petersen. It also could be that hearing loss leads to social isolation, which can lead to an increased risk in dementia.

Dr. Petersen recommends getting your hearing assessed every two to three years, especially if you're noticing signs that your hearing may be deteriorating. Signs that hearing loss may be evolving include difficulty hearing conversations, especially in

crowded rooms, and asking others to repeat themselves frequently.

The fix could be as simple as needing to get earwax removed.

"If in fact a hearing loss is detected that is more than what we would expect for aging, you could get a hearing device—a hearing aid or cochlear implant. There are treatable entities, such that hearing loss need not be normal, and hearing loss need not be a normal event in aging," says Dr. Petersen. "We think that if a person improves one's ability to hear that their cognitive loss—if it's related to that— might in fact slow over time," says Dr. Petersen.

Source: https://newsnetwork. mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayoclinic-minute-how-hearingaffects-your-brain-health; https:// www.mayo.edu/research/centersprograms/alzheimers-diseaseresearch-center/

HEALTH & WELLNESS

The most common Lyme disease symptoms you shouldn’t ignore

Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne illness in the United States, affecting up to 300,000 people a year, according to estimates from the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Checking for ticks is should be a summertime rite of passage. Experts know that Lyme disease is caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, which is transmitted from the bite of an infected blacklegged tick (a.k.a. deer tick). But diagnosing the condition isn’t always so straightforward. Once inside your body, the bacteria can wreak havoc in a number of ways. Yes, that can include the classic bullseye-shaped rash. But many of the other symptoms of Lyme disease aren’t as well known, and they can be frustratingly vague.

That’s why it’s important to familiarize yourself with the signs and seek medical attention ASAP if you think you or a loved one may have Lyme. The disease is typically easy to treat as long as you know what to look for. The signs of this common tick-borne illness go beyond a red rash.

Early symptoms of Lyme disease: The first signs of Lyme can strike anywhere from 3 to 30 days after getting bitten by an infected tick, the CDC says.

Up to 80% of people will develop a red rash (known as erythema migrans) in the days or weeks after contracting Lyme disease. It usually forms at the site of the tick bite, and the redness is basically an allergic reaction to the tick’s saliva.

Lyme disease rashes will often be bullseye-shaped, but they can also just be a red blotch. The rash will usually expand with time and can get as big as 12 inches. It might feel warm to the touch or look a little crusty in the center

where you were bitten, but it won’t be itchy or uncomfortable. While common, it’s still worth noting that some people with Lyme may never develop a rash.

Flu-like symptoms: Not everyone experiences a full laundry list of flu-like symptoms. But there’s a good chance you’ll notice at least a few. This potentially includes:

Fatigue

Muscle and joint pain

Headache

Neck stiffness

Swollen lymph nodes

Fever

Chills

The flu-like symptoms are a result of your immune system’s attempt to fight off the bacterial infection and help you get better.

Of course, these kinds of symp-

toms could indicate many different illnesses. One clue that a tick bite caused them? Tick-borne disease Specialists concur that with Lyme disease, you won’t experience the coughing or congestion that often comes with the actual flu.

Later Lyme disease symptoms: After a month or so, people infected with Lyme disease may start showing additional symptoms. These can include larger or additional rashes.

As the Lyme disease infection spreads throughout the body, your rash might start to expand even more. You might also develop new, smaller rashes nearby. Like the early rash, these might be bulls eye-shaped. But they can also just look splotchy or blob-like, according to the CDC. They might even

take on a slightly bluish tint in the middle.

Exhaustion, fuzzy thinking, and other cognitive problems: Borrelia burgdorferi is one of the few bacteria that can cross the blood-brain barrier and infect the central nervous system, explains Timothy J. Sellati, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer for the Global Lyme Alliance. That can lead to inflammation of the brain, which can affect your central nervous system function in a few different ways.

One of those is extreme fatigue, which affects as many as 76% of people with advanced Lyme disease, according to research. Trouble concentrating, loss of coordination, and short-term memory loss are other possible problems occurring in up to 24% of people.

In extreme cases where the disease is left untreated for extended periods, you might even develop facial weakness and behavioral changes, Sellati says.

Intense headaches: The same inflammation that causes fatigue and fuzzy thinking can also lead to headaches, which findings suggest could strike in up to 70% of people with Lyme disease. Usually, these feel intense and more similar to a migraine than your run of the mill tension headache. In addition to throbbing pain, you might also experience hypersensitivity to noise or light.

Severe pain, numbness, or tingling in your joints and muscles:

Around 60% of patients will develop joint pain or even arthritis as their Lyme disease progresses, according to a Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine study. Usually, it starts in the joints closest to where you were bitten and can spread from there, especially to areas like the knees. The pain isn’t usually constant, though. Experts don’t fully understand why, but “the symptoms can wax and wane over a period of weeks or months,” Sellati says.

Over time, the disease can attack the cartilage in the joints and lead to tissue damage. Like many of the other problems caused by Lyme disease, this one is also triggered by inflammation. “The damage to tissues, bone, and cartilage is caused by the production of pro-inflammatory proteins, the same protein responsible for damage caused by rheumatoid arthritis,” Sellati says.

Sources: https://www.globallymealliance. org/about-lyme/diagnosis/symptoms/; https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/ conditions-and-diseases/lyme-disease/ticksand-lyme-disease

Beaufort Memorial announces health care career development partnership with Beaufort County School District

BEAUFORT, S.C. – The future of health care in Beaufort County and the Lowcountry is in the hands of dedicated high school students—and a partnership with Beaufort Memorial and the Beaufort County School District will allow those students to gain necessary skills and graduate ready to enter the field.

The partnership, which kicked off in January, allows seniors enrolled at a Beaufort County School District (BCSD) high school who are participating in a Health Sciences Career and Technical Education completer program to participate in Beaufort Memorial’s PATH (People Achieving Their Highest) Program tuition-free.

The pathways available for eligible high school students in this program are

Patient Care Technicians (PCTs) and Clinical Medical Assistants (CMAs).

The PATH Program is a workforce development program established in 2022 designed to help individuals achieve their career goals, offering a variety of internal pathway programs at Beaufort Memorial.

This partnership offers an amazing opportunity for high school seniors in the Beaufort County School District who are interested in exploring a rewarding career in health care,” Joy Solomon, MSN, RN, NPD-BC, Director of Education & Workforce Development at Beaufort Memorial. “Students who take advantage of this program will have access to its resources, insights and mentors, giving them a head start financially as they embark

upon a career in health care that inspires them.”

The tuition-free training program offered by BCSD and Beaufort Memorial will allow students passionate about a future career in patient care to gain needed career skills and experience, all while they complete high school. The program will enhance classroom instruction for students in these Health Science programs, offering them the opportunity for hands-on practice in Beaufort Memorial’s nursing simulation lab, located in the Career Development Center that opened in Summer 2024

We are excited to partner with BMH to provide our high school students with hands-on career development opportunities,” Dr. Frank Rodriguez, BCSD Superintendent. “This collab-

oration will empower our students with real-world experience and skills that will prepare them for future careers while also strengthening the pipeline of healthcare professionals in our community.”

Seniors participating in the program will graduate at the end of their final year ready to enter the field of health care—with a national certification in their chosen pathway. This means skipping entry-level positions in their post-graduation job search and stepping directly into a patient-care role.

Students who are interested in workforce development healthcare training opportunity for the 2025-26 school year need to contact their high school’s Career Development Facilitator for additional details and how to apply.

Not the Telephone Game

The Gospels Are Trustworthy

Many of us remember playing the telephone game as children.

As the message is whispered from child to child, it inevitably becomes changed beyond recognition. When considering Jesus as a historical figure, people may wonder whether something similar might have happened with the Gospels. How can we know that the accounts about his life are reliable, and not exaggerated or invented over time?

The four Gospels were written from first-hand testimony. The telephone game doesn’t work as an image for the writing of the Gospels. Matthew and John were apostles who spent three years with Jesus, so their Gospels are written from personal memories. Mark and Luke were both writing down the testimony of those who saw and heard Jesus in person. The Gospels of Mark and Luke would be like a game of telephone with only two children, with the second child writing down the message as he hears it from the first child.

The good news about Jesus was shared right from the start. It is not as if the first Christians believed that Jesus was just a great human teacher, and then a hundred years later, a legend began to develop that he is divine and rose miraculously from the dead. Right away, the apostles began to travel throughout the known world, boldly preaching that Jesus had been raised from the dead, and that he is truly God! This good news is also seen clearly in the letters of Saint Paul, one of the first Christian leaders.

People were around to correct the Gospels if they were false. The Gospels were written within a few decades after the resurrection of Jesus, when eyewitnesses were still living who could have easily disproven the Gospel accounts if they were invented out of thin air. For example, the Gospels present Jesus as performing many miracles of healing. There were many people still living who witnessed his ministry, and it would be easy enough to find out whether or not Jesus was known for healing people.

Our Bibles today contain translations of the original Gospels. The original Gospels were written in Greek and spread quickly throughout the Christian world. They were copied by hand with great care. Scholars have access to hundreds of manuscripts from quite early in Christian history, allowing them to be confident of the original Greek texts of the Gospels. They use these texts to create today’s translations into modern languages. Thus, when we read the Bible today, we can be confident that our Gospels correspond to the originals authored by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

The Gospels give us an accurate image of the historical Jesus. They are historical documents, similar to other ancient biographies. Their authors sought to give readers a true account of the words and actions of Jesus of Nazareth. This means that the Gospels cannot be dismissed as legends or folk tales. Jesus is a historical figure, and if we are to take him seriously, we must also consider carefully his claim to be divine.

Attorneys for man accused by Mace demand evidence or apology

By Seanna Adcox and Shaun Chornobroff SCDailyGazette.com

Attorneys for one of the men accused by U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace of being a sexual predator have issued a “demand for action,” giving the congresswoman 10 days to produce evidence or publicly apologize for what they call “outrageous” allegations.

In a four-page letter sent to Mace on Thursday, attorneys for Brian Musgrave of Fort Mill outlined three possible scenarios: Provide evidence that he was in-

volved in the alleged crimes, retract the allegations against him and publicly apologize, or prepare to be sued.

“You upended Brian’s life when you accused him falsely of being a rapist, a predator, and a sex trafficker,” wrote attorneys Eric Bland and Ronald Richter Jr. in a letter provided to news outlets late Thursday, Feb. 27

“He is none of those things,” the letter continued, calling Musgrave a “loving husband” to his wife of 22 years and “loving father” to his two children.

“The damage you have inflected upon Brian and his family is immense,” they wrote.

Mace’s spokeswoman declined Friday morning to directly respond to the letter. Instead, she referred the Gazette to what Mace said from the House floor regarding Musgrave. Mace seemed to address the allegations herself through a post on X late Thursday: “Witness intimidation is real, and it is illegal. Hold the line,” she wrote without

and Sunday,

Forestry Commission

Carolina Forest fire 30% contained, evacuations lifted

While the fire is widespread, no one has been injured and no homes destroyed

By Shaun Chornobroff SCDailyGazette.com

Residents of a Myrtle Beach area community threatened by a weekend wildfire can return home as firefighters begin to get the blaze under control.

The 1,600-acre Carolina Forest fire that led to hundreds of evacuations in Horry County is 30% contained as of Monday morning, March 3, according to the State Forestry Commission.

While the fire is widespread, no one has been injured and no homes destroyed, according to Horry County Fire Department spokesperson

Tony Casey. He said property damage has been minimal, such as melted fences and siding on a house.

After a massive flare up of more than 100 wildfires over the weekend, encompassing thousands of acres, the South Carolina Forestry Commission says the Carolina Forest Fire is one of only three that remain burning.

“We’re in great shape,” Doug Wood, spokesperson for the forestry commission, told the S.C. Daily Gazette. More than 175 wildfires burned across Horry, Spartanburg, Oconee, Union and Pickens Counties, im-

pacting more than 4,200 acres, according to the State Fire Marshal. In response, Gov. Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency Sunday.

McMaster’s declaration came a day after the forestry commission issued a statewide outdoor burn ban.

“This State of Emergency ensures that our first responders, who are working tirelessly and risking their lives to protect our communities from these wildfires, have the resources they need,” McMaster said in a statement.

SEE FIRE PAGE B2

AG Wilson denies Rep. Mace’s allegations

By Shaun Chornobroff SCDailyGazette.com

WEST COLUMBIA — South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson vehemently denied accusations that U.S. Rep Nancy Mace lobbed against him in a bombshell House floor speech earlier this month. The 1st District congresswoman alleged the attorney general ignored evidence of sexual assault against her and other women.

“That allegation was never made to me — no one in my office,” Wilson said Wednesday, Feb. 26, at an event hosted by The Post and Courier at Savage Craft Ale Works. While he categorically denied her allegations, he declined to say Mace’s name. “I’m just not going to engage,” he said when asked why he wasn’t

referring to her by name. “I’m not trying to politicize this.” Mace launched the attacks Feb. 10 as part of an hour-long speech that accused four men, including her ex-fiancé, of a litany of sexual crimes. Mace said she was among the victims. Following the speech, the State Law Enforcement Division released a statement that it opened an investigation in December 2023 after being contact-

ed by U.S. Capitol police.

“Anytime someone makes allegations that they are a victim of a crime, those allegations should be taken seriously,” Wilson said.

“They should be investigated thoroughly by law enforcement, and they should be treated with the utmost respect.” Wilson and Mace are two of the

By Jessica Holdman SCDailyGazette.com

COLUMBIA — For more than two decades, South Carolina’s Legislature has resisted efforts to outlaw holding or scrolling on a cellphone while driving.

But now the state stands to lose $40 million to $80 million in annual federal highway funding. That threat could be what finally pushes a “hands-free” measure to passage. Rep. Bill Taylor began leading the effort in 2018. The Aiken Republican, an avid motorcyclist, had just spent the summer of 2017 on a 3,000-mile road trip with his wife to Canada. On the road, he was hyperaware that many of the drivers around him were distracted by cellphones.

When he returned to South Carolina, he sold the motorcycle and pre-filed his bill, which he dubbed DUI-E: “Driving under the influence of electronics.” He and other advocates warned the distraction was even more dangerous than drunken driving.

“This is not an end-all-be-all, but it is one major distraction we can minimize,” Taylor told the S.C. Daily Gazette on Wednesday.

Taylor once again introduced legislation ahead of the current session, as did Sen. Tom Young, R-Aiken, and House Speaker Pro Tem Tommy Pope, R-York, whose bill has received an initial nod from a House panel. It will likely advance from the full House Judiciary Committee to the chamber floor in the next few weeks.

“I know we’ve wrestled with this issue over the years,” Pope said when promoting the bill earlier this month.

He proposed the legislation after the widow of a former Rock Hill attorney contacted him. A driver distracted by a cellphone hit and killed Earl Gatlin, age 69, in 2023 while he was riding his bicycle.

Pope said the family was frustrated so little could be done under state law to hold the driver responsible. He trusts the House can reach a compromise and “give victims’ families some comfort.”

Taylor said that’s far from the only tragedy caused by distracted driving in the state.

Warning letter

But it’s a letter from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration that has gotten legislators’ attention.

One after another House members commented earlier this month on the need for the bill and the deaths caused by distracted driving statewide. In the next Without

There were more than 100 wildfires in South Carolina Saturday

March 1 and 2, 2025. Photo courtesy of S.C.

Rep. Nancy Mace starts her speech on the House floor Monday, Feb. 10, 2025. Screenshot from C-Span

Driving from page B1

breath, they spoke about the federal funding now at risk.

A 2011 federal rule required states to pass laws banning handheld cellphone use for drivers of commercial vehicles. Under that rule, South Carolina should have had a law in place by 2015

Five years later, with no law in place, the U.S. Department of Transportation put the state on notice and told officials to make a compliance plan. State officials pointed to Taylor’s bill saying the Legislature was considering measures.

But that bill had already failed twice and would fail again and again, year after year. In 2022, the Senate passed its own version of the legislation but it failed when it came to the floor of the House. Two more years have gone by since then with no movement.

Then late last year a letter came to Gov. Henry McMaster’s office and the state Department of Motor Vehicles.

Put a law in place by July 2025,

Fire

from page B1

Both the ban and the emergency declaration remain in place. Anyone caught burning amid the ban could face criminal charges, according to the governor’s office.

The Carolina Forest fire comes more than 15 years after a small burn took a turn for the worse in the same region.

In April 2009, a yard

Evidence

from page B1

being specific.

it said, or the federal government will start docking 4% of funding it sends to the state for road construction. The penalty would go up to 8% every year after that until the law is changed.

“I’m never pleased when the federal government uses extortion to get what it wants. However, in this case, I change my mind,” Taylor said half-jokingly. “Thank God they’re providing a financial nudge in the millions of dollars to get this done.”

After all, the measure has the support of truck drivers in the state who say distracted drivers on the road — weaving in and out of lanes in front of massive big rigs not made to stop on a dime — are one of their biggest safety concerns.

The state chapter of the motorcycle rights group ABATE (which stands for A Brotherhood Against Totalitarian Enactments) is also a proponent. Smaller than a car, motorcycles can go unnoticed by a distracted driver and possibly be struck or run off the road.

Taylor also pointed to Georgia, where traffic deaths went down 17% the first year after the law changed.

South Carolina has about 1 000 deaths per year on its roadways. If

debris burn near Conway spread into a wildfire that destroyed 76 homes and did $42 million in property damage across Horry County. Firefighters responded and thought the fire, commonly known as the Highway 31 Fire, had been extinguished but it reignited and went on to cover more than 19 000 acres. At any given time, the state may have five to 10 wildfires burning, Wood said. But the scale of the past weekend’s outburst is

In a nearly hour-long, bombshell speech on the U.S. House floor Feb. 10, Mace accused Musgrave, Patrick Bryant (her ex-fiancé), and two other men of sexually assaulting women and girls and secretly recording the abuse. She was among the victims, Mace said.

During her speech, headshots of the four men, along with where they live, were on a poster beside her that read “PREDATORS.

STAY AWAY FROM.”

“Let me be loud and clear, I would never allow any woman or underage girl anywhere near any of you,” she said on the House floor. After naming the men, she added, “you have bought yourself a one-way ticket to hell. It is nonstop. There are no connections, so I and all of your victims can watch you rot for an eternity.”

All four vehemently denied the allegations immediately following her speech.

The letter from Musgrave marks the first threat of a lawsuit from an attorney.

Speeches from the U.S. House floor are protected by the “speech

the statistic holds, that could mean 170 fewer lost lives in the Palmetto State annually.

“This is a bill that’s needed in South Carolina,” said Rep. Case Brittain, R-Myrtle Beach “One death is enough for me.”

Under the proposal, drivers caught holding a cellphone in any way — either in their hand or in their lap — would be fined $100 on first offense and $200 for each additional violation.

It’s already illegal to text while driving in South Carolina. Legislators passed that law in 2014 only because their unwillingness to do anything for years resulted in a hodgepodge of local ordinances statewide, which the law overruled. But that compromise still allowed drivers to hold their phone to talk or use their GPS. It also allows texting while stopped.

Taylor has long argued that toothless law provides offenders so many legal excuses, it’s impossible for officers to enforce. So, they don’t even try.

The advancing proposal would do what he’s proposed for years: Make it illegal for drivers to hold, read or watch videos on their cellphone. Hands-free phone calls and

something Wood can’t recall in recent history.

“It hasn’t happened in a long time,” Wood said.

The Forestry Commission is the lead responder when a wildfire breaks out across 13 million of the state’s roughly 20 million-acre land mass.

With so many fires ablaze at once, it strained the state’s firefighting capacity, according to the agency.

To combat the flames at Carolina Forest, the state Army National Guard has sent blackhawk helicopters

or debate” clause of the U.S. Constitution, which shields members of Congress from lawsuits for what is said in either chamber.

Musgrave’s attorneys questioned whether her speech — which they described as pushing “a personal narrative” — is actually covered by that clause, and they’re willing to go to court to test it.

“You may view the floor of Congress as a sanctuary for slander. We do not,” the letter reads.

It noted that when Musgrave disputed the allegations to reporters, Mace blasted back Feb. 11 on social media. Her posts included a line saying he “must have missed the part of my speech” when she said she documented evidence with metadata.

Produce the metadata that links Musgrave to the alleged crimes, “and we will cease our pursuit of this matter,” the attorneys wrote.

After Mace’s speech, the State Law Enforcement Division confirmed that Bryant is being investigated for assault, harassment and voyeurism. The investigation began in December 2023 after SLED was contacted by U.S. Capitol Police, SLED said in a statement Feb. 10 Mace and Bryant broke up in late 2023, which would be after

voice-to-text messaging would still be legal. And holding the phone while legally stopped would still be OK.

Severely injuring someone while distracted by a cellphone could mean five years in prison and a $1 000 fine. Causing a death would be a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. All fines collected would go to the state Department of Public Safety to pay for road signs and other educational material urging people not to drive distracted.

SC’s seat belt law

This is not the first time federal highway dollars have motivated legislators to pass a law.

In 2005, the U.S. Department of Transportation dangled an additional $11 million in federal highway funds as an incentive to pass a law allowing police to pull someone over for not wearing a seat belt. State transportation leaders said then the money could go to repair rural roads not previously eligible for federal funding, The Associated Press reported. Before, police could only ticket adult drivers for a seat belt viola-

to dump buckets carrying 600 gallons of water. Additionally, the state forest commission, state Department of Natural Resources and the state Emergency Management Division are working alongside numerous local fire departments.

“Every fire department within 50 miles has been out here helping us,” Wood said.

Officials have yet to determine the cause of the Carolina Forest fire, as well as the source of other fires that

Mace said she found evidence on his cellphone.

Bryant has repeatedly denied the allegations and pledged to cooperate fully to clear his name.

“The relentless spread of lies about me and others by Nancy Mace is devastatingly harmful, but sadly, that is clearly her goal,” Bryant said in a statement to the Gazette. “Her false accusations against me and others are nothing more than an effort on her part to further her political career.”

Another man accused by Mace as part of the group told The Post and Courier he was recently interviewed by SLED and told he was not a subject of the investigation.

He responded Friday morning on X to news of the letter from Musgrave’s attorney: “Only 9 days left to retract and apologize,” wrote Eric Bowman of Sullivans Island.

A SLED spokeswoman told the Gazette on Friday there’s nothing new to report. The “investigation is active and ongoing,” her statement read.

Musgrave’s connection to the Isle of Palms condo where Mace said she was raped while unconscious after being drugged is that he’s a partial owner. It’s an investment and place for family vacations where Bryant periodically lived as a paid tenant, according

to the letter.

tion if they pulled over a car for a different violation.

Legislators argued for years over personal liberty and whether police could tell if someone was unbuckled. Some also worried it would give officers an excuse to pull someone over.

“The government is trying to regulate the amount of risk you can take against yourself based on health and insurance costs,” former Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, told The AP. “That puts us on a slippery slope because you are buying into the proposition that government has the right to manage risk for you. And where does that stop?”

The bill passed in 2005, becoming law despite opposition from former Gov. Mark Sanford. Though Sanford refused to sign the legislation, he did not veto it, allowing it to go into effect.

Jessica Holdman writes about the economy, workforce and higher education.

Before joining the S.C. Daily Gazette, she was a business reporter for The Post and Courier. S.C. Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

burned over the weekend, Wood said. But high winds and dry conditions exasperated the situation. Horry County is among the 26 counties statewide that have been dealing with drought conditions since November, Stephen Fastenau, a spokesperson for the Department of Natural Resources said in an email.

Rainfall totals for the past three months in the area have been half of what’s historically normal for this time

“We are struck by your conviction that something inappropriate happened to you (and perhaps to others),” it reads, before listing a string of things Musgrave denies doing: “He did not rape you. He did not drug you. He did not film you. … He did not assist anyone in perpetrating any crimes against you.”

Bryant has been a “lifelong friend” with Musgrave since they met in the 10th grade, the attorneys wrote, noting that Musgrave has lived in Fort Mill (just south of Charlotte, N.C.) his entire adult life, while Bryant lived in the Charleston area. Musgrave met Mace a handful of times while she and Bryant were a couple, according to the letter.

While there was never much interaction between Musgrave and Mace, the attorneys wrote, he “was generally aware of the tumultuous nature of your relationship with Patrick, with the abrupt ending of the relationship and with the contentious disputes that followed as you and Patrick sought to unwind some investments that you had made in common.”

Mace announced her engagement to Bryant in May 2022. According to the video she posted on YouTube, she thought she was

of year, according to data from the state’s climatology office.

“We’re hopeful for rain and higher humidity soon to help bring some level of relief,” Fastenau wrote.

South Carolina’s wildfire season lasts from January to April, with March usually marking the peak.

Shaun Chornobroff covers the state legislature for the S.C. Daily Gazette, part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

filming an ad for her re-election campaign when he surprised her with a ring.

According to The Post and Courier, they then bought a home together on the Isle of Palms. They also bought a townhouse in Washington, D.C., which real estate records show sold on Valentine’s Day, four days after Mace’s speech, the newspaper reported last week.

The Isle of Palms property was still for sale Friday with a listing price of $4 48 million.

The attorneys’ letter concludes by making clear it is not a settlement offer.

“This is a demand for action,” it reads. If there’s no evidence or apology within 10 days of the letter — which puts the deadline as March 9 — “you will leave us no other recourse than to seek judicial relief.”

Seanna Adcox is a South Carolina native with three decades of reporting experience. She joined States Newsroom in September 2023 after covering the S.C. Legislature and state politics for 18 years. Her previous employers include The Post and Courier and The Associated Press.

Shaun Chornobroff covers the state legislature for the S.C. Daily Gazette, part

By Jessica Holdman SCDailyGazette.com

South Carolinians renting out their cars to boost their income

While car sharing has been around for more than a decade, it is garnering more attention from state legislators

When Marion Platt’s youngest son left home to attend music school in Manhattan, the Charleston native was left with a Kia Soul taking up space in the family’s driveway. So he decided to put it to use.

Now, the boxy, kale green car is one of more than 200 vehicles in South Carolina — ranging from luxury sports cars to residents’ daily drivers — available for rent on the car sharing mobile application Turo.

“Right when I put it on the platform I started getting requests,” Platt said. And the income Platt makes from renting the car helps pay for his son’s college education.

In the same vein as renting out your house or a spare bedroom on Airbnb for a few days, users can rent someone’s private vehicle or rent out their own to others to earn some extra cash. The practice known as peer-to-peer car sharing has been around for more than a decade but is garnering more attention from South Carolina’s state leaders.

Sen. Wes Climer introduced legislation, both in 2023 and in the current legislative session, that sets insurance requirements and other safety measures. The Rock Hill Republican said the impetus behind the bill is actually to grow — not control — the industry, so South Carolinians such as Platt can earn income from it.

“This industry is relatively new, and it is currently operating in South Carolina, and it is currently operating in sort of a wild west type environment where a lot of questions around liability, questions around regulation, remain unanswered … We have offered this bill to give them sort of guard rails,” Climer said when explaining the bill on the Senate floor last week.

“Uncertainty has been an inhibitor in this case,” Climer later told the S.C. Daily Gazette.

Turo has about 350 000 active vehicle listings worldwide and 3 5 million active users, according to a federal securities filing. On the other hand, a competing car sharing company called Getaround, announced last month it was shutting down operations in the U.S. while staying operational in Europe.

Climer expects a vote on the bill this week. If it ultimately passes in the Senate, it still must go through vetting in the House.

Industry support

Meanwhile, the industry is in favor of the measure as it currently stands.

Turo, the world’s largest car sharing platform, actually provided input to the National Council of Insurance Legislators, said Turo spokeswoman Catherine Mejia.

The organization drafted the legislation Climer used to model his bill.

Mejia said 28 other states have enacted similar statutes.

“We don’t believe it’s negative in any way,” she said.

That’s because Turo has worked for years putting protections in place for both car owners and car renters, Mejia said. The company wants to ensure any new companies that may develop abide by the same rules, she said.

Namely, the company carries liability insurance for all cars rented through its application, Mejia said.

Turo also tracks safety recalls on vehicles and makes sure those with an outstanding issue can’t be rented. And the company reportedly keeps drivers’ and owners’ information on file, providing that information to law enforcement and insurance companies in the case of an accident so claims are processed quickly.

All of this would be required under Climer’s proposed legislation.

Mejia said Turo then takes things a step further. The company works with airports to make sure users don’t disrupt operations. It has permits for airports in Charleston, Columbia and Greenville.

It also runs background checks on each person who rents from them.

But safety concerns have been an issue.

Turo made national headlines

in January after the drivers of the Ford truck that plowed through a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans and the Tesla Cybertruck that exploded at the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas both used the platform to rent the vehicles. The company, in a statement following the tragedies, offered condolences to the victims’ families. Turo officials said they screened both drivers but neither had a criminal background that flagged them as potentially dangerous.

Sen. Darrell Jackson said he supports the care share concept. He sees it as a popular option for college students without a vehicle or a temporary solution for people in rural areas where there’s no public transportation or ride-sharing options. And for vehicle owners, “this allows everyday citizens to actually use a vehicle to make a little extra money on the side.”

“This is something so different and could be a gamechanger in that industry,” the Hopkins Democrat said.

Jackson was at first concerned the legislation may have been a move by the insurance and rental car industry trying to “get out in front of it” before it really gets popular.

“A lot of people aren’t aware of it, but they’re going to be,” he said.

An added source of income

While on a business trip in Phoe-

Deny from

nix, Mike McCurdy chose to rent

a Jeep Wrangler through Turo so he could take the top off and enjoy the beautiful weather while driving between meetings. He liked that he was able to research it, read reviews from other users, and he was guaranteed to get that exact vehicle rather than being assigned a vehicle at random from a traditional rental car company fleet.

McCurdy began using the app every time he traveled. He said it also worked well when he was researching vehicles that he wanted to purchase. Rather than going straight to the dealership for a test drive, he’d rent a similar make and model from someone on Turo. It gave him a few days to test out how the vehicle would handle without the pressure of a salesman riding along in the passenger seat.

Working in digital marketing, McCurdy said he’s long been open to different technologies and ideas, “not stuck in the mindset of it’s always been done this way. You can innovate.”

Eventually, the McCurdy’s got into the business for themselves.

The couple lives in the Nexton mega neighborhood near the Charleston suburb of Summerville.

In that community, everything they need — stores, restaurants, schools — are within walking distance. And because they both work from home, they don’t always need a car.

They started with one vehicle on

potential frontrunners in the 2026 governor’s race. Both have said they are considering running but have yet to announce a decision.

Wilson said Wednesday he will make a decision “sometime later in the year.”

Lt. Gov Pam Evette, as well as state Sens. Josh Kimbrell of Boiling Springs and Sean Bennett of Summerville, have also said they are considering a bid to succeed Gov. Henry McMaster.

Turo. Now they have four, renting them out largely to families coming to Charleston on vacation. In addition to the vehicles, the McCurdy’s offer restaurant and sightseeing recommendations to their customers. And they throw in extras, such as beach chairs, umbrellas, coolers, child safety seats and strollers.

With Turo they’ve gone from the expense of a monthly car payment to having an added source of income.

Platt, too, mostly rents his vehicle to people visiting the Holy City, though he has local customers, too.

Sometimes he rents to students at the College of Charleston who need a car to get home to Columbia or Greenville for the weekend. Other times it might be an elderly resident living in an apartment near downtown who only needs a vehicle on occasion to run errands.

Having worked as a pastor for decades, Platt views it as part of “God’s call to show hospitality” as well as a business venture. When he had a customer fly into Charleston and rent the car so they could drive to Orangeburg for a family member’s funeral he prayed with them, trying to offer comfort.

Platt said car sharing has largely been a positive experience. Though there have been times when a renter has returned the car in less than stellar condition.

“Like when someone spills Chick-fil-A sauce on the seat, that’s just part of it,” he said. “I don’t find it terribly bothersome. I just consider it part of my ministry.”

Jessica Holdman writes about the economy, workforce and higher education. Before joining the S.C. Daily Gazette, she was a business reporter for The Post and Courier. S.C. Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom,

During her House speech, Mace had a poster of Wilson that read “Do-Nothing Attorney General” — a moniker she has repeatedly used to describe him — as she accused him of failing to take action after turning over evidence of sexual assault.

After the speech, his office released a lengthy statement denying the allegations.

In his appearance Wednesday before dozens of attendees, he continued to deny them. He estimated that he’s seen Mace five times since last summer and that she had never mentioned the sexual assault allegations.

The attorney general said that after he received an advanced copy of Mace’s speech, he asked his staff to research whether anyone in his office had been contacted about the abuse allegations. The search turned up no results.

“The last thing I want to know is that we were alerted to something and weren’t acting on it,” he said.

Shaun Chornobroff covers the state legislature for the S.C. Daily Gazette, part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

Attorney General Alan Wilson speaks to a group of people at an event at Savage Craft Aleworks in West Columbia on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. Shaun Chornobroff/S.C. Daily Gazette

Peer-to-peer car sharing has been around for more than a decade but has recently garnered legislative attention in South Carolina. Photo courtesy of Turo

A long time coming

All-Marine Corps men win 1st Armed Forces Golf Championship; All-Army

By Sgt. 1st Class Thomas Calvert

U.S.

Army News Service

PARRIS ISLAND, South Caroli-

na

– This year’s Armed Forces Golf Championship came to a close Feb. 28 with the All-Marine Corps men’s golf team leaving as champions in the men’s contest and the All-Army women’s team securing the gold in the women’s team championship.

Brig. Gen. Ahmed T. Williamson, Commanding General of Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island and Eastern Recruiting Region, welcomed competitors to the Legends Golf Course at Parris Island, S.C., during an opening ceremony earlier this week.

“To the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard, I’ve got to let you know you’re on hallowed grounds for us,” Williamson said. “And if things get a little challenging, just know that that’s the standard set by the Marines. And for the Marines: you better freaking win.”

And win they did, where Marines are made. The All-Marine men’s team won the championship for the first time ever within earshot of the rifle range where many of the devil dogs first began their journey in uniform.

The All-Air Force, All-Army and All-Marine teams exchanged the top spot on the leaderboard across the course of the week until the Marines took control of the top of the leaderboard after the third round. The All-Marine men’s team clinched victory on the final day after the backand-forth clash.

women take home the gold

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col Linda Jeffery sinks a 50-foot putt at The Legends Golf Course at Parris Island during the third round of the 2025 Armed Forces Golf Championship at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C., Feb. 27, 2025. Jeffery was the women’s individual champion, winning by eight strokes. EJ Hersom/U.S. Armed Forces Sports

rine Corps golf.

“I will tell you this, we knew coming into this event that we had, on paper, an absolutely strong team, but no championship is ever won on paper,” Hinson said. “They went out there and did it, and I’m just so excited right now, I can’t even tell you.”

The Army women’s team ended their week with a championship of their own on the Marine Corps’ turf.

Cpt. Lauren Theilen, Cpt. Carleen Schumacher, Sgt. Hansol Koo, and Sgt. Brittany Lindesmith combined for a gross score of 606 to clinch the championship. They wouldn’t be the only Soldiers walking away with gold.

Army Capt. Patrick Kim finished with a total score of six under par to win the men’s competition after a fierce battle with second-place finisher Brediger and third-place finisher Schlottman from the Marine Corps team.

In the women’s competition, Air Force Lt. Col Linda Jeffery shot a 76 on the first day of competition and held onto her lead through the rest of the tournament, finishing in first. The Army’s Thielen took home the silver, and Navy Ensign Angelina Carey earned the bronze.

Marine Corps Capt. Nick Brediger, 1st Lt. Benjamin Schlottman, Staff Sgt. David Banks, Capt. Donald Koomar, Maj. David Cook, and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Zachary Selvig recorded a gross score of 1,459 and celebrated in earnest after the awards ceremony with their coaches, service representatives, and family members.

Marine Corps golf coach Andy Hinson has coached the All-Marine Corps men’s golf team for 17 years. After several last place finishes and middling performances, he found it hard to immediately put into words what the win meant for him and Ma-

The top six men and top three women were named to the U.S. Armed Forces Golf Team, which will compete at the 16th edition of the Conseil International du Sport Militaire (CISM) World Military Golf Championship at the Diamond Leisure Beach & Golf Resort, Kwale, Kenya from June 22 through 29 CISM seeks to promote sport in armed forces across the world, foster confidence and cohesion amongst service members internationally, and contribute to the fitness and motivation of service members.

Veterans need to use My HealtheVet

According to the VA’s “What’s New on My HealtheVet” webpage (https:// bit.ly/4khPX6K), veterans who are computer-skilled and who have a computer, iPhone, or iPad or other compatible devices “should manage their healthcare needs along with their other VA benefits and services at the VA’s MY HEALTHEVET website.

Create a Login.gov or ID.me account now

Veterans need to adjust for the VA’s secure sign-in changes. In 2025, veterans have two sign-in account options (Login.gov and ID.me) for all VA websites and apps. The VA was to remove the My HealtheVet sign-in option after March 4, 2025, and the DS Logon option after September 30, 2025. Veterans can still use their HealtheVet health portal but must sign in to it with a Login.gov or ID.me account. Learn more at the “Prepare for VA’s secure sign-in changes” webpage (https://bit. ly/3F3S6D4).

My HealtheVet

The VA’s “My HealtheVet” homepage is found at https://bit. ly/3yVqglA. Veterans can sign in or create a “My HealtheVet” account at the My HealtheVet homepage. With a My HealtheVet account, veterans can:

• Pharmacy: Refill their VA pharmacy prescriptions, track delivery, view a list of their VA medications, and see other details. Learn more at the VA’s “Try the New Medications Tool on the VA.gov webpage (https://bit.ly/4iqcsoe).

• Appointments: Keep Track of their upcoming appointments and get email reminders. In 2025, veterans need to use a Login.gov or ID.me account to sign in to My HealtheVet and other VA tools. Learn how

to manage your VA appointments at the “Manage Your VA Appointments” webpage at https://bit.ly/3F4d7gU. Veterans can: (1.) View their appointments, (2.) View their After Visit Summaries, (3.) Schedule or cancel a VA appointment online, and (4) Sign in to manage their VA appointments.

• Messages: Communicate securely online with their VA healthcare team and other VA staff about non-emergency information or questions. When veterans visit My HealtheVet’s secure messaging feature, they will find a link to try messaging on VA.gov. Veterans may be prompted to sign in to VA.gov before using this tool. Once the veteran is on the new messages page, they can perform all the tasks they are accustomed to including: (1.) Send and receive non-urgent messages with VA providers and staff on your care team, (2.) Organize messages in folders, and (3.) Download and print messages. Veterans who receive care from a VA health facility using the My VA Health portal will still need to go to that portal to manage their messages. Health Records: View, print, or download a copy of their VA medical records information, or enter their health information. When veterans

visit My HealtheVet’s health records pages, they find a link to try the new medical records tool on VA.gov. The VA may prompt veterans to sign in again to VA.gov. Once a veteran is on the medical records page on VA.gov, they can perform all the important tasks they are used to including: (1.) Review detailed health information. This includes lab and test results, allergy information, vaccine information, provider notes and care summaries, vitals, and health conditions. (2.)Customize and download a record of the veteran’s health history. (3.) Create an electronic record of the veteran’s health history that can be shared with other providers.

Other helpful information on “My HealtheVet” The homepage has links to valuable resources including: (1.) Benefits, (2.) Veterans Health Library, (3.) Community, (4.) Mental Health, (5.) Annie Health Texting, and (6.) Whole Health. There are also links to the VA’s “VA Mobile Apps” webpage (https:// bit.ly/3QLwCNY), which explains how to prepare for VA sign-in changes. There are also links to the following mobile apps: (1.) Annie for Veterans, which allows veterans to receive automated text messages for self-care, including medication reminders, tips to reduce stress, and more, (2.) VA Health and Benefits, which allows veterans to manage existing VA claims and appointments, securely message their VA health care providers, and more, and (3.) VA Health Chat, which allows veterans to chat with VA staff members through online access (available at selected sites only).

Other links to helpful Apps

at the My HealtheVet webpage include:

AIMS for Anger Management: Track, address, and manage anger to reduce frustration and feel in control.

• CBT-i Coach: Receive supplemental support for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia and learn strategies to improve sleep.

• MHA for Veterans: Take a variety of mental health assessments from the convenience of home.

• Mindfulness Coach: Learn to practice mindfulness to reduce stress and improve emotional balance.

• PTSD Coach: Access tools, educational resources, and self-assessments to help manage the stresses of daily life with PTSD.

Live Whole Health: Support your health and well-being with care centered around what matters most to you. MOVE! Coach: Complete a 16-week nutrition and exercise program. Stay Quit Coach: Create a personalized plan to quit smoking and access resources for staying smoke-free.

VetChange: Develop healthier drinking habits using motivational tools, stress management techniques, and other resources.

• Ask a Pharmacist: Access trusted information about VA pharmacies, prescription labels, medications, and more.

• VA Online Scheduling: Request, schedule, and track your appointments at VA and Community Care facilities online.

VA Video Connect: Meet with VA health care providers through live video on computer, tablet, or mobile device with an internet connection.

How to apply for VA Healthcare Learn how to apply for VA Healthcare at the VA’s “How to apply for VA health care” webpage (https://bit.ly/3B7x5Dz). Veterans can apply: (1.) online (see https:// bit.ly/3yXSIaj), (2.) by phone, (3.) by mail, (4.) in person (VA Medical Center or Clinic), or (5.) with the help of a VA-accredited and trained professional (a VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer – VSO; VA-accredited Attorney, or VA-accredited Claims Agent). VSO services are free.

How to find out if you are eligible for VA healthcare Learn how to determine if you qualify for VA health care at the VA’s “Eligibility for VA health care” webpage (https:// bit.ly/3cuf4Vm). Ask your local VSO to help you apply for VA Healthcare or call the VA hotline 877-222-8387 or ask your State’s Department of Veterans Affairs for help.

You can contact The Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center My HealtheVet Coordinator at 843789-6504

The bottom line Veterans need to create a Login. gov or ID.me account and use MY HealtheVet to manage their healthcare needs and other VA benefits and services.

Larry Dandridge is a Vietnam War wounded warrior, disabled veteran, ex-Enlisted Infantryman, ex-Warrant Officer Pilot, and retired Lt. Colonel. He is

Trump is right: Don’t touch Medicaid for vulnerable South Carolinians

President Donald Trump is right: Congress should not touch Medicaid.

The federal/state health insurance program for the poor and disabled provides coverage for 1 1 million South Carolina children and adults.

Medicaid covers about 60% of all births and 63% of all nursing-home patients in South Carolina.

Unfortunately, Medicaid is on the chopping block.

The U.S. House narrowly passed a budget resolution Tuesday, Feb. 25, that seeks to cut at least $880 billion from programs under the purview of the chamber’s Energy and Commerce Committee, which include health care coverage. Critics warn such deep cuts aren’t possible without slashing Medicaid.

That’ll hit South Carolina hard.

In 2022, Medicaid spending totaled $8 9 billion in South Carolina, according to KFF, a health policy research organization. Federal funding accounted for $6 7 billion of that figure — or 75 4% of overall Medicaid spending.

Any federal Medicaid cut is not only going to potentially deprive low-income South Carolinians of healthcare coverage but it’s going to hurt the state’s economy as well.

Republicans want to slash Medicaid for the poor to pay for tax cuts that overwhelming benefit the wealthy.

Let’s be clear about this: Congress and state leaders should be building up Medicaid in South Carolina, not tearing it down. It’s long past time that we do right by our most vulnerable South Carolinians.

Uninsured and medical debt

The problem in South Carolina is not that too many people have health insurance.

The opposite is true: We have one of the highest un-

insured rates in the nation, according to KFF. Since March 2023 when COVID-era Medicaid initiatives ended, our state has taken 443 933 South Carolinians off the Medicaid rolls, according to KFF.

An estimated 521 660 South Carolinians under age 65 lack health insurance, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

In other words, about 9% of our S.C. population is uninsured compared to the 3% uninsured rate in a state like Massachusetts.

We rarely stop to ask South Carolina’s elected officials why, under their leadership, our state ranks so far below most other states in the nation in so many categories of well-being, including health care coverage.

Perhaps it’s time we started asking.

One reason South Carolina has so many uninsured people is because our state remains one of only 10 states in the nation that stubbornly refuses to expand Medicaid eligibility.

That could draw down billions in federal funds to provide health care

Tcoverage for an additional 360 000 low-income South Carolinians, according to reporting by the S.C. Daily Gazette’s Skylar Laird.

By not expanding Medicaid, South Carolina has rejected $17 6 billion in federal funds in the past 10 years. That would not only help struggling South Carolinians obtain health insurance but it would provide a substantial economic boost to our state.

Our state’s refusal to expand Medicaid coverage may explain why South Carolina has the nation’s third-highest rate of medical debt in collection, according to the Urban Institute.

Unexpected ally

Struggling South Carolinians have found a perhaps unexpected ally in President Trump. Medicaid, he said, should be off the table.

“Medicare, Medicaid — none of that stuff is going to be touched,” Trump said in an interview with Sean Hannity last week. “We won’t have to.”

Trump told Fox News that Social Security, Medicare

and Medicaid are “going to be strengthened.”

It may be difficult to think of Trump as the protector of Medicaid, but he committed to it, and he should be taken seriously.

It’s true, however, that Trump sent mixed messages a day later by also endorsing the House budget plan which could do exactly what he said it shouldn’t — cut Medicaid.

Even as Republicans on the federal level plan to gut Medicaid, we’re seeing some hopeful developments in South Carolina.

Gov. Henry McMaster recently asked federal officials to allow the state to expand Medicaid eligibility for poor parents who are working or going to school.

That’s a step in the right direction, although it doesn’t go far enough.

Some South Carolina lawmakers last year expressed interest in at least exploring the possibility of expanding Medicaid up to 138% of the federal poverty level.

The failed proposal would have been the first serious effort among S.C. lawmakers in at least 10 years to think about the money lost

and lives blighted by their misguided refusal to follow the lead of the 40 other states that have expanded Medicaid.

Nationwide, Medicaid provides health care for more than 70 million Americans, including more than 30 million children, 8 million seniors, and 10 million adults with disabilities.

Medicaid also supports more than three of every five nursing home residents.

How capping Medicaid spending would hurt South Carolinians

he U.S. House of Representatives’ budget resolution, the blueprint for next year’s budget, has passed with instructions to the House Energy and Commerce Committee to achieve at least $880 billion in cuts. Because the Medicaid program is such a large part of the committee’s expenditures, it is impossible to achieve this goal without substantial cuts to this essential program. These cuts could make fundamental changes to the Medicaid funding structure.

A proposed possibility is the implementation of per capita caps, which would limit how much the federal government pays for Medicaid each year. It would cap federal spending on a per-enrollee basis. Through this model, the federal government would pay states a fixed amount per enrollee. States would be responsible for any costs that exceed the cap, which would increase annually at a rate below the growth in health care costs. South Carolina and all states would be at financial risk. It would force the state to cut services like prescription drugs for adults or rates paid to physicians, hospitals, and nursing homes. Health care services would be reduced for vulnerable populations including older adults, people with disabilities, pregnant people, and low-income children.

Medicaid was introduced in 1965 under President Lyndon B. Johnson in attempt to extend access to quality health insurance coverage to low-income Americans. Medicaid is administered by each state. Though Medicaid does provide quality health insurance to many, currently in South Carolina only certain groups of very

low-income people are able to enroll in the program.

To qualify for Medicaid, a person must fit into one of the state’s eligibility categories (children, pregnant women, low-income parents, seniors, and people with disabilities) as well as have extremely low income.

Non-disabled/non-elderly adults without children are ineligible for Medicaid coverage in South Carolina regardless of their income level, as well as parents who are above 67% of the federal poverty level. (This year, that’s just $17 856 for a family of three or $21 541 for a family of four).

The state of South Carolina receives a very generous match rate from the federal government, with 69 5% of our program paid for basic adult services and 78 7% for children. This program, Healthy Connections, covers more than 635 000 children,60% of all births in our state, and more than 63% of our seniors in nursing homes.

Seventy percent of all federal dollars that come to our state are to pay for our neediest residents’ healthcare.

This is the foundation for our healthcare system, helping to keep our hospitals solvent and open, allowing our healthcare providers to receive the resources needed to address the health care needs of the uninsured.

Without this infusion of federal dollars to our state, our healthcare system will crumble.

This assault on our healthcare and state budget will only be avoided if South Carolina makes up for these lost federal dollars with general fund state dollars. This will be millions of dollars our state does not have and will not be able to afford. We are now facing this dilemma as Congress begins its budget process.

South Carolina would find its healthcare systems harmed, having to cut critical services to those who have no other option for coverage. If these costs are absorbed by the state, other needed infrastructure like education, law enforcement, mental health services and fixing our roads will be in competition for the same state dollars.

Congress proposed this same funding structure in 2018, and

it was defeated. If Congress had adopted per capita caps, South Carolina would have had to budget an additional $135 million state dollars in the first two years (an estimated $40 million in 2019 and $90 million in 2020) just to maintain existing Medicaid coverage. Almost all states would have exceeded the cap due to unexpected increases driven by new treatments (like the first U.S. drug priced at more than $1 million to treat hemophilia) or epidemics (like the opioid crisis).

South Carolina, with its low Medicaid spending per capita, would be hit harder than most other states, as the cap would reflect past spending rather than future needs to just keep the same benefits.

This proposal would not consider the large population growth due to the number of retirees coming to our state. We must avert this crisis by keeping the Medicaid funding structure that was promised by Congress when this program was first enacted.

This drastic change would cause both fiscal and healthcare challenges that South Carolina cannot absorb.

We must protect Medicaid, our state budget and ensure that we protect those who need this lifesaving program.

Berkowitz is

PAUL HYDE

SUE BERKOWITZ A sign on display at a press conference about Medicaid in the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 19, 2025. Shauneen Miranda/ States Newsroom

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

Bernstein: Our country is in a place it’s never been

If you’re looking for a refresher about what reporting is supposed to be, you should watch the movie, “All the President’s Men,” which portrayed the Watergate scandal that brought down a president.

“It’s a primer on reporting,” legendary investigative reporter Carl Bernstein, portrayed by Dustin Hoffman in the movie, said during a Feb. 26 talk at the College of Charleston. It was kind of surprising advice because he recommended a movie as a teaching tool to remind Americans what the media does. But then again, movies are mass media tools that can make complex information more digestible, so maybe it wasn’t too surprising.

Bernstein reminded the audience of 500 about how good reporters strive to tell the “best obtainable version of the truth,” based on the information on hand at the time. As more information becomes available, the story may twist in a new direction or reveal

Iam discovering that there is a certain joy in not having your hair on fire, or running around shouting that the sky is falling, which for the past four years I was inclined to do. After the last election I had a nice feeling of relief knowing that America was not on her last legs after all, and that the stumbling, bumbling incompetent people who had been running the country were at long last gone. I doubt that my poor effort to help achieve their exit had much to do with it. I am pretty sure that they were hoisted on their own petard, as it became more and more evident that they had bad ideas and bad policies. The American people in their wisdom saw the truth and voted for change. Although I do have to admit that do miss Ms. Harris’s words of wisdom, but I

new layers – kind of like peeling an onion to get to the middle.

What’s worrying these days, he said, is how the whole concept of truth on which American democracy is based is suffering, in part because of the perpetuation of the notion of “alternative facts” that conservatives launched. Another description of alternative facts” simply is, “lie,” not truth.

“Now, the whole idea of the best obtainable version of the truth is getting erased – by social media and by a president who has no interest in the truth,” Bernstein said. Nevertheless, the pervasiveness

guess I can live with that. Which brings us to the events of the past few weeks. Wow! I don’t even know where to begin. I doubt that in the history of American politics there has ever been anything like this. Some historians have compared Trump to Andrew Jackson, who at the time sent shock waves through the body politic, but as radical as Andy was for his time he can’t come close to what is going on now. The Dems and a few Republicans are stunned, they are like a deer in the headlights not know-

of media outlets through traditional press and today’s quality online journalism led Bernstein to note, “The reporting on the Trump era has been great in many regards by many organizations.”

In other words, the information about what’s happening is out there, but it may be hard for many to find. And some just don’t want to believe it because they’re in their own polarized bubble.

These are the kind of things that journalism is struggling with. So what to do? Keep doing the kinds of things that work by asking questions, knocking on doors, tracking down leads and trying to find out what’s really going on. Relying on press releases and unchecked statements are not paths to truth.

“Our job is to make truth available and knock on those doors,” Bernstein said.

Part of what’s hindering the quest for and understanding of truth, in part, is that Americans tend to have a poor knowledge

of government, how it works and history, particularly involving other countries.

“Our knowledge of what goes on in the world between people and nations is really parochial,” Bernstein said. “Not enough people in this country know history.”

[Side observation: Do you think you could answer six out of 10 civics questions on U.S. citizenship test required for immigrants who want to become naturalized citizens? You might be surprised that you may not be able to.]

More than 50 years ago when Bernstein and colleague Bob Woodward knocked on doors, relied on frightened anonymous sources and dug into records, people tended to trust government. Back then, the system worked.

“The press did its job. Investigators did their job. The second special counsel did his job. The Senate Watergate hearings were probably the greatest congressional investigation in history,” Bernstein said. Additionally, the

Hair on fire?

ing which way to turn. Everything that they have thrown at Trump has bounced off, and come back to wack them in the face. Someone said that keeping up with Trump is like trying to drink from a firehouse, by the time you swallow you are hit in the face with another blast.

All their best weapons like, racist, fascist, felon, sexist, and Nazi have fallen on deaf ears, all the old tried and true tactics have not worked. They are like the boy who cried wolf too many times and no one would listen any more, this time the wolf is here and he is among them, but it’s too late.

Elon Musk whether they know it or not, is God sent to the Dems. He has given rise to the new cause de jour. MDS, “Musk Disparagement Syndrome.” It has somewhat replaced TDS and given a

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Nuts!

Has anyone noticed that Donald Trump seems more nutty than usual? Of course, anything is possible with a convicted felon and well known liar in the White House. Trump's behavior for the last few weeks has been like a bull in a china shop, only worse. Trump voters, I bet you didn't know you would get Elon Mush (I mean Elon Musk) as Co-President. Well, life is full of surprises.

Musk and his henchmen have taken a chain saw to the federal government, wreaking havoc on federal agencies and their employees who provide many critical services. (We have to cut $2 trillion dollars out of the budget right away!!) Musk is very busy but he still has time to worry about millions of people more than 100 years old and many more than 150 years old receiving social security checks. (I am not making this up). There are many more similar examples. I hope that you are relieved that Elon Musk is on the job rooting out all that waste and fraud. Just think, soon, you won't have the federal government to kick around any more. (With apologies to Richard Nixon).

– Terry Gibson, Beaufort

Trump derangement syndrome

To the staff and readership of The Island News who are suffering from Trump derangement syndrome. President Trump campaigned for months telling the American public exactly what he was planning to

Supreme Court did its job in a unanimous decision that said President Richard Nixon did not have an absolute privilege to withhold information, such as audiotapes about the scandal.

These days? The country’s foundational institutions – the press, the courts, Congress, the rule of law – are under attack by idealogues defending Trump and who are putting party over country and democratic ideals.

The assault on truth with the intentional spread of false information, the grandstanding, the bots that promote disinformation and leaders who flat-out lie without compunction is chilling. Good reporting seeks to cut through that.

“What is happening now has never happened in our history,” Bernstein said. “We’re somewhere we’ve never been.”

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

do if elected. He also made it clear that he was intending on enlisting the help of Elon Musk to help him eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse from the massive federal bureaucracy. As a result the American people elected Donald Trump in an overwhelming landslide victory. Therefore I strongly suggest you get a grip and move forward with us to Make America Great Again, otherwise get out of the way. The American people have spoken.

– Charles D. Wersler, Gray’s Hill

HBF ‘surprised and disappointed’

The Historic Beaufort Foundation (HBF) was surprised and disappointed to read in the current issue (February 20–26) of The Island News that we were invited to attend a meeting held on Feb. 13 concerning reinvestment in the Northwest Quadrant neighborhood. Unfortunately, we received neither an invitation nor announcement of the meeting. HBF would most definitely have been in attendance and participated had we been invited.

In 2024, HBF worked closely with the City of Beaufort to conduct surveys and assessments of more than 28 buildings included on the city’s internal list of historic properties that might need assistance. The project, an initiative by Mayor Phil Cromer, is to establish a neighborhood improvement program to aid property owners in the National Landmark Historic District. The HBF Board has committed extensive technical assistance, expertise

new life to the talking heads in the liberal media. It may even save MSNBC and CNN from bankruptcy.

Their ratings had tanked after the Trump election, but with Elon as the new whipping boy, the ratings are on the way back up again. They and the Dem pols do have a bit of a problem though because being for waste and corruption in government is a bad place to be, so instead they have found that being against Elon Musk is a pure and just cause.

Musk has gone from the darling of the New Green Deal to an unelected foreign devil, who is a closet Nazi, and maybe even an agent of Putin who is out to destroy Democracy as we know it.

I can only suggest to the Dems and some of my fellow Republicans that not having your hair on fire, and telling all who will listen that the sky is falling is a pleasant

“All their best weapons like, racist, fascist, felon, sexist, and Nazi have fallen on deaf ears, all the old tried and true tactics have not worked.”

JIM DICKSON, on the shifting political landscape and the resilience of certain figures in American politics.

feeling, and maybe they should try it. Learn to live with more energy from the Gulf of America and lower energy prices, enforcing our immigration laws, the tempering of DEI, ESG and

and aid toward these programs. Several community organizations have joined together to support the neighborhood improvement program, and we are all hopeful that it can be put in place in the coming year.

Historic Beaufort Foundation is a 501(c)3 not for profit education foundation. We were established in 1965 with the mission to preserve and protect Beaufort’s historic and architectural legacy. As part of our preservation mission HBF established a Revolving Fund in the 1970s which has purchased, stabilized, renovated and saved properties throughout Beaufort’s National Historic Landmark District – especially the Northwest Quadrant (NWQ) and Old Common’s neighborhoods. Along with that program, HBF maintains a preservation and conservation easement program to further ensure long-term protection and stabilization of properties in the 304-acre district.

Most recently, HBF has worked diligently with the City of Beaufort (City Council, Planning Commission and HRB) on the recent Conditions and Integrity Study and proposed updates to the Beaufort Code and Beaufort Preservation Manual. The goal of all is to ensure safe and viable long-term housing while continuing to protect Beaufort’s unique historic built environment. We look forward to continuing our work with the community partners to achieve these important goals.

Sincerely,

– Cynthia C. Jenkins, Executive Director, Historic Beaufort Foundation (HBF)

weeding out waste and corruption in government. Probably irritating our two closest neighbors is not a good idea, but I guess time will tell on that. The sky is not falling and this all too shall pass. Except maybe for the asteroid that is hurtling through space toward earth that might hit and wipe out civilization some time in 2038, but just ask President Trump, he probably can with the stroke of a Sharpie, fix that too.

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

The President of which we have been dreaming

I would like to thank you for the greatest public service in generations. For too long the American public has languished in complacency and comfort. We have taken for granted a government of checks and balances, a system that quietly served too many of us with dignity and measure, but without any excitement.

You have shown us how blind we have been to the value of extreme wealth. We have pathetically aspired to prosperity for ourselves without understanding that a really great society depends on government by billionaires. We wasted so much time quibbling over "character" and "public service" that we lost sight of the only ultimate role of government: efficiency! But with your superb cabinet picks and that dynamo, Elon Musk, leading the way, our great new future is already revealing itself! You have shown us that the greatest nation in the world doesn't need friends in other places. What we don't already have, we can take. Alliances are inconvenient. All the technology we need is right here, along with the best workforce in the world, once we get rid of the outsiders that have embedded themselves in our land.

You are the President we have been dreaming of for generations! This has always been a country of great aspirations, but you are showing us every day how diversity, equality and inclusion got in our way. At last! You have set us on the only right path to greatness! We are WOKE and grateful! – Carol Brown, Beaufort

ANDY BRACK

JIM DICKSON

Editor’s Note:

Rumor has it a sale is forthcoming

It is Saturday, early, and it is cold in Port Royal.

This morning I have my coffee, Starbuck’s Breakfast Blend, and a view of our sun-streaked back yard.

This morning I also have the book, “Northern Money and Southern Land — The Lowcountry Plantation Sketches of Chlotilde R Martin,” published by the South Carolina University Press in 2009

In “Northern Money” we learn that Northerners — mostly stock brokers, insurance executives and railroad magnates — began drifting into coastal South Carolina at the turn of the last century.

“Before the end of the century tens of thousands of acres were gathered up by clubs to serve northern hunters. Mrs. Martin claimed the first of them, the Pineland Club in Jasper County, was started about 1877.” Apparently there were six members from Philadelphia, Boston, New York and Baltimore who

Lbought 13,000 acres that had been part of Jasper’s Cotton Hall Plantation.

“In 1893 a group of sportsmen from New York, New Jersey and Pittsburg completed a deal for 32 000 acres that would become the Okeetee Club.”

These were successful business leaders who would come down between Thanksgiving and February. “Almost all of them coming for sport, especially hunting (usually birds, not deer) though no doubt the cheap land prices were also attractive..”

“They came down with Purdy (or Boss) shotguns costing as much as $60,000; piling into

mule-drawn wagons and led by dogs sniffing for quail,” Thayer Rivers tells me.

“These dogs would locate a covey — point to the hidden birds — and the men in their British driving caps and green “Wellies” would shoot as birds took flight.”

“At 11:00 they would pause for consume’ and cheese and maybe a little “shooting sherry.” This was followed by bacon wrapped quail over charcoal at 1 or 2 in the afternoon.”

Jasper County was a prime target for these clubs; although others were established in Georgetown, Beaufort and Colleton counties.

Chelsea Plantation — on the western side of the Broad River Bridge just behind the Beaufort-Jasper Water and Sewer Authority — was originally owned by John Heyward, who, according to Chlotilde Martin, was “the possessor of a rare beauty, feminine like in its delicacy.”

John Heyward died in 1839 having been thrown

from his horse; but he apparently treated his slaves with an unusual degree of compassion.

“The same records say that he (Heyward) was ‘known throughout the Carolinas as the master whose slaves never knew their bondage, so humane was their treatment.’”

The Chelsea Club came into existence in 1891 and its membership included insurance magnate, Frederick Gaston; utilities owner George Heyward; railroad builder George Slade; and Harold Stanley who was chief executive of Morgan Stanley and also a principal at J. P. Morgan and Company.

At this point Chelsea had 20 000 acres, and its members had their own dogs, some like “Stylish Pat” and “Old Mike,” who were prize winners.

In 1936, the old antebellum house burned to the ground, and shortly thereafter Chelsea’s vast acreage was purchased

by Marshall Field. Field, one of the wealthiest men in the country, owned newspapers, banks and other businesses including a huge flagship department store on State Street in downtown Chicago.

In 1968, Beaufort and Jasper Counties made national headlines in terms of their endemic hunger and widespread poverty-related disease. Ruth Field, widow of Marshall Field III, gifted 5 acres (of Chelsea) to Comprehensive Health for the 1st of several clinics.

Thereafter, Field gave $25 000 to Comprehensive Health for its home health workers — professionals who went into the homes of those patients who had no transportation.

“Once or twice every year, I would meet with Ruth Field at Chelsea,” says Thomas Barnwell who was the Director at Comprehensive Heath, “and she would want to know everything about our agency.”

When Ruth Field died

in 1994 she left the “Comp Health” $400 000 in her will. In recent years, the Nature Conservancy has been looking these former hunting clubs throughout South Carolina. In recent months it has looked at Chelsea, and reliable sources tell The Island News that the Nature Conservancy is in negotiation to purchase a large tract bounded by Bolan Hall Road on the north, Hazzard Creek on the South and the Broad River on the East. If a sale is forthcoming it will put thousands of acres under protective easements that will keep this tract — on the Broad River — from becoming one of the gated communities that now characterize most of Hilton Head Island and the sprawling developments around Hardeeville.

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

Outrage or just plain rage?

ast Friday, I had another article partially completed when I decided to take a break and watch the so-called “meeting” between President Trump and Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

As everyone gathered in the room adjacent to the Oval Office, it became apparent that the bystanders far outnumbered those who had negotiated a deal. That should have been an immediate red flag. This was not just a photo-op for the signing of an agreement (extortion in my humble opinion, but more on that later). No, something more nefarious was in the wind.

Perhaps it was Susan Rice who nailed it when she said, “it was a set-up.” More accurately, it was a bullying session where Trump brought along his up-to-now well hidden VP, J.D. Vance. Just when I thought J.D. had been assigned to animal patrol, you know, keeping the dogs and cats safe in Ohio.

But no, there he was, ready and quite willing to throw in his two cents in a way that made him every bit as much a bully as Trump. Ah, there is so much to be said for bringing a buddy along when you aren’t sure you are smart enough to fight the fight alone. It is good to note, however, that

when Vance and family left D.C. for a ski vacation in Vermont, he was “welcomed” with a mileslong group of protesters carrying signs of disgust. These people also surrounded his lodge to the point he had to relocate to an undisclosed location. But then, dear reader, I digress.

I cannot remember a time in my almost 83 years on this planet that I have been more mortified for my country than I was at that moment. The two men heading the free world bullying a third man who is fighting for his country.

And sitting beside Vance was “little Marco,” Secretary of State, looking pained, yet mute the entire time. If he wasn’t asking himself, “Where do I fit into this, given my position?” he certainly should have been.

Secure with his backup of sycophants, Trump screamed, “You’re gambling with World War III!”

Later he added, "you don’t have the cards. You’re buried there." He concluded with, “You either make a deal or we are out.” As one reporter later said, “Surrender to Putin. Tony Soprano couldn’t have conducted himself better.”

But let’s go back to the beginning, the “welcome” as Zelenskyy exited his car outside of the White House. Trump’s opening comment was, “Oh, look, you’re all dressed up.” He then turned to someone standing nearby and repeated this.

Now I find this grotesque display of ignorance interesting on two levels. First it was foreshadowing, albeit petty, of things to come. Furthermore, it was planned, and it was going to be underscored by a repeat from a far right reporter, Brian Glenn, representing Real America’s Voice. “Don’t you own a suit?” asked Mr. Glenn, then going on to say it was disrespectful to the Oval Office.

Of course, it’s worth noting that Mr. Glenn is dating Margery Taylor Green, so we can understand his vision of what is classy. Again, I digress. What was true class was Zelenskyy’s response: “I will wear a ‘costume’ when this war is finished.”

Another added aspect to this fiasco lies with the press: who was permitted in and who was

not. It came out that there was a representative of TASS, the Russian state media association. He was on the list of hand-picked reporters to attend although the White House denied he was permitted entry. They stated he was escorted out, once the discovery was made.

Two things: no way would this “escorting” not have caused a ruckus big enough to be televised. Furthermore, remember the ABC and Reuters have been banished from such events by the White House.

So, as I watched our foreign policy makers hold what could rightfully be called a public execution, not with bullets but with bullying, I became enraged. I admit to going through my house uttering words that, had my mother been around, she would have rushed for that often-threatened bar of soap.

Yes, I have been outraged by much of what Trump II has done to demolish our democracy in such a short time. Research, however, gave me this: "outrage is a natural, normal, healthy response to an outrageous event (especially when compared to apathy or indifference), and can be effective in initiating change. Rage, on the other hand, is an out of control, lower-brain reaction that can

have us making decisions that we would not recommend to someone we love."

Before concluding, let me remind you of this: Zelenskyy was here to sign an agreement that deals with his having to hand over Ukraine’s mineral rights to the U.S. in exchange for security from the U.S. To me this reeks of extortion, “kick a man while he is down,” something I can’t think speaks well for us. Desperation on Ukraine’s part makes this even more despicable.

I admit it, and I’m not especially proud … well, maybe a little. I gave into full blown rage last Friday as I watched the President and Vice President conduct what was a well-planned ambush on the President of Ukraine, an incident that may go down in history as the most embarrassing time for our country … so far. I hate to imagine what may lie in wait with the Mafia in the White House. For now I will continue to express my outrage, trying my best to remain healthy. That so many other countries have expressed their support for Zelenskyy and Ukraine helps.

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.”

Conservatives must stand up to Trump

The Charleston City Paper

The foundational question for any conservative movement is always the same: What, exactly, are we trying to conserve?

At its best, American conservatism has sought to conserve what it sees as the founders’ vision: small government, individual liberty, rule of law and a wary skepticism about man’s grander imaginings.

But as the early days of the second Trump administration have reminded us, there’s another, darker strain of American conservatism — one that seeks to conserve not the Enlighten-

ment ideals of the founders, but the more ancient human traditions of tribalism, ignorance, unreason and misrule.

For those who have forgotten, or never knew, what that earlier, better version of America sounded like before conservatism descended into Trumpism, recall the “shining city on a hill” phrase first invoked by 17th century Massachusetts Gov. John Winthrop. In 1961, John F. Kennedy used it. And when conservative Ronald Reagan was leaving office in 1989, he shared how he imagined America in a similar way:

“In my mind it was a tall, proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans: wind-

swept, God-blessed and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace, a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity,” Reagan said. “And if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here. … After 200 years, two centuries, she still stands strong and true on the granite ridge, and her glow has held steady no matter what storm. And she’s still a beacon, still a magnet for all who must have freedom, for all the pilgrims from all the lost places who are hurtling through the darkness, toward home.”

And here’s Trump’s contrasting, negative vision — America as a city at war with itself:

“We pledge to you that we will root out the Communists, Marxists, Fascists and Radical Left Thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our Country, lie, steal and cheat on Elections, and will do anything possible, whether legally or illegally, to destroy America and the American Dream,” Trump said in November 2023. “The threat from outside forces is far less sinister, dangerous and grave, than the threat from within.”

These two versions of American conservatism aren’t just different at the

EDITOR’S NOTE

margins — they’re mutually exclusive. As Trump has demonstrated with one reckless and radical executive action after another, he means to impose his version on the country and the world. And the consequences — and decency — be damned. From Ukraine to civil rights to mass firings across the federal government, it’s nothing but rage and retribution and might-makes-right all the way down.

All of this leads to a serious question for our

Republican friends: Is this really the kind of conservatism you signed up for? Is it how you teach your children to think and behave? And if you happen to be a GOP elected official, is it the type of conservatism you want to go down in history as having championed?

If the answer to any of those questions is no, now is the time to say so. Because, Republicans, your team is daily traducing America’s oldest and finest ideals — and if you don’t try to stop it, the moral stain won’t just be Trump’s to bear.

SCOTT GRABER

CAROL LUCAS

SERVICE DIRECTORY

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