STORY 1

From the Island Packet

A photo of Daufuskie Island’s oldest living resident lit up TV screens across the country Sunday morning. Cleveland Bryan, affectionately known as “Cleve,” appeared on Sunday TODAY celebrating his 100th Thanksgiving meal, a program that he “never misses.” “Here’s to many more, Sir,” said Willie Geist, the show’s host, as Bryan’s smiling face filled the screen. Born in 1925 on Prospect Road, Cleve is considered the island’s greatest treasure. His family has deep roots on the island; both his mother and grandmother were born there. Cleve’s great-grandmother was a former slave. His childhood home is now located within the island’s historic district. For Deborah Smith, Bryan has become a close friend.

She has shared Thanksgiving dinner with him for the past 12 years. Their friendship started when Smith stopped by for a visit after discovering their shared love of jazz. The pair bonded while listening to the “jazz greats” like Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday on Bryan’s old record player. It turned out, Bryan had met some of the performers when living in New York City in the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s. Smith describes their time together as “like spending time with a living library.” Treated like a local celebrity Cleve has told stories about living in the 20th century in the North and the South. After working as a crabber on Tybee Island for many years, Bryan moved to New York City in 1946, where he found a job as a sheet metal worker for the New York Police Department and began his bodybuilding days.

He recalled paying just $1 to watch Muhammad Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, warm up at Madison Square Garden, he told The Island Packet on his 98th birthday. He eventually returned to Daufuskie in 1988, where he’s lived ever since. Smith is among the many community supporters who step in so that Cleve can continue living on his own. Some years, he enjoys Thanksgiving at the island’s annual community dinner, where he’s treated “somewhat like a celebrity.” This year, he and Smith shared the meal at his kitchen table, where he ate from his red mobility scooter. Pumpkin pie was his favorite. Smith was the one to send in Cleve’s photo to the network.

“Gee... that’s really something,” Cleve told Smith by phone after his TV debut.

Story 3

From WSAV

With the Christmas season now in full swing, many children are ready to mail off their Christmas lists to the North Pole. The Burton Fire Department has volunteered to help get those letters delivered. For over a decade, Burton firefighters have coordinated with Santa and his elves by placing Santa mailboxes at their fire stations

Boxes are at all five of their stations, giving children an easy location to mail their Christmas wants and needs. All the letters need a legible name and address. Burton Fire officials said if the letters contain a name and address, they can promise a reply from Santa.

Santa’s Mailboxes will be located at:

Station 81 – 36 Burton Hill Rd.

Beaufort Station 82 – 14 Bruce K Smalls Rd.

Grays Hill Station 83 – 602 Parris Island Gateway

Shell Point Station 84 – 158 Bay Pines Rd.

Pinewood Station 85 – 2 Market Street, Habersham

At the end of each day, the letters will be collected by the firefighters and locked up until either Santa himself or his helpers come to collect them. Burton Fire Battalion Chief Chris Moyer said Santa will also be visiting Burton neighborhoods along with the fire team in the coming weeks.

“Starting tonight, Santa is going to start making his rounds and delivering gifts to all the kids in the community,” said Moyer.

To keep up with Santa’s visit schedule, you can track it through Burton Fire’s Facebook.

STORY 1

From Bluffton Today

The holidays are right around the corner, and the Town of Bluffton is seeking entrants for its 54th Annual Christmas parade.

The holiday season in the town gets underway the first weekend in December with its parade and tree lighting events.

The tree lighting will be held Dec. 5 at 5:30 p.m. at Martin Family Park followed by Santa’s Workshop which will be held at the DuBois Park Pavilion. Following the workshop there will be a 6:30 p.m. showing of the movie, Arthur Christmas.

The holiday festivities will continue Dec. 6 with the town’s Christmas parade which will begin at 10 a.m. and travel through Bluffton’s Historic District.

“The Bluffton Christmas Parade, a cherished community tradition for more than five decades, continues to grow along with the town’s population,” a town spokesperson said. “With this growth, public and personal safety remain the top priority. Parade participants and spectators are asked to follow all rules outlined in the parade application to ensure a safe and enjoyable event for everyone.” Head over to Bluffton Today dot Com for high lights and guidelines for the Parade.

Story 3

From the Island Packet

What started as a routine Saturday round of golf at Crescent Pointe quickly turned into a wildlife rescue story the community won’t soon forget. Two golfers, teeing off on Hole 9 on Nov. 22, spotted something no one expected to see beached along the shoreline: a manatee. These gentle, elusive giants are no strangers to the shallow waterways of Beaufort County — but finding one stranded on a golf course is another story. The golfers immediately called the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, setting off a coordinated response that soon included Crescent Pointe staff, local residents and the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.

“I’ve never seen one other than at an aquarium, so this was a first for me and for the course,” said Crescent Pointe’s Director of Marketing, Dylan DeBellis, who helped lead on-site efforts. Teeing off the rescue As soon as the call came in, General Manager Ron Schiavone worked closely with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office to secure the area and redirect golfers, so the distressed manatee could be given space. From there, the sheriff’s office maintained direct communication with SCDNR while they consulted with Florida partners to determine the safest plan.

“It was a bit high stress — we weren’t sure if it was going to make it,” DeBellis said. Under SCDNR’s guidance, Cpl. Dean Entrup with BCSO began relaying step-by-step instructions to keep the manatee stable: gently misting its skin, keeping it covered with damp towels and making sure it stayed warm enough — never too much water, and never too cold. Staff and community members stepped in to keep the manatee stable when it was stranded at Hole 9 at Crescent Pointe Golf Club. Courtesy of Crescent Pointe Golf Club DeBellis and a Crescent Pointe community member sprang into action, shuttling back and forth and hauling buckets of water to hydrate the animal until a better solution could be created.

The rescue comes during the tail end of South Carolina’s manatee season. These large marine mammals typically travel north from Florida in warmer months and can be spotted in Beaufort County between April and November, especially in sheltered areas like inlets and marinas.

By late fall and early winter, they begin their migration south, where the water stays above their survival threshold of 68 degrees. Seeing one in late November or December in South Carolina can be a sign of trouble, according to Kelly Lambert, SCDNR’s manatee response coordinator. If you spot a manatee in South Carolina waters in late fall or early winter, contact the SCDNR hotline at 1-800-922-5431.

STORY 1

From the Island Packet

When most people think of hurricane preparedness, they imagine sandbags, bottled water and boarded-up windows. But on Hilton Head Island, where cats are often as much a part of the landscape as palm trees and salt marshes, storm prep sometimes takes a softer, furrier form. As Hurricane Imelda loomed offshore last week, the Hilton Head Humane Association quietly orchestrated a life-saving evacuation for a handful of four-legged felines. With help from Beaufort County Animal Services and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 69 unowned shelter cats were transported out of the potential danger zone to a recovery facility in Columbus, Ohio – just as the storm pivoted away from the coast.

When Gov. Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency for South Carolina on Sept. 26, ahead of Hurricane Imelda, HHHA and BCAS didn’t hesitate. Knowing the region’s existing vulnerability to hurricanes – and the large number of animals already in their care – they reached out to the ASPCA for assistance. The team sprang into action, traveling to Hilton Head to assess the animals, speak with local shelter staff and make selections. Within 72 hours, ASPCA staff members selected 69 cats for transport, secured health certificates and loaded up two vehicles for the 10-hour journey to Ohio. By moving the shelter cats to a new home up north, 57 kennels were cleared, opening up more space in the wake of potential storm destruction and ​​giving these animals a better chance to find homes outside the disaster zone.

Story 2

From Bluffton Today

The American Heart Association has awarded Beaufort Memorial with its new Commitment to Quality award for high performance across three or more clinical areas in the Get With The Guidelines® program for heart and stroke care.

Beaufort Memorial is among just 158 hospitals nationwide that met the criteria for the Commitment to Quality award. Hospitals earning this new award demonstrate a comprehensive approach to quality improvement. By participating in three or more Get With The Guidelines programs, they commit to using real-time data registries, evidence-based protocols and cross-disciplinary teamwork to raise the standard of care across multiple specialties.

In 2025, Beaufort Memorial reached achievement levels in five clinical areas.

Get With the Guidelines is the American Heart Association’s hospital-based quality improvement initiative that helps ensure patients are treated in accordance with the most up-to-date, research-based guidelines. Participating hospitals benefit from tools, resources and peer benchmarking to drive better patient outcomes.

Story 3

From WSAV

A Hilton Head Island father created an artificial reef to honor his late son who died last year. Nate Riley was a longtime Hilton Head Island resident and worked at the Broad Creek Marina for years while building up a charter boat business of his own. He was even going to have a baby with his girlfriend, until a traffic accident took his life last July. His father, former Hilton Head Island Town Manager Steve Riley, had an idea to create a reef in the waters off the island, a place his son Nate loved most.

The reef won’t only provide something for the ecosystem, but it’ll be a special way to honor Nate, Steve said.

The reef project will cost close to $10,000 to get ready for the water. If you would like to donate, go to www.captainnatesoasis.com for more info. There’s also a link to the SCDNR page on the benefits of offshore reefs.