STORY 1

Last week, Beaufort County celebrated a pair of groundbreakings at Parks & Recs locations in the Beaufort County. On January 7th, ground was broken for the Wesley E. Felix Community center located at 179 Ball Park Road on St. Helena Island. The speakers included County Council member York Glover, who spoke about the importance of baseball to St. Helena’s community and history. Again on January 9th the county broke ground on the Agnes A. Major Community center at 21 Agnes Major Road in Sheldon. Council member Gerald Dawson was amongst the speakers and highlighted the accomplishments of Ms. Major’s life and her impacts on the community. You can watch the groundbreaking ceremony on Youtube.com/@BeaufortCountyTV and on BCTV.

Story 2

From the Island Packet

Freezing rain is the main concern for the Lowcountry this weekend as a powerful winter storm sweeps across the eastern United States, the National Weather Service’s Charleston office said Wednesday afternoon. By Monday, a sharp drop in temperatures, with coastal lows in the mid to upper 20s, could cause any snow or ice to persist into next week. Despite continued uncertainty about specific impacts, the Lowcountry as of Wednesday afternoon appears to be near the southernmost periphery of the storm, and the greatest impacts are expected to take place late Saturday into Monday morning. Since Tuesday, the storm’s forecast track has shifted northward, lessening the overall potential impacts for South Carolinians living south of I-20, according to a midday report from Frank Strait, severe weather liaison with the S.C. Department of Natural Resources’ Climate Office.

Beaufort County is right on the edge between a 20–40% chance of ice accumulation and a lower risk below 20%, according to the briefing.

How to prepare for the winter storm

Dominion Energy, one of the county’s largest providers, wrote they were preparing and “ready to respond” in the event of severe winter weather throughout the state. They encouraged their customers to Pack emergency kits, including flashlights, batteries, portable radios, first-aid kits and enough bottled water and non-perishable food to last several days. Stay away from any downed power lines with the assumption that they are still energized and dangerous. South Carolina customers should call 888-333-4465 right away to report a downed power line. Prepare for potential property damage, since crews can only repair electric service up to a home’s point of connection.

If a customer loses power and has any storm damage from the weatherhead down to its meter base, an electrician must first repair it before Dominion can reconnect power to the home. Stay connected with their provider on social media for updates and alerts. Report and track outages on the Dominion Energy app and website. The South Carolina Emergency Management Division provides a winter weather resource guide and checklist to help residents prepare for possible winter storms.

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- The Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce Restaurant Week starts next weekend, kicking off Sunday, January 31st and running through February 7th. From Bluffton to Hilton Head Island, more than 80 local restaurants are serving up special pre-fixed menu featuring new creations, signature favorites, and can’t-miss dishes from the area’s top chefs. A Kickoff event at Rollers Wine & Spirits will run next Thursday, January 29th from 5 to 8pm. For more information including a full list of participating restaurants and menus please visit hiltonheadisland.org.

Beaufort County celebrated the groundbreaking of two new community centers

Tim Scott and Joe Wilson push for a Coast Guard training base in Beaufort

And Beaufort Veterans affairs will host a symposium for Healthcare/Social Work professionals

All this and more coming up on Beaufort County This Week!

STORY 1

Last week, Beaufort County celebrated a pair of groundbreakings at Parks & Recs locations in the Beaufort County. On January 7th, ground was broken for the Wesley E. Felix Community center located at 179 Ball Park Road on St. Helena Island. The speakers included County Council member York Glover, who spoke about the importance of baseball to St. Helena’s community and history. Again on January 9th the county broke ground on the Agnes A. Major Community center at 21 Agnes Major Road in Sheldon. Council member Gerald Dawson was amongst the speakers and highlighted the accomplishments of Ms. Major’s life and her impacts on the community. You can watch the groundbreaking ceremony on Youtube.com/@BeaufortCountyTV and on BCTV.

Story 2

From the Island Packet

U.S. Sen. Tim Scott and Congressman Joe Wilson are on board with a new Coast Guard training base in Port Royal, which a new report says would generate $300 million in revenue and more than 2,000 jobs. In November, the Coast Guard announced it was seeking a location for a second boot camp to train some of the 15,000 additional personnel expected to join the military branch over the next few years. The Coast Guard issued a solicitation for potential locations for the new facility, with a deadline set for Dec. 7. The Beaufort County Economic Development Corp (BCED), Beaufort Area Chamber of Commerce and Beaufort Defense Community Partnership Task Force applied for consideration, saying Naval Hospital Beaufort could be a perfect fit. The hospital grounds are located between the Beaufort River and Ribaut Road in Port Royal. Gov. Henry McMaster and Congresswoman Nancy Mace previously announced their support for the application.

The Naval Hospital’s access to the Intracoastal Waterway is one reason it is an ideal location for a new Coast Guard training facility, local officials say. Beaufort County Economic Development Corp. Now Scott and Wilson have added their names to the growing list of local, state and federal officials backing the proposal. On Monday, Scott and Wilson sent a letter of support to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. John O’Toole, who heads the BCED, said the letter from Scott and Wilson is a welcome addition to the application, which is under review by the Coast Guard and Homeland Security. Over the weekend, BCED officials also were busy working on a report on the economic development impact the training base would have on the area. That report was requested by Gov. Henry McMaster’s office to be forwarded to the federal officials for consideration, O’Toole said.

“It is my understanding we made some sort of first cut by the Department of Homeland Security on the training facility,” O’Toole said. “I don’t know how many communities are still standing.” The economic impact report said a training facility at the Naval Hospital would have an economic impact on the region in excess of $300 million and create 2,200 direct and indirect jobs, O’Toole said. The established military community in Beaufort and Port Royal, which includes Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort and Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, makes it ideal for the Coast Guard base, the letter from Scott and Wilson says.

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.

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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.