Story 1

From the Island Packet

The Rev. Kenneth Hodges — a prominent pastor of one of Beaufort’s oldest churches, a former state lawmaker, businessman, community minded promoter and photographer whose pictures ranged from civil rights icons to famous entertainers — has died. He was 73.

Hodges, of Burton, was the pastor at Beaufort’s Tabernacle Baptist Church in the center of downtown. After guiding the church for some 30 years, he was as iconic as the weathered wooden church with the massive steeple on Craven Street. The legendary church is a historic landmark where the enslaved first went to worship in the mid-1800s and continues as an active congregation.

He leaves behind a legacy of community activism and preserving the history of the church and historic figures with ties to it including Harriet Tubman and Robert Smalls. As a state lawmaker, he supported small businesses in rural areas where he said self-employment was a way out of poverty.

Friends and church members confirmed that Hodges died at Beaufort Memorial Hospital Tuesday morning.

Hodges had been in the hospital since last Sunday, April 13 after complaining of weakness in his side, Allen said. But congregation members had expected him to recover, said Allen, who had spoken with Hodges this week.

Allen described Hodges as a “community person.” One example, he said, was how he spearheaded a monument to abolitionist Tubman that was erected at the church in June.

Hodges grew up in Bennett’s Point in Colleton County and attended Greenpoint Elementary and Walterboro High School. He earned an undergraduate degree at Clark Atlanta University and in 1986 and a master’s of divinity at Morehouse University’s School of Religion.

He served in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 2005 until 2016, representing Beaufort and Colleton counties, where he supported legislation that helped people start small businesses and honored S.C. history.

Story 2

From Bluffton Today

Bluffton will be adding yet another option for those in need of healthcare as a groundbreaking ceremony will be held May 7 for the Beaufort Memorial Bluffton Community Hospital, according to Beaufort Memorial Hospital officials.

The ceremony will be held from 11 a.m. to noon at the hospital's future location at 10 Innovation Drive, on the corner of Buckwalter and Bluffton Parkway in Bluffton.

"Join us to celebrate breaking ground on the site of the future Beaufort Memorial Bluffton Community Hospital, which was formerly known as Bluffton Community Medical Campus," a hospital spokesperson said.

Beaufort Memorial provided this rendering of the new Beaufort Memorial Bluffton Community Hospital. A groundbreaking ceremony for the new hospital is scheduled for May 7 in Bluffton.

There will be limited parking available on-site and there will be additional parking on-street and in neighboring public lots. Those attending are also asked to wear flat, closed-toe shoes as construction is active on the site.

The new location was made possible following the approval March 24 of Beaufort Memorial's Certificate of Need to add 28 inpatient beds to the planned medical campus in Bluffton. The approval, a spokesperson said, has allowed the project to transition from the Bluffton Community Medical Campus to the Bluffton Community Hospital.

STORY 3

From the Savannah Business Journal

To celebrate South Carolina Aviation Week--April 27 through May 3--Beaufort Executive Airport is hosting the first Runway FOD Walk Event. FOD stands for Foreign Object Debris and volunteers will help keep the airfield safe and operational by removing any debris from the runway area. That will ensure a clean, hazard-free environment for aircraft operations.