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Creating BEAUTIFUL
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Dr. Alvin H. Danenberg
Practice Limited to Periodontics
Dr. Richard F. Porcelli
General and Cosmetic Dentist
Dr. Eric B. Popky
General and Cosmetic Dentist
1274 Ribaut Road, Beaufort, South Carolina
tel. 843-524-6363 fax 843-522-9735
www.beaufortfamilydentistry.com
OUR FIRST YEAR…… NOTES FROM THE PUBLISHER DECEMBER/JANUARY 2009-’10
PREMIER ISSUE!
B E AUFORT, P ORT R OYAL A ND T HE S E A I SL ANDS
B EAUFORT, P ORT R OYAL A ND T HE S EA I SLANDS
150 YEARS: Hunting Island Set
OVERCOMING the ODDS
Jeff Atkins,
To Celebrate Anniversary
Hunting Island State Park Manager
Shrimp Boat Captain Kelly Ray Is Satisfied Learning Her Craft And Enjoying The Process
Kelly Ray
B EAUFORT, P ORT R OYAL A ND T HE S EA I SLANDS
LIGHTS... CAMERA... ACTION!
Beaufort International Film Festival Hits Stride In Its 4th Year
Miss Melissa Shrimp Boat
Bonnie Wright,
President, Friends Of Hunting Island
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2010
October/November 2009
This is where it all started. What a beginning! I don’t think we could have picked a better cover shot for our premier issue.
B EAUFORT, P ORT R OYAL A ND T HE S EA I SLANDS
The Art of Fly Fishing
-Tuck Scott
Fly Fishing Guide
December/January 2009-10
We received many calls on the Kelly Ray story…. inspired a lot of folks. I love watching Jery Taylor weave her magic!
B EAUFORT, P ORT R OYAL A ND T HE S EA I SLANDS
February/March 2010
I think we turned some heads with this one! Great stuff….Beaufort Film Festival….Karen and Floyd Day….Captain Morgan….all great stories!
B EAUFORT, P ORT R OYAL A ND T HE S EA I SLANDS
Carlton Bruner: FORMER OLYMPIAN SWIMS BOSTON HARBOR TO HELP RAISE MONEY FOR CANCER RESEARCH
Your 2010 Commodore talks about the Water Festival
-Sherri Little
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: Also Inside ntry Low Cou Weddings:
Profile •Artist ead Patrol ggerh gs •The Lo untry Weddin •Low Co ise set to *Gary Sinearance at l
Also Inside: Artist Profile Marshview Farms Waterfront Festival Schedule Beaufort Weddings
for A resource guide s. brides and groom
APRIL/MAY 2010
JUNE/JULY 2010
April/May 2010
June/July 2010
I want to go fly fishing now. Maybe Tuck will take me. Todd got some terrific photos of Aunt Pearlie Sue….loved her story! 04 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
Water Festival! No other words need to be spoken. It’s Beaufort’s 55th and we were so proud to be a part of it!
make app imp Festiva rt Shr Beaufo
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2010
August/September 2010
Todd had a great experience photographing one of Beaufort’s own in the Boston Harbor. This issue flew off the shelves!
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Does it matter that our cancer program is affiliated with Duke? It does to Linda Arp, who lives every moment to the fullest. When Linda received a surprising breast cancer diagnosis, she turned to the Keyserling Cancer Center for treatment. Through an affiliation with top rated Duke Medicine, Keyserling patients benefit from Duke’s treatment protocols and access to clinical trials. That means our patients receive the very best in cancer care — without traveling far from home.
- Linda Arp Beaufort, SC
www.bmhsc.org
O ctobe r/ Novemb e r 2010
features
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Meet The Band
38
Beaufort Haunts
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Heritage Days
Get to know the Marshland Party band.
In the spirit of Halloween, we dig into a few of the local ghost lore and legends. Penn Center prepares to celebrate the 28th Annual Heritage Days.
departments
07 Publisher’s Thoughts
20
10 Oystering In Beaufort
We explore the oyster and what it means to the Low Country area.
20 The Hat
We visit Parris Island for a one on one conversation with the Number One D.I. on the East Coast.
24 Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Cancer survivor Karen Harris shares her brave story, and the fight for her life.
06 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
09 Editor’s Letter 16 Artist Profile 54 Fishing Report 57 Dining Guide 61 Low Country Weddings
PU B L I SH ER ’ S Tho ug hts
On the Cover
The Marshland Party band standing near the scenic marsh of Port Royal. Read more abot the band on Page 32. -Cover Photo by PAUL NURNBERG
An Incredible Journey As the publisher of this magazine, each issue I wrangle with seemingly simple decisions, like who will be on the cover. With all the wonderful articles our writers and photographers submit, every story is cover worthy. It has been my mission with Beaufort Lifestyle to find the unsung heroes, the boys next door, the girls we pass on the street, and have them share their stories. For the most part, they are ordinary people living ordinary lives, or so it seems. But, everyone of them lives an extraordinary life in some way. These are our people; our friends, our friends to be, our family, our neighbors; these are the folks who share our community and help to build and shape Beaufort to be the unique place that it is. When I first came to Beaufort, I was awestruck by its beauty, its sense of community and the people that exemplified its true Southern Hospitality. From the South myself, these were all very important traits, and very familiar. With each visit, I knew more and more that I had just found my very own paradise, my sanctuary. If what they say about “love at first sight” is true, then I fell in love with Beaufort my very first visit. Walking along the water front.... visiting the shops on Bay......taking a carriage ride....driving over to Hunting Island…...the beauty and majesty of the entire region captivated me. Hence, the decision to publish Beaufort Lifestyle. Could you ever find a more spectacular place? Could you ever find more breathtaking scenes for photos? Could you ever find more interesting and intriguing people? I am sure that if one looked hard enough, they could answer that question with a “yes.” But for me, the decision was already made. A little over a year ago, we set out on a fascinating journey. This journey has taken me many places in the Low Country. It has opened doors to new friendships, to businesses and to a new peace I have found within myself. We have brought you Beaufort Lifestyle, we have brought you a piece of yourself. We have given you a publication of your own, one that tells the stories of your people, your heritage and everything that makes you proud to call this region your home. As we enter our second year, we plan to continue on this exciting journey! We can’t wait to see you along the way!
Julie Hales, PUBLISHER
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 07
C ONTRIBUTOR S
Fred Mongomery searching for oysters in the early morning light.
-Photo By TODD WOOD
Having grown up on the Main Line of Philadelphia and the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Mary Ellen now lives on Saint Helena Island with her Great Dane, Duke. She has a son and a daughter who live in Colorado and New York City. With a degree in business, she has owned several companies including Calypso Car Wash and Oil Change in Naples, Florida and a firm which specialized in French wall upholstery in Philadelphia. She spent several years on a barge cruising the canals of Europe. Her passions include traveling, photography, entertaining and being Mary Ellen Thompson anywhere on the water.
Susan Deloach
John Wollwerth
Susan Deloach was born Susan Bessinger in Beaufort, where she still resides with her husband Larry and sons Hudson and Tucker. Susan has a gift for capturing the personality and unique essence of her subject whether on location or in the studio. Her portraits are as diverse as the personalities of the people she photographs - some are edgy, some joyful, but all have one thing in common: the sensitive, skilled and thoughtful approach of the artist behind the camera.
John Wollwerth is a photographer raised in New York, now living in Beaufort. He specializes in wedding, advertising and architectural photography. John is a member of the American Society of Media Photographers. His work has appeared in such magazines as Coastal Living, South Carolina Homes and Gardens and Period Homes, to name a few. He comes highly recommended by numerous wedding planners, and he travels regularly throughout the region.
08 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
Bruce Doneff
Bruce Doneff first came to the Beaufort area in 1982 for Peace Corps training at Penn Center, in preparation for an assignment in West Africa. Over the course of a series of jobs in Tokyo and Osaka, Japan and in Edgewater, New Jersey, he made numerous visits back to the Low Country-finally settling here for good in 2006. Doneff runs a Public Relations consultancy with clients in California, New Jersey, and Washington, DC.
Paul Nurnberg
Paul Nurnberg is an award-winning photographer, who has lived in Beaufort, SC since 1996. He recently relocated his studio to Port Royal, SC from Savannah. Focusing on a variety of commercial advertising work including people, lifestyle, products and architecture, Paul also photographs select weddings. His work appears regularly in national magazines and regional advertising. He is the past national secretary of the Advertising Photographers of America and a four-year board member of the ASMP, SC chapter and remains an active member in both. Paul also offers classes in photography through Artworks and directly from his studio.
Cindy Reid
Cindy Reid ascribes to the cocktail napkin motto “I’m not from the South but I got here as quick as I could.” Born and raised on the sleepy Hudson River towns of rural New York, she always knew she was meant to feel sand and not gravel under her feet. She graduated from Mills College in Oakland,CA and spent the next twenty years raising a daughter and working in the retail book business before finally landing in St. Helena, SC. Her work has appeared in About Town, skirt!, Salon.com and she is a regular contributor to Coastal Mariner.”
E D I TOR’S Letter
October/November 2010 Julie Hales owner/publisher julie@idpmagazines.com Todd Wood managing editor todd@idpmagazines.com Amber Williams account executive amber@idpmagazines.com Judy Smolek account executive judy@idpmagazines.com Lane Gallegos graphic design lane@idpmagazines.com Penny Redmond distribution lane@idpmagazines.com LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Write to us and tell us what you think. Beaufort Lifestyle welcomes all letters to the editor. Please send all letters via email to Todd Wood at todd@idpmagazines. com, or mail letters to One Beaufort Town Center, 2015 Boundry Street, Suite 217 Beaufort, SC 29902. Letters to the editor must have a phone number and name of contact. Phone numbers will not be published. CALENDAR SECTION We’re looking for your information about clubs, organizations, events and meetings. For events in in December/ January 2010-’11, copy must be submitted by November 2, 2010. For events in in February/March 2011, copy must be submitted by January 15, 2011. Please email all copy to todd@idpmagazines.com. ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS Beaufort Lifestyle welcomes story ideas from our readers. If you have a story idea, or photo essay you would like to share, please submit ideas and material by emailing Todd Wood at todd@idpmagazines.com All articles and photos will be reviewed by the editor, and if the articles and accompanying photos meet the criteria of Independence Day Publishing, Inc., the person submitting the material will be contacted. Stories or ideas for stories must be submitted by email. Only feature stories and photo essays about people, places or things in Beaufort, Port Royal or the Sea Islands will be considered. SUBSCRIPTIONS Subscribe to Beaufort Lifestyle by submitting a check and subscription information form found in every issue. You may also subscribe by calling (843) 379-8696 . Beaufort Lifestyle is published bimonthly by Independence Day Publishing, Inc. Reproduction in whole or in part in any manner without the written permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited. Beaufort Lifestyle One Beaufort Town Center 2015 Boundry Street, Suite 217 Beaufort, SC 29901 (843) 379-8696
D i s c ove r i n g t h e a r e a s t r e a s u r e s Spending one year mixing, mingling and photographing the many great things in and around Beaufort definitely calls for a celebration. Though it may be cliche for me to say, I do not hesitate in my conversations abroad to tell about how unique Beaufort is. It is a Southern city steeped in tradition and history, yet it has a character(s) that sets itself apart. When I am out and about, I can’t help but feel like I am on a mini vacation of sorts. I get a strange, yet warm feeling when I explore the area. And, I’m not just talking about exploring the beaches and historical markers. I mean I get this warm feeling no matter where I go in Beaufort. Remember the 1985 adventure/comedy film The Goonies? Though the film was set in a town in Oregon, I often feel like one of the Goonies when I am out doing stories and photo shoots for the magazine. There’s adventure around every corner, and I love following the various maps as though I am on a treasure hunt. Just as Mikey persuaded his friends to join him on the hunt for One-Eyed Willie’s treasure, I am constantly being persuaded by our writers and resources to drive down this dirt road or that dirt road in search of our next great feature story. To this date, I haven’t taken a road that hasn’t led to one great treasure or another. When I first discovered Beaufort two years ago, I was amazed at how it had a vibe all its own. As I crossed the bridges, I felt like a modern day Christopher Columbus or Ferdinand Magellan. The funny thing was that these fellas actually travelled great distances on their respective discoveries and expeditions. I had only traveled literally a stone’s throw from Savannah. Though, when I arrived, I felt like I had discovered a new world. As we celebrate our first birthday in Beaufort, I have been taking the time to go back through our previous issues and look at what we have accomplished. With priceless support from our writers and readers, I believe we have created a sophisticated publication that provides truthful and healthy entertainment. Literally, minutes after the current issue hits the shelf, the phone starts ringing. Sometimes it is our feature subjects thanking us, and sometimes it is our advertisers calling to tell us that they already received a phone call from their ad in the magazine. I look forward to those days, because even though we know what we’re doing is in support of this great community, it feels great when people call to reassure us that what we are doing is special. It has been a great year! This Anniversary Edition (our seventh issue) marks the first in what appears will be an even more exciting second year. Join us for the ride. We’re ready for you to join us on our next great adventure!
Todd Wood, EDITOR
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | August/September 2010 09
What OYSTERS Mean To The Low Country Story by BRUCE DONEFF • Photo this page by TODD WOOD
Oysterman Fred Montgomery gathering oysters during a low tide in local waters not far from his home.
10 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
feature The Almighty Oyster story
The Secret Love Life of Oysters
-Photo by PAUL NURNBERG
Our Unabashed Love Affair with Crassostrea Virginica “He was a bold man that first eat an oyster.” Jonathan Swift, Irish Cleric, Essayist, Author, Satirist We love them. We love them on the half shell, raw, smoked, boiled, baked, fried, coddled, roasted, stewed, canned, pickled, steamed, broiled, Rockefeller, and even used in a variety of drinks. The word oyster is used as a common name for a number of distinct groups of bivalve mollusks which live in marine or brackish habitats. True oysters are members of the family Ostreidae and examples include the Belon oyster, Eastern oyster, Olympia oyster, Pacific oyster, Sydney rock oyster, and the Wellfleet oyster. Oyster Fact: A single female oyster can produce up to 100 million eggs annually.
Here in South Carolina, our ardor is reserved for Crassostrea Virginica, the noble Eastern, or American, oyster. The American oyster is found along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts of North America. Oysters form reefs, which are a dominant feature of our coastal estuaries.
Oysters are often considered a “keystone species,” providing valuable shelter and habitat for many other estuarine organisms, improving water quality, and reducing bank erosion. Oysters are typically found in estuaries, sounds, bays, and tidal creeks from brackish water (5 parts per thousand salinity) to full strength seawater (35 ppt salinity.) Oysters are tolerant organisms, able to withstand wide variations in temperature, salinity, and concentrations of suspended sediments. In South Carolina, almost all our oysters live in the intertidal zone. When submerged by the tide, oysters feed by filtering microscopic phytoplankton from the water.
OK, you’re at an oyster roast and a 9year old sidles up next to you and asks, “Where do baby oysters come from?” This is for you. Extensive research yielded a thicket of scientific terms such as protandric, conspecific, intersexual, planktonic, and hermaphrodism. Since, this is a family magazine, let’s keep this simple, shall we? Oysters usually reach maturity in about one year. These adult oysters begin reproduction when water temperatures become greater than 68 degrees F (20 degrees C). In South Carolina this i generally from May through October. Oysters are broadcast spawners, meaning they release eggs and sperm into the water column. Eggs from one oyster somehow meet up with sperm from another oyster (or the same oyster, but that’s another story) and a fertilized egg develops into a free-swimming larva in about 6 hours. A fully-shelled larva then forms within 12 to 24 hours. This tiny, shelled oyster-to-be continues to float around for about three weeks. Towards the end of this period it develops a foot and begins looking for a place to live. Eventually, the larva settles to the bottom of the water where it seeks something hard to call home. When a suitable surface (an adult oyster shell is best) is located, the larva cements itself and begins transformation into its delicious, adult form. Our newly attached oyster is called a “spat”.
Oyster Fact: An oyster can filter up to 1.3 gallons of water per hour. Chesapeake Bay’s once flourishing oyster population historically filtered the estuary’s entire water volume every 3-4 days—today it would take nearly a year.
A Little Local Oyster Heritage I am indebted to Laura Von Harten, as I borrow from her wonderful history of oysters in Beaufort County, printed first in the Lowcountry Weekly: The U.S. Fish Commission conducted a survey of South Carolina bottoms in the winter of 1890-91 and found that we had 775 acres of natural oyster beds in South Carolina, with another 20,000 acres of
A beautiful oyster from local waters. Oyster provided by Sea Eagle Market.
-Photo by PAUL NURNBERG
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 11
It!s oyster season, and people like Iris Morgan (top right) enjoy the local oysters .
bottoms suitable for cultivation. By 1895, some Baltimore canneries established a presence here, and the South Carolina oyster industry had begun. Five oyster canneries were built in Beaufort County around 1895. George Lowden & Company opened two, one in Bluffton, the other at Club Bridge on St. Helena Island. The Hunt Company built a cannery at Factory Creek on Lady’s Island. Oyster Fact: In the early 1800s, oysters were cheap and mainly eaten by the working class.
Local entrepreneurs also got in on the oyster business. Capt. William Roberts established a cannery at Dulamo on St. Helena Island. The Maggioni family, of Savannah, built a cannery on Daufuskie Island, and then moved its operations to Port Royal in 1903. The Maggioni cannery remained in Port Royal until 1917, when it moved to the Hunt Cannery site on Lady’s Island. In the decades between the two World Wars, the Maggioni family operated similar canneries at Tom Fripp on St. Helena Island and at Sam’s Point on Lady’s Island. When the Lady’s Island cannery closed its doors in 1986, it was the end of an era. It has been nearly 25 years now, and it seems almost like it never was.
“The first man gets the oyster, the second man gets the shell.” -Andrew Carnegie Despite Carnegie’s apparent admonition, no one gets the shell at one of our finest Low Country traditions, the
12 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
oyster roast. But more about that in a moment.
The “Local” Oyster “The oyster inspires love among its devotees, but it seems that no ardor is greater than that felt by an oyster-loving inhabitant of an oyster-growing area for the local oysters.” (Cusinenet.com) No truer words can be said about the marvelous specimens we take from the seemingly unlimited creeks and rivers that surround, embrace, and feed us. In his wonderful, “The Pat Conroy Cookbook,” Mr. Conroy relates an amusing tale on just how seriously we take the “local” in our oysters. Seems Mr. Conroy was buying a few bushels from an oysterman on St. Helena Island and he asked, “Sir, are these oysters local?” To which the purveyor replied, “No sir. Gotta be honest. I harvested these over three miles from here.” Oyster Fact: Some tropical oysters grow best on mangrove roots. Hence, in the West Indies, oysters “grow on trees.”
Our intrepid part-time oysterman and self-described “shellfish aficionado,” Fred Montgomery, has been oystering, clamming, shrimping and everything else in these waters for 35 plus years. Fred has worked his way up into the smaller creeks that feed off of (secret location) Creek, where he works bountiful oyster beds to enjoy with friends and for what he jokingly refers to as a little “beer money.” How does he find the local oysters? “South Carolina oysters in the
-Photos by PAUL NURNBERG
wintertime have a tendency to ‘shut down’ and so they’ll get real salty and sweet. They’re probably the best eating oyster in the world. It’s a gourmet oyster, we’re so lucky to have them. I’ll put ours up against any oyster anywhere.” Laura Von Harten, who in addition to her political and writing careers also runs the tour company Lowcountry Explorer, had this to say about our local oyster, “I did not like them as a girl. As I grew older, I came to appreciate how much they taste like the estuaries here, and they have this incredible saltiness. They taste like oysters from nowhere else. Just as wines have a terroir, our oysters have a distinct terroir. You know, if you have to use Gulf oysters, it’s a disappointment.” There you have it, sorry Gulf oysters… Oyster Fact: While oysters have two sexes, they may change sex one or more times during their life span. Because of this, it is technically possible for an oyster to fertilize its own egg.
The Oyster Roast Our oysterman, Fred Montgomery, tells you how it’s done, “An oyster roast is a great way to have people meet in a Low Country tradition. It’s an old tradition, for all ages, and when it’s winter time you’re outdoors and you have a nice cozy fire. Get your oysters, put ‘em on a piece of old tin, take a burlap bag, dip it in salt water—not fresh water, never fresh water. Put it over the oysters, let ‘em start steaming, and as soon as you hear one pop open, pull that bag off, take a shovel, and put ‘em all on a big table. Then start yelling, “Come on now, get your oysters!” Tom Valentino, who, like Fred,
-Photo by BRUCE DONEFF
SCORE is an Oyster’s Best Friend The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) is responsible for managing the state’s oyster resources. In order to increase oyster habitat at minimum cost, SCDNR initiated the South Carolina Oyster Restoration and Enhancement (SCORE) program. The SCORE program has two major components: oyster shell recycling and community-based restoration. Oyster larvae seek a hard surface on which to anchor, called substrate or clutch. The best cultch material is oyster shells. Working together with SCORE, community members are restoring oyster populations, while enhancing habitat for fish, shrimp, and crabs; improving water quality of estuarine areas; and informing and educating children, industry, and the general public. Since May 2001, more than 8000 volunteers have “planted” over 500 tons of oyster shell to build 188 reefs at 35 reef sites along the South Carolina coast. One such reef site has been constructed at Russ Point Landing on Hunting Island over the past five years in a partnership between SCORE and Friends of Hunting Island (FOHI). Since 2006, groups ranging from 25 up to more than 50 volunteers gather once a year to form a line and pass tons of oysters shells down to water’s edge at low tide to create new oyster habitats. Over the years, a number of organizations have participated in this valuable project, including Friends of the Rivers, Coastal Conservation Association, Leadership Beaufort, the Boy Scouts, Bluffton Environmental Action Volunteers,
originally hails from Long Island, does some darn fine work for Friends of Hunting Island, has a slightly different take on the roast, “It’s a funny thing about oysters. Almost everyone likes the taste but they are scared off by the looks. You get them to try a well cooked one and gradually they go for the steamed one as well. It takes two or three roasts before they get used to them—then they’re the first at the table! I no longer roast oysters over a sheet of boiler plate with wet burlap on top. Now I steam them, it’s quicker and you get more uniform results.” Since the time of the Yemassee, we’ve been gathering around fires and tables and roasting and steaming and shucking
AMI Beaufort Kids (formerly Beaufort Marine Institute), along with FOHI volunteers and staff from SCORE and Hunting Island State Park. Here’s a segment of the report from this year’s build: “Our hardy group of oyster lovers put out 530 20-lb. mesh bags of oyster shells at low tide to form a reef. We built the 763-square foot reef next to last year’s build and together they constitute a pretty impressive amount of oyster habitat. Last year’s reef is already showing a substantial amount of growth (“recruitment”) and the entire reef will soon be filtering water, creating habitat, and supplying food for a variety of marine life, while helping to stabilize this section of our beautiful low country marsh.” Terry Stone, who wears both a FOHI and CCA hat, has worked with SCORE the last few years to coordinate the project and recruit volunteers, “Delicacy that they are, oysters are also integral to our estuarine ecosystem. Support of the South Carolina Oyster Restoration and Enhancement program and its mission of creating new oyster beds with recycled oyster shells is one huge way we can all contribute, insuring that we maintain the necessary balance in our estuaries and that there will be plenty of oysters for future generations.” To learn more about SCORE and sign up to volunteer: HYPERLINK “http://score.dnr.sc.gov/index.php” http://score. dnr.sc.gov/index.php
and putting all manner of condiment (or not) on the noble oyster. Beer or CocaCola in hand, we revel in each other’s company and more often than not eat those oysters until there’s nothing left but to take the shells to the nearest recycling station. Resident expert and adopted son Pat Conroy, in his cookbook, describes a proper oyster roast, “An oyster roast must take place on a cold day for it to work its proper magic…[This] is not a milieu that induces euphoria among highbrows and intellectuals…there will be a lot more pickup trucks than Lexuses in the parking lot…” Whatever you drive, if you live here
you have a hundred oyster roast stories. If you’re visiting, you’ve come at the right time: get yourself to any oyster roast. No half-shells here, just the best tasting oyster there is. Anna Edwards, who works over at Wells Fargo Advisors, keeps it real simple, “I love oysters, because oysters mean oysters roasts, which means get togethers.” Tin or no, steamed or roasted, let us give thanks for the oyster and the excuse to get together and celebrate the good fortune to know this beautiful place. Amen. (Thanks to Wikipedia, the SC Oyster Restoration and Enhancement website, Fred Montgomery, Laura Von Harten and Lowcountry Weekly, my friends, and Mr. Pat Conroy for the help trying, in some small way, to capture Mr. Oyster.)
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 13
Come see Beaufort the way it was meant to be seen. Relax and enjoy beautiful historic Beaufort from our comfortable Blue carriages. Let the clippity-clop of our horses take you back to a simpler time. Re-live the past through the narration of our professional guides/drivers. See Antebellum and Victorian architecture. As well as Hollywood movie sites.
VIS-A-VIS
For All Your Special Occasions The Exchange Club of Beaufort Presents the 18th Annual
Reservations Recommended
4 Years in a Row!
843.524.2900
1002 Bay Street (The Blue Building)
GHOST TOURS OF BEAUFORT Three Weekends October 15-16 • October 22-24 • October 28-30 Carriages Provided By Southurn Rose Buggy Tours
Help sponsor Dr. Marikay Campbell and Port Royal Veterinary Hospital staff to go on a World Vets Humanitarian trip in 2011.
World vets is an international aid for animals. Volunteers travel to different locations to donate their time and services to less fortunate animals. Their work helps animals, people and the communities in which they live. It is like doctors without borders only this is for our furry friends! Not only does this help the animals and people overseas but it also provides a huge learning experience for the veterinarians and technicians. For more information log on to www.worldvets.org The doctor and staff of Port Royal Veterinary Hospital are looking for donations or sponsorships to help raise money for this once in a lifetime experience. Our goal is $16,000.00 which will provide the plane tickets and meals for our 8 members. We know it sounds like a lot of money, but we feel with a little help from our friendly community we will be able to reach this goal in time to make a trip in 2011.
Dogs, Cats, Birds, Exotics, Pocketpets, Rabbits, Medicine & Surgery Including Orthopedics 10% MILITARY DISCOUNT!
Complete Grooming Services Shelia Ellis - Master Groomer
14 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
If you are interested in helping the staff at PRVH reach this goal, please contact us at 843-379-7387. Make checks payable to PRVH World Vets Fund. We are located at 1502 Paris Ave. Port Royal, SC 29935 or can be reached by email at portroyalveterinaryhospital@yahoo.com
(843)379-PETS (7387)
www.portroyalveterinaryhospital.com
Mon: 10-8, Tues, Thurs, Fri: 8-6 , Wed 8-12, Sat: 8-2 Closed Sundays 1502 Paris Ave., Port Royal, SC 29935
Historic party on the way as Beaufort prepares for Tricentennial Everywhere you turn in Beaufort, history calls out – from the gracefully restored antebellum homes to the centuries-old live oaks, from the pristine waters to the quiet graveyards, from tabby and stucco to Sea Island cotton. In 2011, Beaufort celebrates a special and historic birthday – its 300th. That’s a lot of candles and a lot of cake – but the Tricentennial is a lot of years. “For a community that celebrates our unique history and culture on an almost daily basis, 300 years is a huge benchmark,” Beaufort Mayor Billy Keyserling said. “Over the past two and a half years, the Beaufort Three Century Project has been exploring our past so that we can better craft our future. Now, we are moving into our Tricentennial Celebration to move us into our fourth century.” Beaufort was founded in 1711 by the English, although its beginnings date back to Spanish explorers in 1514. Beaufort was named for Englishman Henry Somerset, Duke of Beaufort (16841714), one of the Lords Proprietors of Carolina. Beaufort leaders unveiled the logo in July, setting the stage for special events to commemorate the 300th birthday and for traditional events such as the Water Festival, Gullah Festival, Shrimp Festival and Tours of Homes to incorporate the Tricentennial theme into their 2011 planning. The first formal event for the Beaufort Tricentennial will be “Founders’ Night” the afternoon of Dec. 31. Scheduled for the Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park starting around 4 p.m., “Founders’ Night” likely will include live music, a 300-gun birthday salute, historical re-enactments and fireworks to kick off the 2011 Tricentennial, said Mike McFee, the Beaufort City Councilman who has been instrumental in the project. “This is the kind of celebration that happens only once, and it’s taken us 300 years to get here,” McFee said. “We are going to celebrate our history in a variety of ways that will involve our community and be something special to talk about for years to come.” Part of the effort also is the Beaufort 300 fundraiser. For a donation of $900, contributors receive a lapel pin, car decal and permanent recognition on a Tricentennial monument. The monument will update the historical markers in the Henry Chambers Waterfront Park, creating a continuing story of Beaufort’s history with the names of all the Beaufort 300 donors. Erin Dean leads the Tricentennial Committee and is organizing the events schedule, the merchandising and the Fall Coastal Exploration
Waddell Mariculture Center October 12 Identifying Marine Invertebrates of a Lowcountry Estuary -October 18 SCORE Oyster Reef Restoration Project - October 27 Coastal Ecology at Botany Bay Plantation Wildlife Management Area - November 4 Experiencing Yawkey - December 3 For more information visit the DNR web-site @ http://www.dnr.sc.gov/marine/NERR/seminarseries. HTML Participant lists will open 30 days prior to each event. Place your name on the list for your desired event. For every event there is space reserved for first time and returning participants. You will be notified 10 days in advance of the event of your registration status.
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overall tone of the historic birthday. “The ‘Beaufort 300’ is a unique way to contribute the city’s history and its future,” she said. “We will be working with sponsors to help support some of the events, such as the ‘Founders’ Night,’ but the permanent monument is really for the people, by the people.” The Tricentennial Committee has been working since January to plan events commemorating Beaufort’s 300th birthday, with much of the initial work related to the logo. The city’s actual birthday, Jan. 17, 2011, will be celebrated that early evening with a birthday cake cutting and other events at Beaufort City Hall. An early part of the Tricentennial project was a national contest for a visual representation of the historic birthday. Bluffton graphic artist Kelly Logan Graham created the city’s Tricentennial logo. It was selected from among 27 entries from across the United States to represent Beaufort’s Tricentennial celebration throughout 2011. “The color graphic obviously uses the number 300, expressed using symbols that echo the crescent moon shape on the SC flag,” Graham explained. “The three colors represent the full spectrum of light, as well as the red bloodline of local founders, the golden Carolina sunshine and the blue waters that define Beaufort’s boundaries.” For more information about the Beaufort Tricentennial and the Beaufort 300 fundraiser, visit www.cityofbeaufort.org.
Fall Festival of Houses & Gardens October 22, 23, 24, 2010 Oct. 22 Candlelight tour 5 - 8:30 Oct. 23 Ramble around Beaufort 10 - 4 Oct. 24 Kitchen & Cuisine 12 - 3:30 843-379-3331 www.historicbeaufort.org Isabella Reeves ireeves@historicbeaufort.org 843-379-333.
A Total Gullah Experience Fo’ Christmas Friday, Dec. 10, 2010 - 7pm USCB Performing Arts Center 801 Carteret Street Feasting…Art…Full-stage Musical A Taste of Gullah… Several excellent Gullah chefs will be struttin’ their holiday cuisine for all to taste and enjoy. Feast on a variety of gullahlicious Sea Island specialty rice dishes along with finger lickin’ entrees and desserts.
Renown Gullah artists, Diane Britton-Dunham, Hank Herring, Richard White, Priscilla Williams, Queen Rivers just to name a few, will be exhibiting their unique works of art. Looking for that special gift for giving to others or for you…this is the place to fill your shopping needs. Full-stage Musical “Gullah Kinfolk Christmas Wish” Broadway Back In Da’ Woods Productions… December of 1860…the last Christmas before the Civil War…South Carolina has just seceded from the Union…War or Freedom is the talk by servant and master. You’ll get a glimpse into the “Quarters” and “Big House.” Through soul-stirring, foot-stopping singing and dancing you will be drawn into the excitement of the Yuletide season on a South Carolina Sea Island plantation. Tickets: $30 Adv. $35@ Door $10 ages 7-17 On sale at Black Chamber of Commerce 843-986-1102 HYPERLINK “http://www.bcbcc. org” www.bcbcc.org
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 15
artist profile Benton Lutz
OUTSIDER ART HE’S BEEN A CONSULTANT, A POET, A FOOTBALL PLAYER, A THERAPIST,
A WRITER, BUT IT WASN’T UNTIL HE STARTED PAINTING THAT HE SAW THE LIGHT.
A
• Story by MARY ELLEN THOMPSON • Photography by PAUL NURNBERG
psychotherapist by trade, Benton Lutz is an artist and a writer by nature. Benton’s love affair with painting began “One day when I was stopped at a traffic light in Camden, SC, I saw three little girls. They were all dressed up; holding hands, they skipped across the intersection. Their movement was orchestrated, beautiful. Who sees people skipping these days? I went home and tried to write a story about it but it was too visual. So I went into to the garage and found some plywood and house paint and just started painting. Hours later I realized I had completed seven, eight, or nine paintings; I must have been in a trance.” He took the paintings to his friend, Elayne Scott, at the Red Piano Too Art Gallery on St. Helena Island, thinking she might tell him they were no good and release him of his newfound obsession. Instead, she hung them in the Gallery, and they sold. “Three months and about $1000 in my pocket later,” he knew he had found another voice with which to express himself. Of Benton, Elayne Scott now says: “Fifteen years ago it took courage for a self-taught artist to walk into a gallery and ask to show their work. Benton knew his work was different, cats don’t fly, crows aren’t larger than people, and busy traffic intersections don’t look like they came out of a child’s book. After all, grown men, well-educated men, don’t paint like he does; or so it seemed to Benton. But I saw the courage and authenticity with which he expressed his mind’s vision. What I saw, and what over one hundred collectors since then have seen, is the whimsy, the imagination, and the depth of Benton’s colorful originals.” After his success at The Red Piano Too Art Gallery, Benton continued to paint, and The Charles Street Gallery also began showcasing his work. “I know I paint in a naive way; I try to capture the magical.” The majority of his paintings are of women. Why? “As Seinfeld said, ‘Men are like jeeps; women are like sports cars.’” His women are magical; they are also lighthearted, happy,
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whimsical, thoughtful, and all have great hair! They hit just the right note of a combination of portrait and cartoon character. Born and raised in Sumter, SC, Benton played football in high school. He spent those summers going to football practice camp at Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC. With his innate sense of humor, he demurely says, “When I found out P.C. stood for Presbyterian College instead of Practice Camp, I decided this is the place for me!” There, he earned his B.A. and met his wife, Maxine. They moved to Gettysburg, PA where he attended Lutheran Theological Seminary, received his Masters in Divinity in 1973 and began his career as a pastoral counselor. In 1989, he received his post-masters Education Specialist degree from The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA. and went into the consulting field “using psychotherapy techniques in workplace dynamics, primarily in hospital and medical settings.” In 1995 the Lutz’s moved to Beaufort, where Benton’s family had spent summers from time to time when he was a child. In Beaufort, Benton opened his own counseling practice for adults and children while he continued workplace consulting and was a consumer representative for the American Association of Critical Care Nurses. “In 2001, after 9/11, the phone calls just stopped coming in for that work. I had a handful of clients and focused on expanding my private practice.” Also, he is a member of the National Association of Play Therapy. “I like to call myself a Playologist,” he laughs. Currently, Maxine is the Executive and Board Assistant for Historic Beaufort Foundation; daughter Alicia is the Director of College Publications at The College of Charleston, and son Will is enrolled in an MBA program at Charleston Southern University. Clearly proud of his family, Benton says of his wife: “What can I say about Maxine? She is just a real fun girl! She enjoys life; she loves her children and her friends and me!”
Benton Lutz sitting among his many creations in his home studio.
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 17
Or vis Outfitter & Fishing Guides Women’s and Men’s Fly Casting Lessons The Best Travel Clothing on the Planet !
The Quality Inn at Town Center is pleased to announce the opening of the
Jasmine Room This new event space which can accommodate up to 240 people features new banquet furniture and state-of-the-art A/V equipment. It is a great location for events and meetings, both professional and casual. Call the Quality Inn at Town Center today at (843) 524-2144 and book your wedding reception, family reunion, private party, luncheon, and business meeting! 2001 Boundary Street, Beaufort, South Carolina 29902
18 October/November2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
“When people ask me to write something about why I paint, I usually write some philosophical tome, but the truth is its just incredibly fun; it’s my therapy. I like Kelly Lambert’s quote about the latest neurochemistry research which states ‘When our hands create art, they tap into the fascinating and unique characteristics of the human mind related to hope...’” “One day Maxine and I found some old art I did in the attic and it reminded us that I had been painting on and off my whole life. I had taken one art class in college and as a final project I had to paint a self-portrait. I’d run out of most of my colors and since I didn’t envision doing any more painting, I didn’t want to invest in buying more paint. I had no skin tones, no white, so I painted myself in dark colors.” Perhaps that view foreshadowed the contrasts that would follow him. As a therapist, he counsels patients who come to him to find their own light. Possibly he processes these dark stories in writing and releases them into the light as paintings, which he describes as “fun, funny, quirky, happy, sunny, and silly.” Benton’s style is known as “outsider art” which is loosely defined as a self-taught style of painting. Benton’s own description: “Outsider art is the untrained and often spontaneous expression of the stirrings of the soul. It comes when a vision in the world matches an inner longing. It comes from the some unknown and unseen well that resides deep within. It is the audacious reclaiming of art by cavemen who want to express the wind whistling through their bodies. It is raw, hard-scrabbled, primitive, and pure. It is not all of art but it has a place. If it works right, it touches you.” Benton has a fondness for painting animals, particularly cats, sometimes in mid-air, garbed in superhero capes, an “S” emblazoned on the cape, or on the cat itself. “I keep looking for a real life superhero; if I had to choose one, I would say it is the inner child in each of us, they are the real superheros.” Crows are another favorite subject for Benton. “I love the crows; they’ve got their act together. One day when I had nothing else to do I went over to Mount Beaufort, which is what I call the hill behind the Charles Street Post Office because it is the highest place in town. There were two murders of crows, one on the corner next to Rebecca Davenport’s house, one across the street on the corner at the Baptist Church. They were fussing at each other, and divebombing the opposing group. The Baptist crows flew over to the Saint Helena Episcopal Church steeple and suddenly Rebecca’s crows changed calls – they went from angry to inquisitive. The murder on Rebecca’s corner decided to send a scout out to see what was going on. About two minutes later he came flying back being chased by the entire other group! Crows have a very evolved method of communication.” That Benton would be attracted to crows is no surprise; crows are messengers, the shamanistic totem animal representing change; they unite the light and the dark, the inner and the outer. In 2009 The Charles Street Gallery hosted “Wimmen and Wimsy.” Coastal Companion wrote this about the show: “Benton Lutz is setting loose charming cats, goofy crows, and curvy women who are an appealing combination of Modigliani and Blondie (frau to Dagwood).” Benton’s own description: “The title of the show is ‘Wimmen & Wimsy.’ As an untrained painter, I paint like a child. I may have notions of something profound and serious to say in art but it’s spoken in a naive voice like a child trying to express a complicated feeling with a limited vocabulary. So what happens in the studio is straightforward, childlike, and whimsical. It makes me laugh, it pleases me; it recovers the child that I am and perhaps the child in the viewer. I think this show will be fun like children meeting on the playground. Hope to see you there.” Georgia Phillips, who owns Charles Street with husband Sonny, says: “Benton makes me laugh! Every morning I go to my kitchen and see my Crow Bar painting and I can’t help but laugh. It’s how I
start every day, even before I have my cup of coffee.” Benton is currently working an a series of paintings of women inspired by an article entitled “Ethiopian Tribal Fashion” in Departures Magazine. “One day a little boy I know wanted to go to the library; so I took him. While we were there, I came across this article. The Ethiopian women in these tribes decorate themselves with things they find in their environment: shells, leaves, tufts of grass, crushed stones. They have no mirrors, so they use each other as mirrors. We think we’re so sophisticated in our fashion world but there is nothing on the runways of New York or Paris that can match what they do.” Although he paints mostly women, another contrast is that Benton reads books written mostly by male authors. “I prefer Southern off-kilter writers such as Walker Percy, Larry Brown, Barry Hannah and Kevin Brockmeier.” Like most writers, Benton is an avid reader, and an admirer of words as an art form. “The perfect sentence is remarkable, it has the power to transport you. As Mark Twain said: ‘The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter – it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.’ Adam Gopnik wrote a great article about Van Gogh in The New Yorker Magazine suggesting that it was really Gauguin who cut off Van Gogh’s ear. Listen to this beautiful sentence from the article, ‘The stripping away of conventional decorum that van Gogh’s illness forced on him made him almost unnaturally present, alert to the world; when his mind went wrong, he became all heart.’ That sentence inspired a painting I recently did, but the painting is nothing compared to that sentence.” As an author, Benton has written articles, novels, short stories and an abundance of poetry. “I’ve always written; my creative edge has always been to write. But it’s dark, serious stuff. I’ve had articles published, but not a book. Recently I sat back down to write and, perhaps because painting has brought out the whimsical in me, now the light, funny and happy side comes out in my writing too. I wrote, and decided to self-publish, a book for adolescents entitled The Real Deal. I started writing it last September and I wrote most every morning between 3 and 5 a.m., and finished it in December. I had a great time writing it! The story is one of magical realism. Three twelve-year-olds in Beaufort talk to trees and the trees talk back to them. Helped by the ghost of Robert Smalls, they follow clues not knowing what they’re up to.” Benton has illustrated the book himself and plans to publish it in the beginning of 2011. He is currently working on another fantasy novel for twelve to fifteenyear-olds; “The working title is The Caution Light and takes its inspiration from the caution light at the intersection of North and Charles Streets.” Intuitive, self-effacing, and soft-spoken, Benton Lutz is a man of many interests and talents which he says he must fit into the six or so hours of free time he has a week. He likes fishing, but doesn’t have much time for it; “I like to fish because it’s very metaphorical. You throw a line into the mystery below the surface and see what happens.” His art is collected all over the place and graces stately homes in New York City, Hollywood, the Main Line of Philadelphia, and a luxury yacht in France. He is considering opening his studio occasionally for wine and cheese evenings. Benton will be a featured artist in “Arts Bizarre,” a show at ArtWorks: opening reception on November 5, 2010 in the evening. This will be a great opportunity to see Benton’s collection of paintings and spend a few moments with this intriguing man. “I have been a consultant, a poet, a football player, a therapist, a writer, but it wasn’t until I began painting in 1995 that I saw the light. I came to understand the marvels of visual expression and now look at me, I’m a mess. But then, in truth, I have always been a mess.” Who can resist that? BL
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 19
A Hat on Parris Island “These recruits are entrusted to my care. I will train them to the best of my ability. I will develop them into smartly disciplined, physically fit, basically trained Marines, thoroughly indoctrinated in love of Corps and country. I will demand of them, and demonstrate by my own example, the highest standards of personal conduct, morality and professional skill.” -The Drill Instructor’s Pledge, written by Drill Instructors for Drill Instructors. Story by CINDY REID We Make Marines Recruits are born but Marines are made. The mission statement of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) at Parris Island is simple. “We make Marines who are committed to our Core Values in service to the country.” A recruit steps off the bus onto the infamous yellow footprints at MCRD at Parris Island. For the next twelve weeks they are put through a challenging and rigorous training program and it is with earned pride that a recruit becomes a Marine on Graduation Day. Drill Instructors are the Marines who have been making this happen since the first enlisted male training began on Parris Island in 1915.
Staff Sergeant Timothy Peterson Originally from Orlando, Florida, Staff Sgt Peterson has been a Marine for the last six and half years, and is midway through his three year Drill Instructor Duty tour at Parris Island. After a short stint in law enforcement in Florida, he decided to join the Marines to fulfill the military requirement needed to apply as a U.S. Marshall. “But after about two years as a Marine I knew this was going to be for me, this was what I wanted to do.” he says. Previous to Drill Instructor Duty tour Staff Sgt. Peterson was deployed three times to Iraq. Regarding Iraq he says, “I enjoyed it, certainly I perform better under pressure. As a Squad Leader I was responsible for myself and twelve others. After that I was a Station Commander and was responsible for 150 Iraqi policemen and 280 soldiers in the Iraqi Army. I met many Iraqi people there who truly cared about their country.” At the end of his third deployment he volunteered for Drill Instructor training. All Drill Instructors have volunteered for
20 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
this intense and demanding duty, it is not an assigned training. After passing the screening process and being selected, a Marine must first attend Drill Instructor School at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, or MCRD Parris Island, South Carolina. (The exception being that all female DIs train at Parris Island because every female recruit has to be trained here, and have been since female recruit training began in 1949.) The 12-week course emphasizes leadership, judgment, professionalism, time-management, and, of course, physical fitness. Essentially the future DIs are put through every task a recruit is required to complete during their training. “I had a Senior DI tell me when I finished boot camp that if you care anything about the Marine Corps you’ll come back someday to Parris Island. Now that I am back here I try to instill Marine Corps DNA in the recruits, and hope I do a good enough job to keep them wanting to come back too,” says Staff Sgt. Peterson.
achieve this level by being diligent in their physical training and treating the information they are taught as knowledge they will use for a lifetime. “Information such as the history of the Marine Corps and the 14 Leadership traits of the Marine Corps is vital to know.” Staff Sgt. Peterson says. “Every recruit can say and mean it. I first learned this at the recruit level and am able to draw on this information at any given moment.” “The 14 leadership traits are qualities of thought and action which, if demonstrated in daily activities, help Marines earn the respect, confidence, and loyal cooperation of other Marines. It is extremely important that you understand the meaning of each leadership trait and how to develop it, so you know what goals to set as you work to become a good leader and a good follower. The traits are: “Justice, Judgment, Dependability, Initiative, Decisiveness, Tact, Integrity, Enthusiasm, Bearing Unselfishness, Courage, Knowledge, Loyalty, and Endurance.” -from the USMC website
Meritorious Promotion In addition to the normal promotion system, commanders can promote a very few, outstanding Marines through meritorious promotion boards, panels where the most highly qualified Marines compete. In August 2010, Staff Sgt. Peterson received that honor. Staff Sgt. Peterson was selected to represent his company (Hotel Company), and then selected to represent his Battalion (Second Battalion). He received the honor of being first at the Battalion level. From there it was first at the Regimental level, and ultimately he was recognized as the number one ranked Drill Instructor from all Battalions (21 total) from the Eastern Recruiting Region. He says he enjoyed the process and being tested at every level. Staff Sgt. Peterson tells recruits that they too can
The Hat Drill Instructors are known as “Hats” due to their distinctive head gear. Only DIs and Range Rifle Instructors are authorized to wear this field hat. Originally the DIs wore pith helmets but that was changed in the 1950’s.
Recruit Training: Ultimately, “The concept of the senior leadership is to train recruits to be Marines and not robots. The training will prepare a Marine to think for himself in that instance where there is no one standing there telling him what to do. He may hear the voice of his Drill Instructor in his head, but he will have to think for himself in that instance. That’s what this training will do for a Marine,” says Staff Sgt. Peterson. Which is what making a
Photo by TODD WOOD
Marine is all about.
Lowcountry Community From the MCRD Parris Island website: “The introduction of the preWorld War II campaign or field hat worn by drill instructors today originated during an advisory council meeting in 1956. Senior noncommissioned officers strongly recommended the adoption of better “headgear” for DIs. The field hat was the item most preferred by DIs. It shaded the neck and eyes well, but did not keep the head as cool as the pith helmet. The field hat was a bit of tradition going back to the “Old Corps” of pre-World War II days…On Saturday, July 21, 1956, at 7:30 a.m. all 603 drill instructors of the recruit training command obtained their new hats.” (www. mcr dpi.usmc.mil/units/r tr/ battalions/dischool/cover.asp)
Staff Sgt. Timothy Peterson
Staff Sgt. Peterson says, “I like Parris Island very much, it is a great base to be stationed due to the people and camaraderie here. And the Marine Corps does everything they possibly can do in terms of programs for Marines, everything from recreational activities to family support.” He cites a program his wife, Brandy, attended called the “Windshield Tour,” where the spouses of Drill Instructors were able to, as he says, “Live the life of a recruit for one day, from getting on a bus and getting off at the ‘yellow footprints’ to being at the rifle range. It helps a spouse see what their husband does all day.” He also says the support battalion and base wide is exceptional in terms of making a newcomer and their family feel welcome. They live in Laurel Bay and enjoy the close knit community they have found there. Having grown up on the water in Florida, Staff Sgt. Peterson is looking forward to getting out on the water and catching some redfish this fall. “That’s one of the things I like best about Beaufort, living so close to the water” he says. He also enjoys motorcycling and likes to ride up to Charleston. To break up the ride he will, “Bring my running gear and do a three or four mile run through Battery Point, before heading back to Beaufort.” He also plans on “Going to attend my ten year high school reunion in October, in Orlando FL. It will probably make me feel like an old man!” After 18 months, as a DI Staff Sgt Peterson is currently in what’s known as the “quota” phase of his three year tour at Parris Island. He has trained five platoons and is currently assigned to other duties for the next few months and then will train two more platoons before finishing his Drill Instructor Duty Tour. He is hoping to go back in the Infantry and be deployed to Afghanistan because “That’s what I joined the Marine Corps to do.”
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 21
The Spirit of Port Royal by Nancy Harris Vista
If you haven’t visited the Town of Port Royal, or at least visited lately, you might want to drop in for an afternoon. When recently asked to describe Port Royal I found it easier to define what Port Royal isn’t, rather than what it is. It’s not one of those new towns trying to look old or even an old town trying to look new. Its streets aren’t lined with stately homes or white picket fences- in fact it’s not homogenized in any sense. It does have a 2chair barber shop, a coffee house with rockers on the porch, a cafe! in an old house and a number of other unique “Mom and Pop style” businesses scattered throughout the town. I had a visitor ask me once, “Did I make a wrong turn and end up in Mayberry”? “Yes, I replied, and as a matter of fact, before you leave, take a right at the filling station on the corner and head north a couple of miles so won’t miss Mount Pilot”. There is an odd yet comfortable familiarity about the town...an unspoken spirit if you will - and its draw is irresistible. Maybe that was the spirit that put Port Royal on the map in the first place. The French, almost 500 hundred years ago, in a race with the Spanish to discover the new world, landed right here in Port Royal, pre-dating St. Augustine by nearly three years. Many battles over ownership ensued and Port Royal has flown under seven different flags throughout its history. It has survived hurricanes, plagues and even a fire that nearly leveled the town. It is a town of great substance and spirit. Its citizens, many of whom have long lineage here, are among the proudest I have ever encountered. Perhaps it is that same spirit that will guide Port Royal into a bright and prosperous future. 22 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
Festival Sea OF THE
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BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 23
Story by MARY ELLEN THOMPSON Photography by SUSAN DELOACH
{
{OCTOBER IS BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
FIGHT like a girl. Girls are SCRAPPERS! Karen Harris shares her story of being diagnosed with breast cancer, and a fight that inspired her friend to write the book “My Mommy Has Breast Cancer.”
“I want to share my story if can help save just one person.” - Karen Harris, mother of Katie and Grace, ages twelve and seven, wife to Bill, teacher’s aide, survivor. This is her story. “In December of 2008, when I did my monthly breast self-exam, I found a lump in my breast. I knew what it was; yet I didn’t do anything about it for four months until I went for my annual OBGYN check-up in April. I had to build myself up for it; I had to put on my armor. Two weeks after the doctor examined me I had a mammogram, the squishy kind, and an ultra-sound. Even so, they didn’t see it all; the lump was five centimeters and it was already stage 3.5 cancer. Two weeks later I went to an oncologist surgeon for a needle biopsy. Three days later I was scheduled for surgery for a partial mastectomy. The results of the partial mastectomy didn’t show margins, which means they didn’t get all the cancer, and it was in the lymph nodes. Since the next step was to have complete removal of my breast, I opted to have a full double mastectomy because the incidence of cancer occurring in the second breast is high, and I didn’t want to have to go through another surgery down the road. I don’t believe in anything fake, therefore I didn’t want breast implants, so I chose the option of breast reconstruction. This means
that when they do the breast removal, they make new bosoms out of your belly fat. I went to the hospital at midnight and was placed in a 102 degree temperature room; the heat makes your blood vessels rise to the surface so they can get good blood transfer to the skin and tissue when they do the surgery. At 6 a.m. the surgeon came into my room and began to draw all over my chest and stomach with a fat Sharpie pen to indicate where he was going to cut. He mapped my body out for his day. The surgery took ten hours. Now I have Barbie boobs,’ although they are ‘real,’ they have no nerves and therefore no feeling.” Karen’s story of the surgery, resulting infections, and recovery is scary. It is a miracle that she is here with us today. Her positive attitude, good will, and innate sense of humor are a testimony to strength and determination. “I had lots of opportunities to pity myself; my husband thought I was going to die. I have two young daughters who were scared, I could see it in their eyes. When I was in the hospital, I was afraid I would never see my children again. When I came home from the hospital, I realized how bumpy the roads are, it hurt just to ride in the car - the County needs to do something about the roads! When I got home my family parked me a recliner they had gotten for me, recliners are good! Gina Wright’s book can be purchased online at http://www.authorhouse.com or http://www.amazon.com
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Karen Harris (standing) and Gina Wright (sitting) enjoying a laugh as Karen!s daughters Katie and Grace play in the background.
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 25
During my recovery my family did what they needed to do, they never complained or made me feel bad about all the demands my illness placed upon them. I found one thing each day to be thankful for. We had always been a tight family; this made us tighter.” “The complications I had delayed my chemotherapy treatments. On day fifteen of my chemo, the nurse said to me, ‘This is day fifteen.’ I asked her what that meant. She said, ‘Now your hair is going to start to fall out.’ And that night, when I was running my hand through my hair, clumps of it came out in my hand. I didn’t want to wear a wig because wigs are fake, so I bought bandanas, lots of colorful bandanas. Eventually all my hair fell out; the good news was that I didn’t have to shave anymore. Now my hair is coming back and it’s wavy. I always wanted wavy hair!” While Karen was battling her illness, her best friend since childhood, Gina Wright wrote the book, My Mommy Has Breast Cancer, for Karen’s daughters. “This was the way Gina coped with my illness. It took me a long time to read the book. I knew what could happen to me, I did my research. I didn’t stop to think ‘I have breast cancer,’ I just got from day to day. My girls loved the book. For me, the best thing Gina did was to sit with me in the hospital; she comes in like a pink hurricane and her very presence is comforting, like your best warm, fuzzy blanket. Gina and I have been through so much together, this has been just one more adventure in our story.” In addition to Gina’s unflagging support, friends, family, neighbors and community also reached out to the Harris family. “Gina’s mom sent me all kinds of books and cards, she’s my second mother!” Last November the staff at Coosaw Elementary School, where Karen is a teacher’s aide, organized a fundraiser for the Harris family. Three teachers volunteered to let students cut their hair for a donation. Karen’s daughter, Gracie, said: “On that Friday, I was going to shave my head, too, but I got scared, so I cut my bangs off.” Karen’s response, “I was touched that she said she
26 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
would shave her head for me.” There were many moments where I would have thrown in the towel. I cried only to my husband, he has always been my best friend. When I went to my chemo treatments, which lasted five hours apiece, I sat in a comfy chair, took a book or portable DVD player, snacks, and made the best of it.” Through it all, Karen’s humor prevailed. “My daughter Katie was in the sixth grade, which is a difficult year under the best of circumstances. I did my best to embarrass her, as her mother - that’s my job. I got to ride around the grocery store in the motorized buggies. At one particular store, the buggies weren’t always fully charged and I kept running out of gas in the meat department. And I realized I am fortunate to not have a gas stove. I could lean over a gas flame and burn my bosoms because they don’t have any feeling in them; I’m glad I have a ceramic cook top!” Karen’s advice: “Do self breast exams! Some women are afraid to touch themselves. God gave them to you; don’t be afraid of them. If you find something, don’t be afraid to call your doctor right away. The available information about breast cancer is accurate and helpful. But there are things they don’t tell you; such as body fat produces estrogen. I had an estrogen-based cancer. In hindsight perhaps I would have made the effort to lose weight. After childbirth, watch your weight; don’t let it creep up on you because your body can turn around and do strange things to you. Take care of yourself – eat lots of veggies and protein. You’re no good to anyone else if you don’t take care of yourself.” Karen’s optimistic attitude and humor persist, she laughingly says: “I don’t drink Tequila anymore; cancer is nothing compared to what Tequila will do to me! Seriously though, I like the breast cancer slogan: Fight Like A Girl. Girls Are Scrappers. That inspired Gina’s Story: When Gina Wright learned that Karen Harris had breast cancer, Gina’s first concern was for Karen’s daughters. “What could I do to help? My immediate thought was for the girls; how
do they know what to expect? They’re just children, they don’t know how to deal with it. How do they know what’s coming?â€? So Gina wrote My Mommy Has Breast Cancer. “I’ve known Karen my entire life. I can’t imagine not knowing her!â€? The girls grew up in Wytheville, VA with a third friend, Melissa Martin. The three of them wound up in Beaufort together when Melissa was living here with her fiancĂŠ, John Weber. When Gina graduated from college, Melissa called her and asked her to come to live with her in Beaufort because John, who was in the Marine Corps, was about to deploy for Desert Storm. “She asked me to come live with her ‘for free.’ When a college grad hears ‘free,’ she doesn’t have to think twice about it!â€? Karen was living in Charleston at the time but didn’t have a job so she also came to Beaufort and we all lived together in Melissa and John’s house while he was deployed.â€? When John came home, Melissa and John got married, and Karen and Gina went to live on Hilton Head Island for two years. “Then we each met a boy,â€? and Karen moved to Savannah, Gina moved to North Carolina, and eventually they both found their way back to Beaufort. “Karen is an inspiration. She is strong, determined, and very religious. When she was diagnosed with cancer, she never complained or asked ‘Why me?’ she just did what needed to be done. I wrote the book as a surprise for her. When she saw it, she had tears in her eyes; she had no clue.â€? Gina is expressive, vibrant and out-going. Her home is decorated with an artistic use of bright colors and patterns, evocative of her training and degree in interior design. Her favorite color is pink; “I love pink and sparkles. Every time I go out my friends comment that there I am again, dressed in pink and sparkles; I’ve tried to change it, but it’s no use.â€? The book cover is bright pink – “I wanted a pink cover, and not a sissy pink. I’m not a straight line kind of girl.â€? The book’s pages are also pink. The story is told through the voice of a little girl, Katie Grace. Although Karen has two daughters, Katie and Grace, Gina wanted to make the story more generic. The doctors in the story are named after the schools Gina and Karen attended together: Dr. Spiller was named after their elementary school, Dr. Scott represented their middle school, and Dr. George for their high school. Miss Bess, who takes the mommy shopping for wigs, and is illustrated with a red bee-hive hairdo, is a tribute to Karen’s grandmother. Never having written a book before, Gina faced several challenges in the process of self-publishing a book. “You have to choose a package. It’s like traveling – do you want to add air, a hotel, a car? It was very frustrating, because once you chose the package, there were still a lot of extras. Who knew there were so many kinds of fonts? It finally got to the point where my photograph for the back cover wasn’t the right resolution for the size I wanted and I just told them to choose the size based on the resolution of the photo I had.â€? The illustrations were a high point for Gina. She saw some greeting cards in a local store and loved the drawings. “I emailed the website on the back of the cards and I met Janine Yordy who lives part time at Fripp Island. She created just what I wanted. The drawings were done in chalk and I loved them! She has two children so she could identify what I wanted.â€? Gina’s hope for the book is that it will be distributed, and given to breast cancer patient’s children, by oncologists. “It’s a way for children to know what to expect.â€? Helping Karen tell her story, through the eyes of her children, is one of the finest and most heart-felt tributes Gina could have made to love and friendship.
Stokes Honda Celebrates 29 Years The landscape of Beaufort has changed a lot over the last 29 years. However, one thing has remained the same. The personal touch that Stokes Honda gives each one of its customers. Stokes Honda was founded 29 years ago by Jerry Stokes. The first dealership was built on Hwy 170 and now houses a used car dealership also owned by Stokes. The current dealership also on Hwy 170 was built on site of the old Broad River Seafood and Earl’s Mobile Homes. The next chapter of Stokes Honda will begin soon as they prepare to build a new dealership at the same location. A dealership that will better serve its customers in sales and service. Stokes Honda is proud to be a sponsor of many local charities, churches, organizations and schools. They believe in being a good neighbor to the community. At Stokes Honda you can buy a great new &9 ) 0/%" "$$03% 0/%" Honda or a ) nice pre-owned car all from the same %08/ $ 30445063 8% -9 " $$03% the same people. The dealership lot and 1&3 .0 1&3 .0 has been t "VUP t "VUP under for 18 years, and t %3 the same management t %3 most of the salespeople have been there for five years or more. The award-winning service department is open 6 days"/% a week for all your parts and 563/ 3*()5 */50 450,&4 )0/%" service needs. 09 MERCURY 06 FORD ESCAPE 08 HONDA 06 HONDA 06 FORD F-150 07DODGE NITRO MARINER HYBRID ACCORD SUPERCREW So,LX if you are looking for RIDGELINE a great family atmosphere to purchase your next car or truck look no further Stokes Honda14,455 on Hwy 17,997 170 in Beau9,590 14,987 than 13,769 16,948 06 KAWASAKI fort. Call 843-521-2120 the 06 FORD F-150 08 DODGE or on 09 FORD F-150 web at www. 09 CHRYSLER 300 NINJA 2X GR DURANGO SLT FX4 4X4 stokeshondabeaufort.com
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BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 29
Saturday|October 23rd
CELEBRATE CELEBRATE THE THE SEASON SEASON AT AT The The Second Second Annual Annual
FREE FREE ADMISSION! ADMISSION! PREMIERE PREMIERE EVENT SPONSOR EVENT SPONSOR
Live Live Music Music & & Food Food Noon Noon to to 6pm! 6pm!
For updates and For updates and directions please visit directions please visit HabershamHarvestFestival.com HabershamHarvestFestival.com
Celebrate the bounty of the harvest, fresh produce and prepared foods of local and regional farmers. Celebrate the bounty of the harvest, fresh produce and prepared foods of local and regional farmers. Bring the kids along to laugh, sing and play with a variety of children’s entertainers. Enjoy hayrides, arts Bring the kids along to laugh, sing and play with a variety of children’s entertainers. Enjoy hayrides, arts and crafts, storytelling and sporting events along with live music, dancing, great food and fun all day! and crafts, storytelling and sporting events along with live music, dancing, great food and fun all day!
Habersham Marketplace to Host Second Annual Habersham Harvest Festival The Habersham Marketplace will host the second annual Habersham Harvest Festival on Saturday, October 23, beginning at 12 p.m. The festival is a one-day regionally expanded farmer’s market and a celebration of food, fun, art, music and entertainment. There is no cost to enter and the majority of activities are offered free of charge. “We are building off the success of last year’s inaugural event and the Marketplace merchants, along with the hand-picked local and regional vendors, will provide a distinctive environment for families to enjoy,” said Leslie Pickel, Chair of Habersham Merchants Council. Whimsical, imaginative décor, festive food and drink by Bistro Patois, Maggie’s Pub and Piace Pizza, a crafts fair, storytelling, hayrides, sports, children’s activities and creative characters are sure to enlighten and entertain. For more information and to stay up-to-date with Habersham Harvest Festival’s latest, visit www.habershamharvestfestival.com. Sponsors of the Habersham Harvest Festival are BB&T, Beaufort.com, Beaufort Lifestyle, 104.9 FM, The Digitel, Hargray Communications, The Island News, The Lowcountry Weekly, Murr’s Printing The Habersham Marketplace is the heart and soul
of the “Best Neighborhood Design in America” award winning town of Habersham located just minutes from Downtown Beaufort. The village boasts a collection of carefully selected iconic restaurants, retail shops, services and nightlife all created and operated by the “best of the best” local owners. The Marketplace is quickly becoming “The Lowcountry’s New Destination” with weekly activities, seasonal festivals, farmers markets, and fun filled streets set in a safe walkable village complete with vibrant active patios and plazas.
ENTERTAINMENT Music & Bands
Gettin’ Down with the • Story by MARY ELLEN THOMPSON • Photography by PAUL NURNBERG • Graphics by SOPHIE KITTREDGE
T
he Beaufort River sits quietly in the background; reflections of boats mingle with clouds as the sky-blue-pink hues slowly fade and melt into soft grey as the evening slides into night. On the deck of The Back Porch Grill at The Port Royal Landing Marina, guests are oblivious to the beauty unfolding behind them; all eyes and ears are focused on The Marshland Party Band. The first chords of a song race through the floor. The boys in the band have it just right, the atmosphere is charged with music ions. Romance swirls around those on the dance floor. As George Bernard Shaw said: “Dancing. The horizontal expression of a vertical desire.” And, Snoopy: “To live is to dance, to dance is to live.” These are men who know, and love, their music: Jimmy Sauls, Mills Rooks, Buck Plunkett and David Anderson. And it all started here, at The Back Porch…..
The Heart of the Band: Born in Charleston, raised in Beaufort, Jimmy Sauls is a true native of this area. He and two friends started a band in elementary school and played all through high school. “We used to play at the Canteen, which was over on Boundary Street. I’ve played music all my life.” He put together The Carolina Band, which stayed together for fifteen years. When that band broke up in 1998, Jimmy didn’t play again until the inception of The Marshland Party Band. “My wife, Janet, had tried to get me to play drums again. She said to me, ‘You love it. You miss it.’ She bought me a set of electric drums; she was right!”
32 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
Having decided against a career in music, Jimmy pursued entomology, which is the scientific study of insects. In the 1970’s, Jimmy says, “I had a friend in the pest control business and I got involved through him.” He studied entomology at Clemson, Perdue, and USC. Jimmy worked for a national firm for several years, then in civil service on Parris Island, and eventually started his own business twenty-five years ago. “There are so many fling-flings in this business. They don’t realize the damage they can do to people, pets, etc.” Jimmy is affable, courteous, outgoing, and athletic. He used to play softball and baseball until a shoulder injury prevented him from doing so; now he is a golfer. “I play a lot, I love to play golf. I am also a big fan of the SC Gamecocks football and baseball teams.” His sheer enjoyment of life is one of Jimmy’s most endearing qualities. “I try to make the best of every day because tomorrow may not be here. I enjoy life to the fullest. Don’t tell me I can’t do something, because I’m hard headed; I’m going to do it anyway. That’s what keeps me going, life is too short!” Of the band, Jimmy says, “We all just enjoy it. We’re all doing something we love to do. We get along really well; we practice a lot; they’re just fun to be around!”
The Leader of the Band: Mills Rooks hails from Albany, GA. His mother’s family lived on Duke Street a few blocks from downtown Beaufort; he visited here often as a child. Eight years ago he made Beaufort his home. A former securities trader for Merrill Lynch, Mills now trades independently
and does securities consulting work. At age fourteen, he first started playing the guitar and played with bands in Albany – the first was Seros and the last was Relapse. He is the lead singer for The Marshland Party Band as well their keyboard and guitar player. “It’s a fun way to pick up chicks, that’s why you do it, otherwise it wouldn’t be worth hauling around all the equipment. I’m just kidding.” But is he just kidding? Mills is a tall, distinguished, Southern gentleman. His stoic manner belies his fun loving side. “I’m always jousting at windmills and chasing rainbows.” Currently he is developing a behavioral health center in Albany, GA, for children and adolescents with drug, alcohol, and eating disorders. His non-musical passion is fishing.
The Soul of the Band: Buck Plunkett came to Beaufort by way of an F-18 fighter jet. Originally he’s from Porum, Oklahoma where he was “raised from hearty frontier stock,” Buck joined the Marines because he “wanted to serve in the military and see the world.” His love of flying began when his uncle took him up in an airplane when he was in the sixth grade. “I consider myself lucky, I went around the world. I liked meeting the people and finding out their different approaches to the same problems everyone has. I got to see the world from 30,000 feet.” His induction into the MPB was when he mentioned to Mills that he was starting to play the guitar and Mills said, “Let’s get together and play!” “Andrew and Georgianne Caldwell were having a party and asked us to play for them. We had to borrow a
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 33
ENTERTAINMENT Music & Bands bass player before we met David.” Retired from the Marines, Buck now is an F-18 instructor at the Marine Corps Air Station where he trains pilots in systems and instrument procedures in a simulator. “I really love what I do, I enjoy interacting with the Marines.” As a plane flies overhead, Buck looks up and says: “That’s a target.” A target? “When you’ve flown a fighter jet, every plane is either a fighter or a target!” In his free time, Buck enjoys cooking – ribs are his specialty. “I have two goals: to play guitar and make smoked ribs. When the band got together and was looking for a place to practice, I said ‘Come to my house and I’ll cook you ribs.’ It all started around a rack of ribs and they’ve been practicing at my house ever since.” Articulate, with an unassuming sense of awareness and quiet romanticism, Buck’s self-description is: “I’m the idea man!”
The Backbone of the Band: David Anderson, and his wife Tanya moved to the Lowcountry two years ago. One impetus was that they have family in Hilton Head and Bluffton. “It’s hard to say why I chose to come down here. I had a desire to try out coastal living. I liked the idea of being on the water, and David wanted a change of scenery and lifestyle.” The Andersons had been living in Asheville, NC, where David grew up on a farm. “When I was a child, we had horses, goats, chickens, peacocks and turkeys. Our house had a big wrap around porch where the birds often wandered. It was always fun to see guests’ reactions when they sat on the porch and heard a peacock cackling away behind them!” David started playing guitar at age fourteen. He progressed to the twelve string acoustic and eventually the bass, “There were always plenty of guitar players, but no one wanted to play bass.”
34 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
Professionally, David is a registered nurse currently working at Beaufort Memorial hospital in adult medicine. He also does equity research and stock trading part time, but “not as much lately due to the economy.” In his free time he enjoys boating and fishing. He says he caught a blue crab recently when “it jumped into the tube with me while being pulled behind the boat! “What he likes about The Marshland Party Band is, “The song selection, I’m really into classic rock. These guys know how to play some great songs!”
Conversation at the Back Porch Grill: Mills (M): It started here at The Back Porch where Jimmy and I first met. Back in ’02 we sang karaoke. In ’03 or ’04 we said we should start a band. In ’09 something finally happened – we met Buck at The Back Porch and he played guitar. The three of us got together and put an ad in the paper for a bass player. David (D): I seldom read the classifieds, but this one time I opened it up and saw an ad for a bass player. I used to play bass, but hadn’t for awhile. For the first two weeks I had to wear tape on my fingers until they got back into shape.
it forced me to learn a little lead. Necessity is the mother of invention, I guess. Then they recruited me to volunteer my house for band practice. M: We drank frosty adult Mills beverages and played songs using the only three chords we knew. J: We wanted to be a party band, we only wanted to play at parties. M: Our friend, Jackie Howison, named the band The Marshland Party Band. I was thinking The Incontinentals… J: We met David at a bar in Cherry Point. What was the name of that bar? M: Of all the bars I’ve ever been in, that was one of them. D: They offered us $40 an hour to play. I was thinking $40/hour for each of us wasn’t bad but they meant $40 total.
Buck (B): That’s how the initial groundwork began, right here inside The Back Porch Grill.
M: Four guys having a great time, that’s what a band is all about.
M: Jimmy and I played in bands years ago. We would have a few drinks and talk about music.
J: It keeps it interesting with four of us, never a dull moment.
D: Jimmy and Mills were two professional musicians.
D: I started playing bands at an early age. I wanted to be a musician by profession. But it either takes over your life over with touring, etc., or you play in local bars. I decided to get college under my belt and play music on the side. It’s more fun to be casual with it.
M: I humiliated Jimmy to the point where he had to play again. Jimmy (J): I played in my first band when I was in the sixth grade; I played for my teenage friends. B: Bill Lubeke (Groovetones Band) lit the fire in me to start playing guitar. I saw him play at The Back Porch in ’05 – ’06, and was inspired. I was just a fledgling guitar player, when we got together, I assumed Mills would play lead guitar, bad assumption. It really worked out for the best because
J: We get paid to be roadies, not musicians. M: That’s right, we get paid to move equipment.
Continued on Page 37
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36 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
D: The one good band I was in…
J: I started playing the pots at age 4; my dad bought me a drum when I was 5 and I started taking lessons at 5 1/2.
M: It wasn’t this one. D: In the previous band I played for, the guitarist refused to play gigs because he didn’t want to carry his amp around. M: It’s a hobby, all fun. If it gets to be work, I’m done.
B: Every teenager wants to play guitar and get chicks. My interest was rekindled that night I heard Bill Luebke play. Now I have a collection of guitars. J: We were practicing at Buck’s house one night and I went to get something out of a closet and found a guitar in the closet, he has guitars in all his closets. Beaufort Lifestyle: Would that be a closet guitar collection?
J: We’re not much on work. D: If you only make so much money, you drink it all in Miller Lite. I wanted to name the band “Free Beer.” Lots of people would stop by if that was on the marquee. Our goal is to write a song that represents Beaufort, represents us.
B: No, it would be a collection of guitars in the closets.
J: Beer, the more they drink the better we sound; the more we drink the better we think we sound.
M: A guitar player looks better, and sounds better, with a good guitar, but they can play anything.
M: We don’t take ourselves seriously. At our age no one takes us seriously anyway.
D: It takes years for a guitar to achieve full functionality…
J: It all began here, at The Back Porch…
B: They have to cure and mellow…
B: Playing at our first party was like coming out of the nest; it was phenomenal.
D: The pressure of the strings pulls on the wood, but it takes four or five years before it starts to settle… B: … to have a memory of where it wants to be. I’m also the second bones player in an Irish band. A friend showed me how to play, it took me six months of practice but I got it. D: I used to have a talking drum. It told me to stop playing the drums!
Jimmy
M: You can talk about starting a band, but someone has to make the first move. Typically someone will buy a sound system. D: They tell you that if you start playing guitar at age 14, you will be awesome by 20.
B: It’s a lot of work and logistics; everything is heavy. D: Lugging around equipment is hard work, but the smiling fans make it worth the effort. J: Mills and I have both played in bands for over 30 years. M: You can have a really good gig and have a really good time. B: David’s our music guru.
M: I’m writing a Christmas song…
J: Janet (Jimmy’s wife) does our sound and video; she helps with everything. She knows sound, she’s been our inspiration – she’s been to every gig. She’s the one who pushed me to get back into it.
D: We’re looking at hiring a flute player, the only catch is that they have to carry all of our equipment.
D: Buck, what is your favorite guitar? B: My Les Paul: Lester. My dad sent me a little red Fender I had as a teenager. David and I talk guitar all the time, we love guitars.
B: Dave is the songwriter.
wouldn’t have to carry equipment.
M: These guys are all good musicians. I’d like to get up and jump around but I have to stay at my station as a keyboard player. I’d rather be out front jumping and jiving with people having fun. B: The more people you have to maneuver, the more difficult it is. Mills plays the keyboard, guitar, and is the lead and backup singer.
M: We don’t want to be a three chord band. J : A n o t h e r musician told us, “You don’t hear music like yours except on the radio.” M: We try to make our music selection not run of the mill. We Buck had to throw some songs out. As you go through time you can see what people like and then rotate the songs. B: I usually tell people that we play songs from the 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and 60’s. Since David is in his 30’s, I’m in my 40’s, Jimmy is in his 50’s, and Mills is….. What, 22? J: Mills is the crowd person – he can look at them and know what to play. B: One thing that amazes me, and a lot amazes me, but I mean musically, is that there is a great variety of talented musicians in Beaufort. J: It’s all a matter of being in the right place at the right time. We’ve had the very best time, it’s so much fun. And the band played on…..
J: I should have been a flute player, then I
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 37
BEAUFORT Haunts
GAUCHE, A LIGHT & crypts Story by CINDY REID Photo Illustration by TODD WOOD
A
murmur in the breeze…a phantom light in the distance….a presence felt but not seen … It shouldn’t come as any surprise that Beaufort and the Sea Islands have a disproportionate share of local ghost stories and haunts. After all, the area has been host to Native American tribes, Spanish settlers, French settlers, pirates, antebellum plantations, the Civil War, Reconstruction, and any manner of strange and spooky history. The landscape alone lends itself to supernatural thoughts; simply being around a marsh at sunset provides not only a beautiful view but can induce a good fright if the moon and your imagination are in alignment. Spanish moss shifts gently in the moonlight and the hair on the back of your neck stands straight up. Local bookstores are rife with great ghost tale books and Beaufort is often featured as having an abundance of haunted residences and locations. The Beaufort County Library even has a web page devoted to local ghost tales, from the grisly Blackbeard story, the “Ghostly Lovers of Fripp Island Beach” to the homespun “Roast Ghost” tale. It includes the library staff’s own experiences with a “library gremlin” at the Craven Street location- which was built within the foundation of the old library and may have inherited an eternal customer!
The Castle Ghost The Joseph Johnson House, also known as “The Castle,” is located on Craven Street in the area between Carteret Street and the Beaufort River
38 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
The Castle near downtown Beaufort is said to be the home of Gauche!s spirit.
known as The Point in the city of Beaufort. Home to some of the oldest and most attractive homes in the South, The Point is rich in history and atmosphere. Within this community The Castle is a standout, occupying a full city block and is said to be one of the most photographed houses in the country. It was also used in the movie Forces of Nature. The Castle was built in 1859 for Dr. Joseph Johnson. Reportedly the bricks used in the house were made on Dr. Johnson’s Lady’s Island Plantation, near Brickyard Point. The house was confiscated by the Union Army and was used as a hospital during the Civil War, with the laundry house in the back utilized as a morgue, and it’s said the grounds may have been used as a graveyard. After the war, Dr. Johnson returned, and according to legend, dug up the valuables he had buried under the outhouse, and was able to pay the back taxes and reclaim his property. The Johnson family descendents lived in the house until the early 1980’s. As ripe as this history is for ghostly tales, The Castle’s resident poltergeist hails from a far earlier era. The ghost is said to be a dwarf named Gauche, by
profession a court jester, who arrived in 1562 with Jean Ribaut to settle what is now Parris Island. Local lore is that after meeting a violent end at the end of a pike in a brawl, and wandering around town for the next three hundred years or so, Gauche’s spirit was attracted to the medieval looking Castle, reminiscent of his French roots, and he settled in to haunt the house. Previous occupants have said that Gauche is partial to opening doors and cupboards and moving furniture, usually only letting himself be seen by children. His movements are said to be accompanied by the tinkling sounds of bells, remnants of his court jester attire. From the chapter “The Dwarf Spirit” in Terrance Zepke’s book The Best Ghost Tales of South Carolina, “The most disturbing event has to be the handprints. Some guests say they have witnessed a fog rising out of the creek next to the house. Next a cold breeze passed over the house, as the fog morphed into a human shape, disappearing soon thereafter. But not before leaving red handprints on the windows of the Castle!” The ghostly jester’s legend has
Continued on Page 48
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Herit age
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AT:
Story by BRUCE DONEFF
PENN CENTER
Penn Center: For Yesterday, Today and…Tomorrow Amidst historical treasures, a venerable institution struggles to stay relevant and grow. For many of us living in the Low Country, the inspiring story of Penn Center is fairly well known: two women decamped from Pennsylvania and Rhode Island, came to the plantations of St. Helena Island in 1861, and helped set up one of the country’s first schools for freed slaves. If this is news to you, please plan a field trip soon to Penn’s 50-acre campus and National Historical Landmark District. You’re in for a treat. This article will not focus on Penn Center’s history, though it’s hard to stray too far. Rather, this story is about Penn Center today, its role in the community, and hopes for the future. We start with the organization’s mission: “To promote and preserve the history and culture of the Sea Islands. We serve as a local, national, and international resource center, and act as a catalyst for the development of programs for self-sufficiency.” Penn Center serves as an essential repository of history, but today staff work to actively promote and share those historical resources and to offer programs that affect the lives of Sea Island residents and others from far and near.
Continued on Next Page ROSALYN BROWN, PENN CENTER’S DIRECTOR OF HISTORY AND CULTURE -Photo by TODD WOOD
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 43
Penn Center Programming With twelve full-time staff, hourly labor as needed, and a host of dedicated volunteers, Penn Center offers an extensive array of programs and resources, and each year it serves more than 35,000 people. The History and Culture Program collects, documents, preserves and disseminates information related to the cultural heritage of the Sea Island African American culture; develops and implements public programs such as the Annual Penn Center Heritage Days Celebration; operates the York W. Bailey Museum and Gift Shop; and maintains the Laura M. Towne Archives and Library, which includes an extensive archival collection at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Outside the realm of museums and archives, many would be surprised to learn that Penn is active in community programs, such as its Program for Academic and Cultural Enrichment (PACE), which maintains the historical emphasis on education and fosters youth development programs for Sea Island children up to 17 years old. For the past twenty years, Penn Center has invested in its community by concentrating on “at risk” families with pre-school children and focused on education, health, and social development for the entire family. Land is life in the Sea Islands, so Penn created the Land Use and Environmental Education Program to assist native Sea Islanders in preserving and maintaining their land and cultural practices in the midst of environmental changes. Sustained African-American land ownership on St. Helena Island can be directly attributed to the Penn Center, which, along with Country officials, established the heirs property tax exemption to prevent loss of black land ownership and displacement of
44 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
families. If all this wasn’t enough, Penn Center also runs a Conference Center, offering retreat-style lodging facilities and meeting rooms. Probably the second most popular story about the institution is how Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference enjoyed the charms and sense of peace at Penn Center in the early 1960s. (Your author enjoyed the same charms while training at Penn in 1982 for a Peace Corps assignment in West Africa.)
A St. Helena Story Ms. Rosalyn Browne, Penn Center’s Director of History and Culture, offered to be my guide in understanding Penn’s role in the community today and what the future may hold for this organization on the cusp of its 150th anniversary. Rosalyn’s story is one you’ll hear many times on St. Helena: she left after high school, gained both undergraduate and graduate degrees in Boston, and worked there as an educator for more than 27 years. When her parent’s health began to fail, it was time to return home. Both her parents were graduates of Penn and both worked there, “My mother started the first daycare program on the island; Dad was trained as a carpenter and worked
as the maintenance supervisor. I feel my father’s presence is always here.” Her father, Leroy Browne, also made history as the first African-American to be elected to public office in South Carolina since Reconstruction. As we spoke, she pointed to his picture in a mural in the museum, holding the bull rush baskets his father wove when he taught basket-making at Penn School in the early 1920s.
An Organic Institution “Penn Center is an organic institution, over time it has evolved and grown into a lot of different things. Its mission after the Penn School closed (in 1948) was embedded in the community services it created. Penn developed the island’s first farmer’s co-op, the first daycare program, the first health clinic, the first raciallyintegrated conference facilities, and we also assisted people in registering to vote. Penn helped landowners retain their land and pay their taxes—we focused totally on the needs of the community.” Over the last few decades, Penn Center’s history of self-reliance has shifted to collaboration with local and national organizations. The Center has engaged in the first-ever municipal and private partnership with Beaufort County to build a state-of-the-art public library on property donated by Penn. Penn Center is also poised to become a partner in the newly-legislated national Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor. In addition to the many programs discussed here, Rosalyn is most proud of a relatively new one, the Gullah Studies Institute. Each summer, teachers from all over the country come to St. Helena Island
to gain tools and historical information that they can take back to use in their classrooms. “You know, there’s very little balanced information about our history—everybody hits that chapter in the history books and puts up a display on the bulletin board during Black History Month…we’re showing these teachers that there is more to African-American history than one month. Our contributions are also an important part of American history.” Beyond training teachers and registering voters and running a museum, Penn Center is also about celebration. There’s no more visible and joyful expression of what Penn Center means to the community than the annual Heritage Days Celebration.
A Celebration of Heritage Days In 1981, a small group of Penn School alumni suggested to then-Executive Director Emory Campbell (now Penn’s “Gullah Ambassador”) that they revive a long-standing community tradition. Rosalyn Browne explained, “It used to be that the farmers would bring all their best crops to Penn Center on a certain day. The women would bring quilts and canned goods and all would be set up on the grounds to mark the end of the harvest season.” Campbell agreed, and the “Heritage Days” Celebration was born. “We started with a one-day festival and it has expanded to three days. Heritage Days is a homecoming for those who have moved away, but still have family ties.” Rosalyn herself returned many a time to attend the festival. “We also look at it as a time for those from other islands to gather together here—performers, those selling their wares, as well the many people visiting the festival. It’s also a wonderful time when those who have never been to the Penn Center can take part in the foodways and folkways of the people who have lived here for generations.” Along with musical performances, local people present the art of weaving baskets, building the bateaux, and then there’s the 86-year old (cast) net maker. “We hope this provides an introduction of these things to our next generation, so they’ll see the value of it and want to embrace it. We set aside one day of the festival to bring children to the campus for education and hands-on learning,” said Ms. Browne.
Penn Center Looks to the Future Due to state budget cuts, Penn Center’s
annual operating budget has been reduced to $1.4 million, and each year they must cobble together donations, grants, museum sales, and other revenue streams to underwrite the budget and keep this venerable institution running and perhaps even growing. The Center is also supported by financial donations from “Friends of Penn” and by Island residents who have ties to the original school and its legacy. In 2011, Penn will launch an annual giving campaign to complement their most successful fundraising initiative—the 1862 Circle Gala Awards Banquet. Ms. Browne reflected on Penn Center’s future as it approaches 150 years as a school, a repository of history, and a catalyst for self-sufficiency. “We certainly can’t overlook that our longevity is one of our most important accomplishments— but it’s not guaranteed. We’ve also preserved one of the most important historical collections of African-American history and opened it to the world. UNC at Chapel Hills tells us the Penn Center archive is one of their most popular collections for scholars and researchers; that alone gives us national prominence.” All impressive accomplishments, but will the spirit of Penn Center imbue the next generation? “We have to focus on the generation of children we have in front of us right now. I would tell you that they are all at risk with the many distractions today competing with educating our children. When we can keep them connected and excited about coming here and learning about their place in history, I think there’s hope that they’ll say, ‘Hey, we need to hold on to this place. This is our past, but it is also our future.’” Can Penn Center reinforce its foundation and create the conditions for growth and greater success? Ms. Browne has an invitation, “I always ask people how we can better communicate about what we have here. Penn Center doesn’t belong to this tiny island, it is a national institution. We’d like to see more and varied groups come here and take full advantage of all we have to offer. We also invite them to come and work with us. We need skilled volunteers like teachers, technology experts, grant writers, financial planners, and foundation donors. We can become what we dream about with wider participation from people who want to work with an institution like ours.” Want to learn more, volunteer, or contribute HYPERLINK “http://www.penncenter.com/” http:// www.penncenter.com/
PENN CENTER, INC. 28TH HERITAGE DAYS CELEBRATION November 11-13, 2010 Thursday, November 11, 2010 Opening Ceremony Penn School Founders Memorial Service, 3:00– 4:00 p.m. Brick Baptist Church Gallery Talk & Reception 2010 Featured Artist Tyrone Geter York W. Bailey Museum, 5:30-7 p.m. “The Road of Remembrance” Youth Play 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. Adults $5/ Students $3 Old Fashion Prayer Service 7:30 p.m. – 9 p.m. Area Churches Friday, November 12, 2010 Symposium: “African-American Genealogy” 10 a.m.- 12 p.m. Adults $25/Students $15 St. Helena Elementary School Auditorium Youth Day Festival Admission: $5 (All) Flags of the Gullah People Beaufort County School Children 9:30 a.m. Educational Exhibit “Coretta Scott King Children’s Book Fair” Sponsored by National Black Arts Festival & ALA Meet authors, illustrators; free books Center Stage Entertainment 10 a.m.—3:00 p.m. Storytellers, African Drummers, School Groups Gullah Roots Village & De Rice Shak Cultural demonstrations and hands-on activities Fish Fry, Oyster Roast, Crab Crack & Blues, 7 p.m.– Midnight $6—$20 Magic Midway Kiddie Carnival All Day Rides (buy tickets at gate) Saturday, November 13, 2010 28th Annual Heritage Days Parade 9 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Sea Island Parkway FESTIVAL ADMISSION: $5-Adults; Youth-Free (up to 16 years old) Old Fashion Craft Fair 9 a.m.– 5 p.m. Crafts, exhibits, food, and merchandise vendors Center Stage Entertainment 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Gullah Storytellers, Singers, Aunt Pearlie Sue, African Drummers & Dancers, Gospel Singers
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 45
Welcome To Your Tour Of Summit Place of Beaufort I’m so glad you stopped in today. Please come into my office where we can talk. I’d like to get to know you and learn more about your loved one’s needs. May I get you a coffee or sweet tea? Our lovely community is all on one floor and has 82 beds. This is our Assisted Living side and our other side is our Seasons Memory Care secured unit. As you can see as we start our tour, our lobby and dining room look like a resort setting. Here on the left is our daily menu with a choice of meals all served restaurant style. Each table has lovely flowers and is set up with fluted napkins in goblets. We are fortunate to have a real Chef in our kitchen – the food is so good! We just passed our big Activities Room where our Activities Director and 3 assistants provide exciting fun, music therapy, arts and crafts, games, church services, sports, flower arranging, daily exercises; and Happy Hour. Our bus trips include movies and lunches out plus fun trips to the beach and festivals in town. An Historic Carriage Tour is planned this month. (the bus also provides transportation to doctor’s appointments in the AM). Our Season’s residents also have planned daily activities and several weekly bus outings. (ice cream trips are their favorite) Going down our hall we see the big Live Oak trees outside the large windows. They surround our building which once housed the Trask family plantation that burned down. Let’s walk out to our gazebo and deck overlooking Battery Creek. We are the only Assisted Living Community on the water in Beaufort. Our residents and families enjoy relaxing in the shade and looking at the water from this deck. Even at low tide, the birds are fun to watch. Our monthly Newsletter always has a family night invitation for a party get-together. Now let’s go back in to see some rooms. Most of our rooms are studios with full baths and kitchenettes. We do have one and two bedroom apartments and they are always full with a waitlist. However, most of our residents are very active and do not stay in their rooms all day.
There is so much to do, friends to be made, dinner and lunch dates, and many activities and entertainers who come in to visit. Many of our Assisted Living residents have their own cars. I’m happy I could show you our available rooms and also show you how lovely many families have decorated theirs. Since you must provide your own furniture (except for a short respite stay), it helps the move-in adjustment when they have their own things around them. This is our new Library Lounge with sunny windows and a water view. The TV room is over by the Caregiver’s Station. At the end of the hall is the door to the resident’s garden. Those who have a green thumb have planted veggies and flowers. We all enjoyed their wonderful tomatoes. Did I mention that the price sheet I gave you includes all utilities, laundry, housekeeping, transportation, all meals and activities, plus caregivers on duty 24/7 and our nurse on duty and on call 24/7. We are proud of our well-trained, experienced and compassionate Caregivers and honor them monthly. We also provide trained Med-techs who gives out the needed medications at the correct time. We also have the services offered in our Beauty Shop; Exercise and PT room; Spa room with whirlpool tub; Alert call systems in each room and choice of an individual necklace call button. T V and phone hookups are in each room. All this seems to be just what your loved
one would enjoy. From what you have told me about their needs and likes, they would find a happy family with us. It is comforting for you to know that their care level needs will be met as they age over the years. This will be their home and you are always invited to stay for a meal, take them out to your home or out for a meal and are welcomed to visit anytime. We are very proud of the fact that we have won the honor of ‘Best Assisted Living’ community in Beaufort for the past 5 years ! Now that we have finished the tour and are back in my office, I have our information packet for you to take with you. Also inside is a sample of menus, activity calendar, Newsletter and other information. You can always call me with any questions. I would like to invite you all to return and have lunch with me in our private dining room. This way your loved one can come for a short visit to see for themselves and I can get to meet them too. Call me to set up a convenient time and thank you so much for your visit today. I have enjoyed meeting you both and thank you for your interest in Summit Place. Penelope Mont Marketing Director Summit Place of Beaufort 843-770-0105 Paid for advertisement.
inspired a movie, Dreadful Sorry, written by Dionne O’Dell and to be produced and directed by Professor Robert Richmond, University of South Carolina. The project was awarded the prestigious 2010-2011 Film Project Grant by the South Carolina Film Commission and will be filmed locally in March 2011. The house has changed hands several times (in fact it is currently for sale) and tradition has it that Gauche remains in the house to this day, a tiny man with a big presence.
Land’s End Light “The Light on St. Helena Island is not the only ghost light reported in South Carolina but it is certainly the state’s most famous,� from the book South Carolina Ghosts: From the Coast to the Mountains, by Nancy Roberts. A few miles past the hauntingly lovely ruins of the Chapel of Ease on Land’s End Road on St. Helena Island is the site of Beaufort’s most popular ghost story. Legend has it if you wait under one of the old oak trees on this lonely stretch of road, you may see what has been described as a glowing ball of light ten to twelve feet above the road. Eyewitnesses have reported that it will come straight at you but if you make a noise, or turn your car engine over, the light suddenly vanishes. The origins of the Land’s End Light are usually attributed to several different sources. One version has it that a Union soldier was decapitated during the Civil War and is still wandering the road searching for his missing head while holding a lantern. Or maybe it was a Confederate soldier, also said to be attacked and decapitated while on duty. In either case, the mysterious light is the poor soldier’s lantern. Another version involves Fort Fremont, the remains of which
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are located at the end of Land’s End Road, which at one time garrisoned the 116th Coast Artillery. In 1910 a brawl between soldiers and locals resulted in the death of Private Frank Quigley, whose wanderings are said to be the source of the phantom light. Still another version, set in the 1940’s, involves the wreck of a bus (either a commercial or school bus depending on who you ask) on the road, killing the driver (another decapitation) in one version, and or resulting in the death of passengers in another. In this version, the accident occurred because the bus only had one headlight and so it is doomed to continue its ghostly rounds, perpetually shining the one ghostly headlight. Wherever the story came from, it has had remarkable staying power. Ask any native Beaufortonian about the light and chances are they have either seen the famous light or have been out to try and see it. According to the Beaufort County Library website, “About thirty years ago, sheriff’s deputies could count as many as one hundred cars parked along the road on a single night. How many drivers were parked there just to be with their dates is unclear.â€? A long time resident relates a story as told to him by a reliable witness, since deceased, who had previously scoffed at the local lore. Evidently late one night the witness was driving down Land’s End Road and saw a light that he thought was a motorcycle headlight. It was headed straight at him in his lane but instead of veering off it suddenly sped through his windshield and out the back window. The witness reported that it filled his car with light and yet left no mark. Deanna Bowdish and a few friends went looking for the light one night, “The mist clung to the moss draped trees we sat waiting for that flicker, that hint, that something‌would we see
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the light? No, unfortunately we didn’t, but it is easy to see how the environment lends itself to the possibility. Even the skeptic in the car had a moment when he blurted “is that it”? Ultimately, it became a wonderful evening of being with friends and enjoying the mysticism our own ‘backyard’ in the Low Country.”
Chapel of Ease Although not usually noted in the legends and ghost lore of Beaufort, the tiny Chapel of Ease on St.Helena Island deserves a mention for its haunting atmosphere alone. Situated directly on Lands End Road it is easy to find and there is a historical marker on the premises that states: “Chapel of Ease to St. Helena’s Church, Beaufort SC, was built around 1740 and made a church after the Revolution. In 1886, the church was burned in a forest fire. The walls are original tabby, a mixture of lime, sand, oyster shells and water, and are relatively intact after 270 years and are still quite solid. To the right of the chapel ruins is a very sturdy looking mausoleum, built in 1852 and since vandalized and left open. Some have claimed there is a ghost story here, the tale being when workers have tried to close up the crypt the bricks are always removed over night and left in a neat pile. There are graves scattered throughout, many for women and children. One very poignant double headstone is for two sisters, Caroline Mary Scott who died in 1883 at the age of three and her sister Adaline Matilda Scott who died just three days later at the age of five. On Sarah Jenkins Pope’s headstone, dead at age 16 months in 1853, it is inscribed (and this is the exact spelling and punctuation): “Hark they wisper angels say “Sister Spirit! Come
Away!” Many people find walking around the chapel and gravestones eerie and uncomfortable. The broken gate’s metalwork can look sinister even in the bright sunlight and there is a home video on youtube.com that purports to be the sound of a spirit snarling at the crypt. Visiting the Chapel of Ease can best be described as a melancholy experience.
Bottle Trees If these ghostly tales have you spooked, there is a simple solution... get a bottle tree. Bottle trees are said to attract and trap unwanted spirits within the bottle. That’s why the tree is placed in the yard, close to the door of the home. Some are natural trees, others are created from wood or metal to resemble trees, but both have numerous glass bottles stuck on the end of the bare branches. Colors vary, but traditionally blue glass is the most common and favorite. The origin of the bottle tree is commonly agreed to be Africa, although some cite the ‘genie in a bottle’ tales and think the basic idea started in ancient Arabia. Either way, the bottle tree still exists and is in fact more popular than ever. Drive around Beaufort and the Sea Islands and you will lose count of the countless bottle trees. Maybe there is a reason... For more information: www.beaufortcountylibrary.org www.sciway.net/hist/lands-end-light-st-helena-island http://hubpages.com/hub/South-Carolina-Ghosts--Lands-EndLights
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October/November 2010 49
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October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
Help Support Hospice Care of the Lowcountry at Light Up the Links By Jenny Brasington Executive Director, Hospice Care of the Lowcountry Hospice Care of the Lowcountry is your community based not-for-profit organization serving Beaufort, Jasper and Hampton Counties. Hospice Care of the Lowcountry holds several key fundraising initiatives throughout the year. Many are familiar with our annual Yacht Hop event held in Harbour Town each May. Our second largest annual fundraiser, Light Up the Links, is being held this October 30th, and we encourage each of you to come support a very worthy cause while enjoying a fun, unique event with friends. Light Up the Links is a nighttime golf event held at Spanish Wells Club on Hilton Head Island. We will be playing a best ball tournament as golfers try their luck with glow-in-the-dark golf balls over luminary-lit fairways. The event kicks off at 5:30pm with cocktails, barbecue and music followed by a 6:45 tee time and after-party. Tickets are $75 per player and include dinner or $40 per ticket for those wishing just to attend the party (also includes dinner). Since our founding in 1982, our primary commitment has been to provide the highest level of quality care to patients and their families. This means ensuring that each of our nurses is certified in hospice and palliative care, as well as our medical director. We have a volunteer base of more than 150 compassionate individuals working in a variety of roles. As always, we could not let an opportunity pass without taking the time to thank our donors and volunteers for their generous donations and support. Without them, we could not continue to provide these vital services to our community. We look forward to seeing you October 30th. For details on Light Up the Links or to purchase tickets, please call 843.706.2296 or visit www.hospicecarelc.org.
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FISHING REPORT Inshore with Capt. Tony Constant & Offshore with Capt. Tom Thomas Inshore: work back in rivers & creeks
Beaufort, it’s fall again. This is the time of year most of us love to be in the Low Country. There are oyster roasts and football games every weekend as well as redfish and trout in every river and creek. During the fall into winter is when we benefit the most from all the marsh we have all over the county. The shrimp and baitfish are plentiful and the gamefish are hungry. The easiest way to have a fun afternoon of fishing is take a bucket of live shrimp down to your nearest river or creek and begin fishing the points on the incoming tide. As these points flood work your way back in the river or creek, working the grass lines and oyster rakes along the way. I like using plastic baits for these fish. The old stand-by baits still work great. Even step it up a bit by putting a mud minnow on the gold spoon, this is a lot of fun. There are some good new baits out there this year that will be the reason for a lot of caught fish. Redfish and trout can be found in almost all of Beaufort’s waters during the fall, but will concentrate in holes or large flats. Flounder can also be found in the same areas as redfish and trout. Try slowing down your presentation every now and then and see if you have some flounder around. They will bite all the same lures and live baits, they just need a slower presentation. You will usually catch more flounder towards the rivers and beaches. The bigger flounder will hang around more sandy areas and larger bodies of water. October and November is still a good time to run offshore for some bottom fishing. I’m talking about grouper, trigger fish, black sea bass and varieties of snapper that we can still keep. Red snapper is currently off limits to all in the Southern Atlantic Fishery(SAF). We locally disagree with this, but it is the law. The SAF has approved the “Amendment 17A” which will open back up our offshore waters to snapper fishing in December 2010. Remember to carry a venting tool when you go bottom fishing offshore so you can properly vent the air sacks on off limit or short fish during this season. Our local charter Captains have been pulling in with some good catches of these fish. Folks, I don’t know if you have had a good catch of these offshore fish, but they truly put some food on the table. There have been some Captains come in with multiple 15lb-25lb grouper and trigger fish,
Fall wreck fishing and offshore trolling
The waters are finally cooling off and the fall fishing is in full swing. The white marlin should arrive from North Carolina waters and the sails should be in closer waters around 90-120 feet in 78 degree water holding flying fish. The white marlin prefer 75 degree water and have been know to come inside of the Deli chasing the bait fish. An occasional wahoo may be lurking deeper under the surface in around 66-68 degree water. You can use trolling leads, down riggers or planers. I prefer a 2-3 pound high speed trolling lead. Trolling skirted or naked ballyhoo will work for all of these fish. A little closer in you should finally find some king mackerel. They are spawning right now in mid September much farther out than normal and should start showing up in numbers by October. We just caught a nice 24 pound king full of roe at 160-180 feet of water the 11th of September. The extremely high water temperatures of 84-86 degrees this summer have so far resulted in a poor showing for kings. The best technique is slow trolling with live pogies or menhaden.
54 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
that’s a lot of groceries. Our black sea bass population is doing fine with big catches at most of our offshore wrecks and live bottoms. It is also a good time for some offshore trolling. A run out to the Gulf Stream can produce wahoo, dolphin (mahi mahi), sailfish and marlin. The bite is working it’s way down the coast from the north and it has been great. I’ve been talking with Captains in Morehead City, Wilmington and Oregon Inlet that have been producing 7 to 11 wahoo a day. Most have been 35lb to 65lb. The white marlin bite in Atlantic City has been off the charts this year. On September 10 three boats landed and released 315 white marlin combined. I’ve been a deck hand on boats from the Chesapeake to the Bahamas and can’t imagine being that busy with fish. I hope those hands were tipped good. Our local fishing is good this time of year and a nice wahoo bite is nothing short of a thrill. When a wahoo bites he will usually run off about 200 yards of line and there is not much you can say about it. After that they make you earn it if you get them back to the boat. Don’t forget about a wahoo’s teeth, some of the sharpest in the ocean. I was decking a tournament boat years ago in Florida and the other mate took a swipe on his shoulder by a wahoo that took 24 stitches to close. The fall dolphin (mahi mahi) run is usually a lot of fun with catches from about 40 miles on out to 65. As you know there is not much better eating than grilled mahi mahi. If you are in or around Beaufort this season stop in for a charter to the fishing grounds of your choice and find out how much fun it is to have a local captain take you out for a day or two of fishing. With all the local knowledge and equipment you need, you can sit back and reel’um in. Inshore charters start at $350 and offshore charters start at about $475. Don’t forget, on October 23 our local “Lowcountry Chapter” of CCA is having their banquet at Beaufort Academy. It starts at 6:00pm on Saturday and all funds go towards the Coastal Conservation Association, a very good cause. Tight Lines, Capt. Tony Constant Dock-master Port Royal Landing Marin Bottom fishing should really kick in as the grouper, snapper and black sea bass all move in to closer waters of 40-90 feet. We caught some nice scamp grouper and huge vermillion snapper the 11th of September that should move in from 160-180 feet to 90-120 feet by October. The black sea bass will start schooling up on near shore wrecks, too. The near shore wrecks will also hold huge reds and flounder. All you need is some squid, shrimp and cigar minnows. I prefer bottom fishing an hour before to an hour after a tide change with light winds. You will get a bite on almost every drop if you are on the fish. They will hold tight to the structure and you have to be on top of the structure holding fish! Take the children along on the near shore trips. They really love the action and can manage to get everything in except a huge 40 pound red. Enjoy the cooler weather and the fall bite! Capt Tom Thomas Topgun Charters, LLC.
BEAUFORT AREA TIDE CHART Georgia, Savannah River Ent.
October, 2010
N 32° 02.0' / W 80° 54.1'
Georgia, Savannah River Ent.
November, 2010
N 32° 02.0' / W 80° 54.1'
Tide Tables, Charts and Scripts available at FreeTideTables.com
Date
Day
High Tide
High Tide
Low Tide
Low Tide
1
Fr
206am
6.4
240pm
7.6
826am
1.1
914pm
2
Sa
310am
6.7
342pm
7.8
934am
0.9
3
Su
413am
7.0
443pm
8.1
1041am
0.6
4
Mo
516am
7.5
543pm
8.3
1145am
0.2
5
Tu
616am
8.0
640pm
8.5
1216am
6
We
712am
8.6
733pm
8.6
7
Th
805am
8.9
824pm
8
Fr
856am
9.1
9
Sa
946am
10
Su
11
Tide Tables, Charts and Scripts available at FreeTideTables.com
Date
Day
High Tide
High Tide
Low Tide
1.5
1
Mo
358am
7.3
421pm
7.8
1026am
0.6
1055pm
Low Tide 0.4
1020pm
1.1
2
Tu
459am
7.8
520pm
7.9
1129am
0.3
1151pm
0.0
1120pm
0.7
3
We
558am
8.2
617pm
7.9
1228pm
0.0
4
Th
654am
8.6
711pm
8.0
1244am
-0.3
124pm
-0.3
0.2
1244pm
-0.2
5
Fr
747am
8.9
802pm
7.9
136am
-0.5
218pm
-0.4
109am
-0.3
140pm
-0.4
6
Sa
837am
8.9
851pm
7.8
226am
-0.6
309pm
-0.4
8.5
200am
-0.5
234pm
-0.6
7
Su
826am
8.8
839pm
7.5
215am
-0.5
258pm
-0.2
913pm
8.3
249am
-0.7
327pm
-0.6
8
Mo
914am
8.5
927pm
7.2
302am
-0.2
346pm
0.1
9.0
1002pm
8.0
338am
-0.6
418pm
-0.4
9
Tu
1004am
8.1
1017pm
6.9
348am
0.1
432pm
0.4
1037am
8.7
1052pm
7.6
425am
-0.4
507pm
0.0
10
We
1055am
7.7
1109pm
6.6
433am
0.5
518pm
0.8
Mo
1130am
8.3
1145pm
7.2
513am
0.0
556pm
0.5
11
Th
1148am
7.3
519am
1.0
605pm
1.2
12
Tu
1226pm
7.9
600am
0.5
647pm
0.9
12
Fr
1203am
6.4
1240pm
7.0
607am
1.4
655pm
1.4
13
We
1240am
6.9
123pm
7.5
650am
1.0
741pm
1.4
13
Sa
1257am
6.4
131pm
6.7
701am
1.7
747pm
1.5
14
Th
137am
6.6
219pm
7.3
744am
1.4
838pm
1.6
14
Su
150am
6.4
221pm
6.6
801am
1.8
840pm
1.4
15
Fr
232am
6.5
313pm
7.1
845am
1.7
937pm
1.7
15
Mo
241am
6.6
311pm
6.5
902am
1.8
930pm
1.3
16
Sa
327am
6.6
405pm
7.0
948am
1.8
1031pm
1.6
16
Tu
332am
6.8
400pm
6.5
959am
1.7
1017pm
1.0
17
Su
420am
6.7
456pm
7.0
1047am
1.7
1119pm
1.4
17
We
421am
7.1
449pm
6.6
1050am
1.4
1102pm
0.8
18
Mo
511am
6.9
544pm
7.1
1139am
1.5
18
Th
509am
7.3
536pm
6.6
1138am
1.2
1146pm
0.6
19
Tu
600am
7.2
630pm
7.1
1203am
1.1
1226pm
1.3
19
Fr
554am
7.6
620pm
6.7
1223pm
0.9
20
We
645am
7.5
713pm
7.2
1244am
0.9
110pm
1.1
20
Sa
637am
7.8
702pm
6.7
1229am
0.4
107pm
0.7
21
Th
727am
7.8
753pm
7.2
124am
0.7
153pm
1.0
21
Su
718am
8.0
741pm
6.7
112am
0.2
151pm
0.5
22
Fr
807am
7.9
831pm
7.1
203am
0.6
234pm
0.9
22
Mo
758am
8.1
820pm
6.7
156am
0.1
235pm
0.4
23
Sa
844am
8.0
907pm
7.0
243am
0.5
314pm
0.8
23
Tu
839am
8.1
901pm
6.7
240am
0.0
318pm
0.4
24
Su
920am
8.0
942pm
6.9
322am
0.5
354pm
0.8
24
We
923am
8.1
946pm
6.6
325am
0.0
402pm
0.4
25
Mo
957am
8.0
1018pm
6.8
401am
0.5
435pm
0.9
25
Th
1011am
7.9
1038pm
6.6
411am
0.0
448pm
0.4
26
Tu
1037am
7.9
1100pm
6.6
442am
0.6
517pm
1.0
26
Fr
1105am
7.8
1137pm
6.6
500am
0.2
537pm
0.4
27
We
1124am
7.8
1150pm
6.5
526am
0.6
603pm
1.1
27
Sa
1202pm
7.6
554am
0.3
631pm
0.4
28
Th
1219pm
7.7
613am
0.8
653pm
1.2
28
Su
1239am
6.8
101pm
7.5
655am
0.5
729pm
0.4
29
Fr
1249am
6.5
119pm
7.7
707am
0.9
750pm
1.2
29
Mo
141am
7.0
200pm
7.4
801am
0.6
830pm
0.2
30
Sa
152am
6.6
221pm
7.7
809am
0.9
852pm
1.0
30
Tu
242am
7.3
259pm
7.3
909am
0.5
930pm
0.0
31
Su
256am
6.9
321pm
7.7
918am
0.9
956pm
0.8
Tide Tables, Charts and Scripts available at FreeTideTables.com
©2010 FreeTideTables.com - For comparison only - Times are local - Tides in feet from MLLW
Tide Chart Sponsored By Port Royal Landing Marina.
BEAUFORT’S PREMIER FISHING PRO SHOP
VOTED #1 MARINA BY THE ISLAND NEWS
VOTED #1 FISHING OUTFITTER BY THE BEAUFORT GAZETTE
Host Your Wedding, Special Event, Or Party Overlooking The Beautiful Beaufort River. Panaromic Views Of The Intracoastal Waterway Await You and Your Guests!
843-525-6664
www.portroyallandingmarina.com BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 55
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5BLF UJNF UP SFEJTDPWFS #FBVGPSU 1PSU 3PZBM #MVGGUPO )JMUPO )FBE *TMBOE BOE UIF TVSSPVOEJOH BSFB T Ã OFTU BOE NPTU VOJRVF TIPQT SFTUBVSBOUT BOE TFSWJDF FTUBCMJTINFOUT
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The best foods in Beaufort, Port Royal and the Sea Islands
Photo by PAUL NURNBERG
Alvin Ords Sandwich Shops 1415 Ribaut Road Port Royal, SC 29935 (843)524-8222 Athenian Gardens 950 Ribaut Road Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-9222
Qu ick
bites
Back Porch Grill 1 Landing Drive Port Royal, SC 29935 (843)525-9824
To Advertise in the dining guide, or to find out how to get your restaurant, pub or bar listed please call Judy at (843)4222591, or Amber at (770)5467248 or Julie at (912)6574120
Barbara Jeans 47 Ferry Road Beaufort, SC 29907 (843)524-2400 www.barbarajeans.com Bella Luna Cafe 859 Sea Island Parkway St. Helena, SC 29920 (843)838-3188 Berry Island Cafe 1 Merchant Way, Suite 1 Lady’s Island, SC 29907 (843)524-8779 www.berryislandcafe. com
Bruster’s Real Ice Cream 304 Robert Smalls Parkway Beaufort, SC 29906 843)982-6277 Cat Island Grill & Pub 8 Waveland Avenue Beaufort, SC 29907 (843)524-4653 www.sanctuarygolfcatisland.com
{southern graces} *Check out all the great places to eat on Pages 57-60. Then, go to Page 64 for a feature story about the great service and foods of Southern Graces.
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 57
The best foods in Beaufort, Port Royal and the Sea Islands O y st er
time
Pizza, Pasta & Seafood Featuring Classic Italian Cuisine Monday thru Saturday beginning 8:30AM 859 Sea Island Pkwy St. Helena, SC 29920
p 843-838-3188 bellaluna@embarqmail.com
City Java & News 301 Carteret Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-JAVA Gullah Grub Restaurant 877 Sea Island Pkwy (Rt 21) St. Helena Island, SC 29920 (843)838-3841 Groupers Restaurant & Bar 71 Sea Island Parkway On Factory Creek Lady’s Island, SC 29907 (843)379-3288
NY STYLE BAGELS MADE FROM SCRATCH DAILY S ,#4("'$0 7 S-2.0 7 Salads Desserts & baked goods Full service expresso bar S+--1'($0 7 Monday-Saturday 7:00am-3:00pm Sunday 8:00am-2:00pm Facebook: Palm and Moon Bagels 221 Scott Street, Historic Downtown Beaufort
(843) 379-9300
Junsei Japanese Cuisine 2127-2 Boundary Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-5525 Kooky Mooky’s Ice Cream /Sandwich Shop 101 Scott Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)521-4445 Luther’s Rare & Well Done 910 Bay Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)521-1888 www.lowcountrydining.com
58 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
Marketplace News Sandwich & Ice Cream Cafe 917 Bay Street Beaufort, SC 29902 www.themarketplacenews. com Medical Park Deli 968 Ribaut Road Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-0174 (Across From Beaufort Memorial Hospital) Moe’s Southwest Grill 2015 Boundary Street, Ste 1A Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-4334 Nippy’s Fish 310 West Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-8555 Facebook: Nippy’s Fish Palm & Moon Bagel Co. 221 Scott Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-9300
(843)379-7676
SuZara’s Kitchen
• Fresh baked scones, muffins & coffee cakes • Fabulous layer cakes, tortes & pies • Special occasion cakes, wedding cakes & seasonal treats • Hearty soups & quiches Moving across the street in November... many more offerings to come! 1103 Boundary St., Beaufort, SC piequeen54@yahoo.com
843-379-2160
Dine In
or t
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Serving Home-made Breakfast, Sandwiches, Soups, Salads, and Ice cream Monday-Wednesday 7am-5pm Thursday & Friday 7am-9pm Saturday 8am-9pm
Panini’s Cafe’ 926 Bay Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-0300 Plums 904 Bay Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)525-1946 www.plumsrestaurant.com Reaves Fish Camp Seafood Buffet 1509 Salem Road Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)522-FISH (3474)
Rosie O’Grady’s Irish Pub 2127 Boundary Street Suite 3 Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-7676 Saltus River Grill 802 Bay Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-3474 www.saltusrivergrill.com Southern Graces at Beaufort Inn 809 Port Republic Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-0555
843-524-8779
1 Merchant Lane, Suite 102 Located in Newpoint Corners, across from theExxon station on Lady’s Island
www.berryislandcafe.com
Best waterfront view in Beaufort! Lunch 11am - Dinner 5pm Sunday Brunch 10am-3pm • LOCAL SEAFOOD • SUCCULENT STEAKS • FRESH LOCAL PRODUCE 71 Sea Island Parkway, Lady’s Island Marina
(843) 379-3288
at The Beaufort Inn
Casual Luxury with a Lowcountry Twist
Where The Locals Go...
Casual Dining With A Beautiful Waterfront View, Located In The Historic District... Serving The Best Steaks, Ribs & Chops In Town.
Daily Lunch & Dinner Specials FULL SERVICE BAR WITH LIVE ENTERTAINMENT
843-521-1888
910 Bay Street, Beaufort, SC
Come on in. Your tastebuds will thank you. VOTED BEST BAR & TAVERN 4 YEARS! Everybody has a favorite watering hole - sooo come into Luther’s for NFL Football games every Sunday & Monday while enjoying our weekly NFL menu!
Open 7 Days A Week 11:00 AM - 2 AM
Southern Graces at The Beaufort Inn in Historic Downtown Beaufort Serving Lunch 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday - Friday and our Indulgent Brunch on Sundays
809 Port Republic Street • Beaufort, SC 843-379-0555 • www.SouthernGracesBeaufort.com BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE | October/November 2010 59
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Suwan Thai Cuisine 1638 Paris Avenue Port Royal, SC 29935 (843)379-8383 SuZara’s Kitchen 1103 Boundary Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-2160
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The Smokey Chef Restaurant 81 Sea Island Parkway Beaufort, SC 29907 (843)521-4557 www.smokeychef.com
Medical Park Deli
The Upper Crust 97 Sea Island Parkway, Ste 201 Beaufort, SC 29907 (843)521-1999
Serving Breakfast & Lunch 7am - 6pm Mon-Fri
Wren Bistro Bar & Market 210 Carteret Street Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)524-9463 Historic Downtown Beaufort
968 Ribaut Road, Beaufort
New York Style Dining at an Affordable Price!
Free Wi-fi! 843-379-0174 (Across from Beaufort Memorial Hospital)
Where the Old Country meets the Low Country
926 Bay Street • On Waterfont Park
60 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
Zaxby’s 210 Robert Smalls Parkway Beaufort, SC 29902 (843)379-2100
843.379.0300 www.paniniscafe.net
LOW COUNTRY WEDDINGS 62 64 68
NEAL WEDDING SOUTHERN GRACES WELCH WEDDING
P hot o b y S USAN DELOACH
Lauren & Derek Neal
P h o t o g r a p h y b y J O H N W O L LW E RT H
N
Bride: Lauren Anderson Groom: Derek Neal Ceremony Venue: Fripp Island Resort Photographer: John Wollwerth
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LOW COUNTRY WEDDINGS
N BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 63
fu ll s er v ic e
• Story by MARY ELLEN THOMPSON • Photography by PAUL NURNBERG
catering Indulgent Catering, Delicious Design
“Southern Graces is a Full-Service Event Firm, which means we can help you with as much, or as little as you wish. We offer the following services: Catering, Southern Graces 2 Go, Floral Design, Event Production, Fabulous Rentals, Linens, Custom Invitations, Centerpieces, Edible Gifts, Party Favors, Wedding Coordination.” Well known for their delightful menu and delicious food at the Beaufort Inn, Southern Graces is so much more. They plan, and execute, parties from first thought to treasured memories. They also host that time honored Southern tradition of the Supper Club held monthly at the Beaufort Inn; which is how it all began. Bethany Boles Hewitt describes herself as an “entertainer.” Raised in Knoxville, TN, Bethany attended Belmont University in Nashville, TN, where she majored in religion and communications. Her intended career path took a sharp turn when she spent a semester in the Netherlands. The family with whom Bethany lived that year included Heike, the older brother in the family, who was a chef. “I hung out in his restaurant. At first he was surprised that an American girl was interested in what he was doing. When my friends went out to bars and discotheques, I followed him around the small restaurant kitchen, and he let me even though I’m sure I was
64 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
always in the way! He was passionate about food, and I wanted to learn more.” His influence, and her experience, made Bethany decide that she “wanted to work with food!” It was a brave wish as not many women were found in commercial kitchens at that time. When family matters took her back to Knoxville, a friend asked Bethany to help her with a Halloween party. The original guest list included twelve friends; as preparations got under
way, the list swelled to thirty. “The rest is history,” said Bethany. On her own, Bethany began introducing her friends to the concept of a weekly supper club. “I started it for my friends; I couldn’t afford good restaurants and neither could they. It was a great way to try different foods. They were not only fun nights with great food, they also gave me an excuse to entertain, and to buy new china and stemware. I accumulated thirty salad/dessert plate sets! We became a sisterhood of foodies. Three of us went to France to eat our way through Paris. Great friendships have developed from those days. Some of the recipes we experimented with have stuck, and are still on our menu today, like the crispy asparagus straws.” (This is a much coveted recipe which Bethany has been kind enough to share with us.) Bethany decided, after the Halloween party was such a success, that she wanted to start her own catering company in Knoxville and her parents were so supportive that they watched as their garage was converted into a commercial kitchen to suit the growing catering company. “I decided it should be pretty, so everything was pink; bubble-gum pink!” In retrospect, Bethany feels so grateful: “It really was about having people who believed in me. I am so insanely blessed to have such a ‘dream family.’ If I could dream it, they encouraged me through it – and ten years later, that is still the case!” Eventually she took over a larger space that worked perfectly for catering and hosting events. Then, on a trip to Las Vegas where she was attending a catering convention, fate again intervened when a handsome man sat next to her on the bus. Christopher Hewitt came from Long Island, NY, where his family owned a celebrated restaurant. He had attended the Culinary Institute in Hyde Park, NY and was a chef at a tony restaurant in New York City. So, they met, fell in love, got married, left their respective towns, did a stint in Nashville, TN, moved to Savannah, GA, and started a new Southern Graces there. Then, in August of 2008, “We planned a retreat for our staff in Beaufort. The people were very friendly and helpful,” and it seemed to Bethany and Christopher that Beaufort would be the perfect place for Southern Graces to flourish. The supper club at the Beaufort Inn “Started as a way to create a catering event for individuals to show them what we can do. The restaurant serves delicious lunches and Sunday brunch but just from that, people have no way to understand the scope of our services.” A favorite party of Bethany’s was a baby shower she was asked to cater. The hosts requested specialty items that would astound and delight their guests. Southern Graces created food stations featuring fried pickles; ice cream in custom made cones; a Daddy’s grilling station for pistachio encrusted lamb chops, with cherry compote, served tapas style; a Mom’s dessert bar with a magnitude of luscious desserts; and custom cocktails:
Daddy’s Doozy which was Jack (Daniels) and coke, and Mommy’s Mocktail – pomegranate juice and alcohol- free champagne with a blooming hibiscus floating on top. Southern Graces’ credentials are extensive with Christopher as chef and Bethany as the creative, out-front person. They designed an exquisite Wedding Weekend for HGTV’s Executive Producer. From a Laidback Lowcountry Boil, to an over-the-top wedding reception, they took care of every little whim for the entire weekend. Also, they have catered special events such as the launch parties for Porsche in Atlanta. GA. “We take a twentyeight foot trailer with us to Atlanta that carries everything we need.” “Everything,” when you are talking to Bethany is a word like “infinity.” If you can think of it, she can produce it; and if you can’t visualize it, she can. Way beyond food and table linens, Southern Graces will design event spaces to include lounge furniture, edible libraries, gorgeous chandeliers, and whatever else is needed to create the most inspiring ambiance for each event. They create party favors and invitations, and would probably write your thank you notes, if you asked! Between the Bethany and Christopher, the two created a Descending Dessert Decadence Station that literally came down from the ceiling for Country Music Television’s CMA Awards. “The lights went down, there was smoke, we had a drum roll, and the spot light came up as the desserts came down – it was so dramatic – both Christopher and I still cannot believe how we pulled that one off!” As Bethany says, “Technically, we are a full service catering and event design company. Everything we do is by our staff, and created in house.” To create such a company was Bethany’s dream; having accomplished that, she and Christopher can make any party dream come true.e Crispy Asparagus Straws INGREDIENTS: 1 bunch Fresh asparagus Phyllo dough 2 cups Parmesan cheese 1/4 lb*. Thinly *sliced prosciutto, cut into pieces 1/2 cup Unsalted butter PREPARATION: Bring water to boil. Add Asparagus and 1 teaspoon salt. Blanch until bright green, being careful not to overcook. Asparagus should still be crisp and firm, but cooked through. Cut Phyllo dough into strips that are 8 x 4 inches long. Place the length of the phyllo on a cutting board. Dampen paper towels or cheese cloth, and place over the phyllo dough. Use
the damp towels as you are working with the phyllo dough so that it does not dry out and become brittle. Melt the butter. Spread the butter on to the strip of phyllo dough, then place another strip of phyllo on top. Spread the butter again, and then place 1 asparagus at one end of the strip, horizontallly. Next place a few pieces of prosciutto and sprinkle about 2 teaspoons of shredded parmesan cheese. Roll the dough up and then place on a greased baking sheet. Repeat the process, using all of the asparagus. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and drizzle with remaining butter. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned. -Enjoy!
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 65
What Every Bride Needs To Know by Patty Hansen
Weddings with a personal touch CarolinaJasmineFlowers.com ! $ % & # "
35 Parris Island Gateway • Beaufort, South Carolina 29906
TENTS TABLES TUXEDOS PORTALETS CHAIRS CHINA FLATWARE LINENS GLASSES WEDDING ARCHES
Today brides are busily buying books on wedding planning, talking with friends and family about planning their wedding, and/or paying someone to help them plan their wedding. That is great that you are taking the time to plan that special day, but did you consider that you need a coordinator? Most bride’s get so busy in planning their wedding that they forget about the wedding coordination. Alot of bride’s do not know that Wedding Planning and Wedding Coordination are two different services. Wedding Planning is the actual planning of the wedding: choosing vendors, deciding on which musician to play at the ceremony, where to have the reception. etc. However, Wedding Coordination is having a certified wedding coordinator (or director) at the rehearsal, wedding ceremony, and/or the wedding reception making sure that everything is going as the bride planned. Wedding Coordinators are around to make sure that the wedding party is in the right place, vendors are doing as they were paid to do, and most of all that everyone is happy! So, when you are planning your wedding make sure that you do not get caught without a coordinator on your special day!
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66 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
LOW COUNTRY WEDDINGS Your Personal Wedding Website by Robert Hirscheimer, www.virtuallymarried.com
The Internet has made planning a wedding a much easier process for young couples of the 21st century. It is a tremendous source of information for everything you could ever imagine related to the big day. One application that is becoming increasingly popular is a wedding website where all of the details of the wedding can be posted along with many other terrific features. There are many benefits to having a wedding website. There is a lot of information to disseminate, and by putting all of the information online; the couple eliminates the endless requests for information that typically occur when a wedding approaches. Sallie Baldwin of Savannah, Georgia, a recently engaged young woman, appreciated her wedding website for the information it provided for her guests. “I wanted a way for our family and friends to easily access information about events around the wedding. A lot of our family and friends don’t live near us so it is a way for each other’s families to get to know us as a couple immediately!” Most wedding websites allow people to RSVP online. Emily Riggs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, another wedding website user had a very positive reaction from her guests regarding the RSVP function. “We were so pleased with the way it worked out, 85% of our RSVP’s came via email - including two sets of grandparents!” Her guests also found another benefit. “Everybody was printing our “Our Story”, pictures and bios so they could save them.” Some
sites allow couples to update their photos from the wedding and honeymoon as time goes by. A huge benefit of a wedding website is that the couple can have a link to their online registry. This allows guests to see what the couple has chosen and to make a contribution without leaving their home. Kirk Spangenberg of Charleston, South Carolina appreciated that feature the most. “My favorite part is the link to the registry. I want to make it as easy as possible for people to buy us the things we have picked out for our wedding!” There are also fun things for the guests to see on some wedding website, like a countdown as well as a poll and quiz about the happy couple. Some sites have additional features such as a special page for out of town guests. This allows the couple to provide their guests with all kinds of information about their city, suggested accommodations, places to visit, restaurants, and shopping. Tiffany Duggin of Los Angeles, California appreciated this feature the most. “I wanted a way for our family and friends to learn about things to do and see in Philadelphia” (where the wedding is taking place). Our site had great links for restaurants, attractions, and lots of other great stuff in Philly. Perhaps the greatest thing of all is that the couple can make everyone a part of the festivities, even those that could not attend the event. Lara Goldenberg of Montreal, Canada can attest to that. “We had a small wedding and could not invite as many friends and family as we wanted and many people who live far away could not make the trip. The website allowed everyone to be a part of our special day”.
Here Here are are aa few few specialty specialty items items from from the the chef’s chef’s kitchen... kitchen... Deep Deep South South Spring Spring Rolls Rolls
filled filledw/ w/slow-cooked slow-cookedcollard collardgreens, greens,pancetta pancetta&&white whiteonions, onions,served servedw/ w/peach peachchutney chutney
Spicy Spicy Black-Eyed Black-Eyed Pea Pea Cakes Cakes
served servedw/ w/aadollop dollopofofsour sourcream creamand andchef’s chef’scucumber cucumberrelish relish
Fried Fried Oysters Oysters on on Silver Silver Spoons Spoonsperfect perfectas asaapasser passertray tray Blue Blue Crab Crab Deviled Deviled Eggs Eggs
giant giantlump lumpcrab crabsurrounded surroundedby byaarich, rich,piped pipeddeviled deviledfilling fillingtopped toppedw/ w/capers, capers, pimientos pimientosand andaatouch touchofofOld OldBay Bayseasoning seasoning
BBQ BBQ Sliders Sliders
miniature miniaturepulled pulledpork porksandwiches sandwichestopped toppedw/ w/original originalartichoke artichokerelish relish
Miniature Miniature Tomato Tomato Sandwiches Sandwiches
vine-ripe vine-ripeCampari Camparitomatoes tomatoeson onwhite whitebread breadcut-outs cut-outs Award AwardWinning WinningShrimp Shrimp&&Grits, Grits,She-Crab She-CrabSoup Soupwith withFresh FreshCrab, Crab,Sweet SweetPotato PotatoRolls, Rolls, Perfect PerfectBBQ BBQSpare SpareRibs Ribsand andScratch-Made Scratch-MadeSides Sidesand andMuch, Much,Much MuchMore More
Fine Fine Lowcountry Lowcountry Catering Catering 843-521-4557 843-521-4557 www.SmokeyChef.com www.SmokeyChef.com
BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE | October/November 2010 67
Kristen & Tony Welch
P ho t o g r a phy b y S U S A N DE L O A C H
W
Bride: Kristen Motlow Groom: Tony Welch Catering & Event Planning: Southern Graces Photographer: Susan DeLoach
68 October/November 2010 | BEAUFORT LIFESTYLE
LOW COUNTRY WEDDINGS
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Bitty’s Flower Shop, Inc.
Striving to make your wedding a timeless memory‌ Specializing in Lowcountry and pave` style arrangements. Unique and unusual floral designs Gifts for the home and garden
Full service wedding and event consultation (by appointment). Wedding ceremonies performed on our premises or at your location.
ALWAYS FREE PARKING 1202 Boundary Street, Beaufort, SC 29902
1
Stationery For The Holidays Christmas Cards, Invitations & Photocards Give a gift of personalized stationery or cocktail napkins Patsy Collin, Wedding Consultant Mon-Fri 10 to 5, weekends by appointment at Murr’s Printing 1012 Boundary Street, Beaufort 843-379-0284 bemyguest@islc.net
Ten Important Tips Planning An Outdoor Wedding by Christina Friedrichsen, intimate-weddings.com
1. Let your guests know in the invitation that it’s an outdoor wedding, so they can dress appropriately. 2. Enclose maps in your invitations, so guests can find their way. 3. Make sure you have adequate bathroom facilities. If the wedding is at home, you might want to consider renting a portable latrine. Many rental places have wedding models, complete with a flush toilet and sink. 4. Make sure the site has access to electricity. 5. The general rule of thumb for a sit-down reception is to allow for 15 square feet per guest. Do the math, and make sure your tent is big enough. 6. If you are having the wedding at a private residence, find out ahead of time where the tent will be placed. That way when you are doing your spring/summer planting, you can choose flowers in your wedding colors and plant them near the tent. 7. Offer parking that is close by - it’s a wedding not a hike (unless you want a hiking wedding) 8. Let neighbors know you are having an outdoor wedding ahead of time so they won’t be outside with lawnmowers and leafblowers. 9. Make sure your wedding site is in an area that won’t get muddy or flood if it rains. 10. Have mosquito spray handy. Citronella candles are not enough if mosquitoes decide to crash your party.
Serving the entire Beaufort area! Ask for Helen for fall rental rates 843-540-0625 2 Coastal Drive, Bluffton, SC HDonelan@classicpartyrentals.com
WWW.CLASSICPARTYRENTALS.COM
We are a full service rental company specializing in tents, tables, chairs, linens, china, !atware, glassware, staging and dance !oors.
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Indulgent Catering & Delicious Design
Eat, Drink and Be Merry with Southern Graces Catering
Festive Desserts, Holiday Home Decorating & Majestic Parties
Let us cater your next event - at our home or yours! Savannah • Hilton Head Island • Bluffton • Beaufort • Charleston • Atlanta
843-379-0555 • www.SouthernGracesCatering.com
Dreaming...
of a Winning Smile?
Before
W O S Dr. A.G. (Skeet) Burris
www.winningorthodonticsmiles.com
843.525.6228 960 Ribaut Road, Beaufort, SC
Actual Patient of Dr. Burris
AT WINNING ORTHODONTIC SMILES