AI Summed Us Up 4
And it was uncanny
Excavating the Beast 6
What's in a purse?
Halfway Home 7
A sea turtle art exhibit
Mameem & Maudie 12 A family affair
Reflections on the good life in coastal South Carolina }. July 2 – July 15, 2025
Gardening for Well-Being 15
Touching dirt heals
BCSD Beacon 16
A quarterly feature
MacArthur Genius 10
Author Kiese Laymon
The image on our cover is 'Want More Food' by Nancy Huson, from her exhibit 'Everyday Life on Hilton Head,' coming to the SOBA Gallery in August. For more information, see our story on page 5.
Alisha Doud alisha@dcgilbert.com
Daun Schouten daun@dcgilbert.com
Laure Gallagher laure@dcgilbert.com
Ashley Hart ashley@dcgilbert.com
Joy McConnell joy@dcgilbert.com
Johanna Graham johanna@dcgilbert.com
Kathy Crowley kathy@dcgilbert.com
Dawn Shipsey dawn@dcgilbert.com
July 16 – July 29, 2025
ro w c o unt
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Lowcountry Weekly is published every other Wednesday and distributed throughout Beaufort County at various restaurants, retail locations, hotels and visitor’s centers. The entire contents of Lowcountry Weekly is copyrighted 2025 by P. Podd Press, LLC. No part may be reproduced without permission from the publisher. The publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited material. A stamped, self-addressed envelope must accompany all submissions expected to be returned.
Last issue, I wrote a column commemorating Lowcountry Weekly’s 25 years in print.
As usual, I posted the column to our website then shared it on Facebook. Not as usual, it got a lot of attention. Well over 100 people chimed in to congratulate us and reminisce with us, and that felt really good. Then something weird happened. Meta AI joined in the fun.
What is Meta AI, you ask? Well, according to Google AI, it’s an “AI-powered assistant developed by Meta (formerly Facebook) that is integrated into various Meta platforms like Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger, as well as Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. It leverages Meta's Llama large language models to provide users with information, generate creative content, and help with various tasks. Meta AI can answer questions, create AI-generated images, and even assist with more complex tasks like writing code or planning trips.”
And there’s something else it can do –and you don’t even have to ask. Meta AI did to my column what I’ve seen it do to other articles on Facebook – usually articles from bigtime publications with tons of readers. Mistaking Lowcountry Weekly for one of those, Meta AI posted a series of summaries – or “overviews” if you prefer – after the column. Their titles included, but were not limited to, the following:
‘Jeff and Jeff’s Entrepreneurial Journey,’ ‘Lowcountry Weekly’s Editorial Team,’ ‘More About Lowcountry Weekly’s History,’ and ‘Quarter Century Celebration Plans.’ (FYI –we don’t have any. But Meta AI suggests a Memory Lane Display, Live Music or a DJ, Anniversary Balloons, or Customized Gifts.)
I guess these overviews are for people who are marginally curious about Lowcountry Weekly’s illustrious history, but don’t feel like reading the article. To be honest, I was astounded at how thorough and accurate they were.
Take, for instance, the overview entitled ‘More About Jeff and His Wife.’ (Since my name does not appear in the piece, but Jeff’s does, I’m always referred to as “Jeff’s wife” or “the author.” It’s amusing.) The overview reads like this:
Jeff and the author, likely the co-founders of Lowcountry Weekly, seem to be a dynamic duo with a shared passion for celebrating the Lowcountry's cultural and environmental heritage. Based on the article, we can infer that:
• They were young and adventurous, taking a significant risk by investing their savings in a local publication.
• They shared a vision for showcasing the region's art, theatre, music, and literary scene.
• The author appears to be the primary writer and voice behind the publication, with a personal and reflective tone.
• Jeff's role isn't explicitly stated, but it's likely he was involved in the business or operational side, given the author's mention of him as a partner in the venture.
• The couple's relationship and personalities shine through in the writing, with the author mentioning Jeff's sense of humor and their life together.
• The author's writing style suggests she's creative, humorous, and unafraid to share personal anecdotes, which has endeared her to readers over the years.
That description of my writing style had me positively blushing! But I wondered how Meta AI – short for “Artificial Intelligence,” of course – could possibly have a sense of “style,” or how it surmised that mine had endeared me to my readers over the years. That type of analysis seems pretty subjective – almost touchy feely – for an algorithmic being.
Like plenty of other people, I’ve been following the meteoric rise of Artificial Intelligence with a sense of both wonder and dread. At this point, what AI will mean for the future of humanity is anybody’s guess. What it will mean for the future of newspaper columnists – a gig that, frankly, doesn’t pay well already – seems a bit more obvious. And ominous.
David Brooks had a column in the NY Times last week featuring the headline: “Are We Really Willing to Become Dumber?”
Brooks begins by saying, “I’m generally optimistic about all the ways artificial intelligence is going to make life better — scientific research, medical diagnoses, tutoring and my favorite current use, vacation planning. But it also offers a malevolent seduction: excellence without effort. It gives people the illusion that they can be good at thinking without hard work, and I’m sorry, but that’s not possible.”
He then discusses a recent study out of M.I.T. that recruited 54 participants, split them into three groups, and asked them to write essays. The first group used AI, the second group used search engines (but no AI), and the third group used only their brains.
“The essays people used AI to write contained a lot more references to specific names, places, years and definitions,” says Brooks. “The people who relied solely on their brains had 60 percent fewer references to these things . . . But the essays written with AI were more homogeneous, while those
written by people relying on their brains created a wider variety of arguments and points.”
Then the researchers asked the writers to quote from their papers. About 83% of the AI users had great difficulty doing so. The people who used search engines were better at quoting their own points, and the brains-only writers were much better at it.
The researchers summarized it thusly: “The brain-only group, though under greater cognitive load, demonstrated deeper learning outcomes and stronger identity with their output. The search engine group displayed moderate internalization, likely balancing effort with outcome. The L.L.M. group (Large Language Models), while benefiting from tool efficiency, showed weaker memory traces, reduced self-monitoring and fragmented authorship.”
Then the researchers got even more science-y and used EEG headsets to look at the participants’ brains.
The brains-only subjects showed high connectivity across several brain regions. The search engine users experienced less brain connectivity, and the AI users had the least connectivity of all.
The study’s conclusion? “Collectively, these findings support the view that external support tools restructure not only task performance but also the underlying cognitive architecture.”
Sorry, but I don’t want my cognitive architecture restructured! I’ve already had way too much “accidental remodeling” up there thanks to the internet, social media, and impending old age.
And as for you, dear reader; while it’s certainly faster and more efficient to peruse an “overview” of this column, I still think – or, at least, hope – there’s something to be gained by reading the column, itself.
If you don’t do it for my “endearing” writing style, as described by Meta AI – then do it for your brain health.
The Society of Bluffton Artists (SOBA) is proud to present “ Everyday Life on Hilton Head,” a solo exhibit by Nancy Huson, as its August Featured Artist show. The exhibit will be on display from August 3rd through August 30th at the SOBA Gallery, located in Old Town Bluffton.
An opening reception — free and open to the public — will take place from 3 to 5 p.m. August 7th at the gallery, offering the community a chance to meet the artist and enjoy light refreshments.
Nancy Huson draws inspiration from her daily walks through Hilton Head’s natural landscapes — its beaches, gardens, and marshes. Her oil and pastel paintings radiate with vibrant color and the quiet joy of everyday island moments. Whether capturing the delicate
bloom of a lily or an ibis mid-hunt at Sea Pines Forest Preserve, Huson’s work is a visual journal of the serene beauty that surrounds her.
“I try to capture the beauty of those experiences with vibrant colors as I see them in nature’s light,” Huson said. “It is my hope that I can visually communicate the happy and peaceful feelings of my experiences with the viewer.”
Huson studied fine art and printmaking at Colgate University, and further honed her craft at studios in Kansas City and through workshops with accomplished plein air artists Carol Douglas and Greg Barnes.
For more information about Nancy Huson and to preview her work, visit nancyhuson. com. For gallery hours and additional information about SOBA, visit sobagallery.com
When I set out to tackle big things, I like to dip my toe in first, check the temperature, and see if I’m really up for it. That’s why I decided not just to clean out my everyday purse — but to excavate it. Not like an archaeologist gently brushing off relics, but more like an anthropologist, trying to piece together a culture from its debris.
Because honestly, I need to clear out more than just my purse. There are at least four closets, a walk-in attic, an alarming garage, and a handful of junk drawers, all demanding attention. It’s not like this is my first downsizing rodeo. Ten years ago, we did a massive purge and swore we’d never let things pile up again. That ordeal should’ve cured my accumulation addiction — or so I thought. Then came the clearing of my parents’ house, another reminder that eventually, stuff owns the owner. “Never us,” we said. “Never again.”
And yet, here I am again, staring down a list.
This time, the scale is smaller — not a whole basement’s worth of detritus from a former, less intentional life. But still, the weight of it feels familiar. So, I started with the smallest battlefield: my purse. Or as my daughters call it, The Beast — full of little zippered mini beasts.
The summer Beast is big enough for bulky toddler snacks and newborn bottles, sturdy enough for a plane ride, and mysterious enough to possibly contain both a book of poetry and a Kindle cord. But today, as I unzip its many compartments, I’m reminded — again — of the gap between my aspirational self and my actual one.
This little pouch should hold a curated collection of flattering lipsticks in trendy
pinks and confident reds. A gold compact mirror. A tiny perfume atomizer. A crescent moon-shaped nail file and a small tissue pack for blotting makeup. If someone found this purse and peeked inside, I’d want them to picture a lovely, glowy woman.
Alas. What’s actually inside? One melted ChapStick. Three lint-covered cough drops. A dentist office toothbrush still in its plastic. And a broken-handled hairbrush tangled with hair from me, both daughters, and two grandsons.
This is the pouch that’s supposed to save the day.
Inside: a few crumpled bills, some parking meter quarters (and coins from at least three foreign countries — you never know), expired gift cards, and a few battered checks an address from a house and state we no longer
By Carolyn Mason
live in. There are faded receipts, business cards I don’t remember collecting, and cryptic scraps of paper with what might be Netflix recommendations or possible passwords, hard to tell.
My financial strategy, in short, is murky chaos.
Once, my youngest daughter told someone I was good in emergencies. Out of all the compliments in the world, that one stuck. I want to be the person with Band-Aids, calm hands, and a cool, collected mind. This pouch gives it an honest try. It holds a sleeve of Tylenol, a few loose Tums, neon dinosaur Band-Aids, a nail clipper, a tiny sewing kit, an expired AAA card, and a laminated photo of venomous snakes of South Carolina. Also, a ballpoint pen — just one. Don’t worry: if the Heimlich fails, I will not be the person jabbing a pen into anyone’s trachea. I’ll call 911. I promise.
This is the only pouch where aspiration and reality fully align. It contains a slim notebook, two working pens, a mini sketchpad, and a Micron pen. It’s the one that always makes the transfer when I swap purses — like a small reminder that some parts of myself are still intact.
Now that I’ve excavated the Beast and exorcised a few small demons for your reading pleasure, I suppose it’s time to tackle a closet. Or at least start with the junk drawer where I have a feeling I’ll find a few dozen keys of unknown origin and hopefully a new Triple A card.
Maybe this time, instead of just clearing space, I’ll clear some expectations, too. Because in the end, decluttering isn’t just about stuff — it’s about making room for who we truly are, aspirational and otherwise.
Halfway Home, a special sea turtlethemed art exhibit, returns to Art League Academy July 22–30, 2025, in partnership with Sea Turtle Patrol HHI. The week-long event showcases creative works from the community, all celebrating the beauty and vulnerability of Hilton Head Island’s most beloved coastal creature. Twenty percent of all artwork and class sales will benefit Sea Turtle Patrol HHI,
“We named the exhibit Halfway Home because we'll be right at the halfway point of the sea turtle season,” says Kristen McIntosh, Executive Director of Art League of Hilton Head. “The artists have created thoughtful, beautiful pieces, and we’re proud to support this vital cause once again.”
Visitors are invited to browse the exhibit daily, 10am–4pm, and attend the Closing Reception on Wednesday, July 30 from
By Nancy Feldman
a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting sea turtle nests and hatchlings during the island’s nesting season.
5–7pm, where they can meet the artists and enjoy light refreshments. The event is free and open to the public.
The nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center and the Storybook Shoppe bookstore are honored to host an evening with New York Times and USA Today bestselling novelist Karen White, author of newly published That Last Carolina Summer. Join us on Wednesday, July 23, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at 711 Bladen Street (Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce). This event will also feature a special welcome by Conroy Center honorary chair and bestselling author Cassandra King.
Advance registration required: https:// karenwhite-beaufort.eventbrite.com. $40 event fee includes an autographed copy of That Last Carolina Summer, the author's presentation, and refreshments. This is a book-with-ticket event; no refunds will be possible. Additional copies of Karen White's books will also be available for sale and signing.
comfort to Phoebe, while Celeste’s adult grandson Liam resurrects complicated emotions tied to Phoebe’s past. But the longer Phoebe spends in her childhood home, the more her recurring nightmares intensify — bringing her closer to the shocking truth that will irrevocably change everything. Unfolding against the lush backdrop of the South Carolina Lowcountry, That Last Carolina Summer is an unforgettable story about the unbreakable bonds of family and the gift of second chances.
"Karen White brings all her magnificent storytelling gifts to this stunner of a novel. As much as you want to race along and discover all the secrets, you find yourself stopping to savor the truths she weaves into every twist and turn. If That Last Carolina Summer has a flaw, it is this: you won’t ever want to wake up from its spell." — Beatriz Williams, bestselling author of Husbands & Lovers
In addition to the exhibit, Art League Academy will offer sea turtle-themed classes, with a portion of the proceeds donated to Sea Turtle Patrol HHI. Media include mosaics, washi tape, paint, and mixed media. Class registration is available at artleaguehhi.org
Amber Kuehn, Director of Sea Turtle Patrol HHI, says, “We patrol the beach daily from May through October to protect our sea turtle population. As a volunteer-run organization, partnerships like this help us educate the public and keep doing the work that matters.” By
Beloved bestselling author Karen White returns with a captivating Southern drama about sisterhood, secrets and one woman’s reckoning with the past. As a child, Phoebe Manigault developed the gift of premonition after she was struck by lightning in the creek near her Charleston home. Plagued throughout her life by mysterious dreams, and always living in the shadow of her beautiful sister, Addie, Phoebe eventually moves to the West Coast, as far from her family as possible. Now, years later, she is summoned back to South Carolina, to help Addie care for their ailing mother.
As Phoebe’s return lures her back into deep-rooted tensions and conflicts, she is drawn to Celeste, whose granddaughter went missing years ago. Their connection brings
Karen White is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author with millions of copies of her books in print in fifteen different languages. When not writing, Karen spends her time reading and birdwatching. She and her husband have two grown children and a spoiled Havanese dog, Sophie, and she divides her time between Atlanta, Georgia, and the northwest Florida coast.
Learn more about the Conroy Center at www.patconroyliterarycenter.org. Learn more about the Storybook Shoppe at https:// thestorybookshoppe.com/
A recent visit to the Port Royal Cypress Wetlands and Rookery felt different than usual. Most of the dozen times I’ve been there in the past year have been the same: stroll the boardwalk, listen to visitors say “wow,” admire all the birds, take a few pics, try and spot gators and turtles.
there, and the heightened noise, smell, and activity borders on overwhelming. There were all kinds of fussing, squawking, chasing, and fighting going on in and among the trees and branches, but it was one battle in particular that caught our attention.
Cypress Wetlands encompasses five wetland areas, and during the spring and summer it’s a breeding ground for all kinds of birds, including the white ibis, black-crowned night-heron, snowy egret, great egret, yellow-crowned night-heron, and green heron.
Originally billed as a stormwater solution and attracting funding in 1999 on that basis and as a natural enhancement, it now enjoys wide popularity and renown. There are plenty of long camera lenses and knowing looks among the many visitors.
This last visit, though, was rawer and more urgent. There must be more than a thousand birds in various states of residence currently
In the highest branches of a tree in the biggest nesting area, about halfway down the boardwalk over the water, there were two Great Egrets just wailing on a third one as it cowered in its nest. I mean pecking and jabbing like Ali in his prime. A fourth Egret stood by, not participating but not really defending the attacked one either. My sister in law was concerned and a guy who seemed confident in his opinion kind of shrugged and confirmed that yes, the birds meant harm and were probably after the nest and its eggs. It reminded me of one of the nature shows on television, like the old program Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom. It’s all fun and games until violent instincts take over. Chaos ruled amidst the beauty on this hot and muggy night, and the nature of memory provided a trail back to childhood, in front of the console TV, watching that Sunday night program.
Growing up as the youngest of nine kids meant household chaos, in both the best and worst of ways. A profusion of love and spiritedness, a mother who lived creatively as an actress and burst out in song at any time for any reason. A father who plunked out tin
Tues - Sun: 11am-9pm
pan alley tunes on the upright at house parties filled with playhouse friends, fueled by scotch and an undying enthusiasm for togetherness, having been an only child himself. Only later, after sibling deaths, drug and booze abuse, and detours into mental illness did the chaos display a dark edge, requiring a circling of the emotional wagons, a retreat from the expansive affirmation of a socially boisterous Irish-Catholic family to a huddle of hesitation: just us.
Many of those just us moments took place around the television screen, as we gathered in a ritual that seemed part escape, part embrace: we could enjoy each other’s company without dealing with the herd of elephants in the room. Sometimes it was elephants on the screen instead, as when we watched the aforementioned Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom in the late 60’s and early 70’s. How we loved the droll zookeeper Marlon Perkins, a dashing figure enjoying wildlife around the globe. And his sidekick Jim, always game to be the one to leave the safety of the jeep.
Death was dealt with directly in many of those episodes, at least as I remember it: the lion chasing down the gazelle and the resulting blood on the savanna; the eagle swooping, plucking, then devouring the rodent. I recently went back and watched the very first episode of the show and was hit with a somber pre-title voiceover of these words while a Giant Anteater ran across a field: “In the wild kingdom, where death is swift, life depends on a design for survival.”
By Luke Frazier
conservation message centered on preserving natural habitats, including his wistful take on loss, “ . . . every day we must travel a little bit farther to find the wild kingdom.”
I’ve traveled mighty far from that wild kingdom of childhood, where survival instincts took on their own self-defeating designs. I’ve followed many a boardwalk trail over dangerous waters and seen violence up close. I wore armor of denial, evaded detection from self, spit in the face of opportunity and deceived with the best (worst) of them. Now I’m plopped into the middle of an area that has a lush wetlands right off the main drag, with its own amphitheater right across from a Parker’s gas station. It all comes together in the notion of living through persistence and discovery, finally winning through surrender.
The episode was called “Designs for Survival” and featured a box turtle getting hassled by a lion cub on a table in the studio as Marlon explained how its armor offered protection. Later, we saw suit & tied Marlon swatting an African Porcupine with a broom and analyzing the extracted quills as another form of armor with Jim, alerting us to their “microscopic barbs” that stick painfully in predators. Nothing was said about the pain from getting hit with a broom.
After examples of evasive survival, the episode concluded with a purposefully provoked python spitting poisonous venom on Marlon’s plastic facemask before both he and Jim bottle-fed baby lions. Marlon delivered a
On the hazy night when Great Egrets unleashed their wrath because it was in their nature, I could almost see my mom singing up a storm to the alligators just over the rail. My dad toasts with scotch on the rocks, my long-gone siblings joining in the chorus. The song itself suggests a kind of mournful but fiercely beautiful lament, repeating something about the quality of wild kingdoms.
Luke Frazier is a writer and award-winning media producer who recently transplanted to the Lowcountry. He runs NOW Communications, which focuses on the needs of missiondriven organizations. Luke can be reached at nowandfuturecomms@gmail.com
The Beaufort Bookstore will host a book launch party for Mary J. Nestor on Saturday, July 26 from 4:30 – 6:30 pm, to introduce her debut psychological thriller, Bus No. 7.
Just out from Bold Story Press, the thriller begins with a drug addict’s plot to rob a pregnant woman and ends with a nail-biting ride on a runaway bus with a disturbing cast of characters headed toward their respective dooms. What transpires in between in this riveting, gripping psychological thriller will leave readers on the edge of their seats.
Bus No. 7 started as a short story at a writers’ conference in 2016 and was a finalist in the Novel-in-Progress category of the 2020 William Faulkner Literary Competition. In 2023, it was selected for publication by Bold Story Press, a Washington, D.C.-based publishing house for women authors. Here are just a few of the reviews already in:
“Mary Nestor’s debut novel introduces a collection of unsavory and dangerous characters that sweep the reader into a dark landscape of crime and addiction where even
- Sunday 11am-4pm
the savvy detective has to play catch-up. Bus No. 7 has readers wondering—what awaits when they turn the next page?” — Karen Dove Barr, author of Burnt Pot Island and the forthcoming Night’s a Shadow Day’s a Shine
“Mary Nestor's amazing new book, Bus No. 7, is a thriller in the best meaning of the word – a chilling tale that will have you on the edge of your seat!”—Rosemary Daniell, award-winning author of Secrets of the Zona Rosa: How Writing (and Sisterhood) Can Change Women’s Lives, and nine other books of poetry and prose.
In addition to being an author, Nestor is a communications expert, award-winning speaker, business consultant, and coach. She has previously published Emily’s Best Birthday Party Ever! (2014) and Say It Now! Say It Right! How to Handle Tough and Tender Conversations (2016), now in its second edition and translated into Spanish by Penguin Random House Mexico.
When this grandmother of five isn’t writing, you can find her walking on the beach, singing with the Hilton Head Choral Society, fabricating beautiful home furnishings, or playing golf. She’s busy writing the sequel to Bus No. 7 in her villa next to a pond with a resident alligator.
For more information, please visit www.maryjnestor.com, or connect with the author on Facebook (facebook.com/maryjnestorauthor); Instagram (instagram.com/ maryjnestor); or LinkedIn ( linkedin.com/in/ maryjnestor-writer-speaker-consultant)
The Gullah/Geechee Nation and its elected Head-of-State and Chieftess, Queen Quet, will celebrate a historic milestone: the 25th Anniversary of the founding of the Gullah/Geechee Nation. To mark this momentous occasion, the public is “culturally” invited to attend Gullah/Geechee Famlee Day on Saturday, July 26, 2025, from Noon to 3 pm at the iconic Penn Center, Inc. on historic St. Helena Island, South Carolina, within the heart of the Gullah/Geechee Nation.
This vibrant, family-friendly authentically Gullah/Geechee global reunion will honor a quarter-century of cultural advocacy, heritage preservation, community empowerment and spiritual upliftment led by Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation. Guests can expect fa yeddi de Gullah/Geechee language, traditional music, history, storytelling and to be able to obtain handmade Gullah/ Geechee crafts, and savor cuisine reflective of the rich Gullah/Geechee heritage that has flourished in the Sea Islands for centuries.
Queen Quet, who made history as the first Gullah/Geechee person to speak before the United Nations on behalf of her people, continues to champion environmental justice, land and water rights, and the continuation of the Gullah/Geechee language and traditions. The Gullah/Geechee Nation, which stretches from North Carolina to Florida, remains a beacon of African and indigenous American cultural survival and resilience in the United States.
“Hunnuh chillun, cum fa disya great celebration of who webe! Beat de drum and shout fa 25 years of self-determination een de Gullah/Geechee Nation!“ said Queen Quet. “Gullah/Geechee Famlee Day is about unity, love, and honoring those who made it possible for us to thrive as a people.”
The 25th Anniversary also serves as a call to action to continue safeguarding Gullah/ Geechee cultural practices amid the ongoing challenges of climate change, land displacement, and cultural commodification.
Gullah/Geechee Famlee Day: A 25th Anniversary Celebration will be Saturday, July 26, 2025, Noon to 3 PM (Rain or Shine) at Penn Center’s Frissell Hall, St. Helena Island, This is an indoor/outdoor event. Registration is required at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ 1288366180929?aff=oddtdtcreator
Come join Queen Quet and the Gullah/ Geechee Nation for a day of remembrance, joy, and cultural pride. For more information, visit www.GullahGeecheeNation.com or contact Penn Center at 843-838-2432
The Storybook Shoppe children’s bookstore will host award-winning author Kiese Laymon for an evening of stories on Thursday, July 24, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., at Robert Smalls Leadership Academy (43 W. Alston Dr., Beaufort). This free program for families will include a writing opportunity inspired by our Lowcountry summers as well as discussion of Laymon’s debut picture book City Summer, Country Summer in conversation with local students E Achurch and Emily Alaia from DAYLO (Diversity Awareness Youth Literacy Organization). Books will be available for sale and signing.
This special event is a community collaboration between the Storybook Shoppe, Robert Smalls Leadership Academy, DAYLO, and the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center.
City Summer, Country Summer is a lyrical and evocative picture book that captures the transformative power of friendship. The story of three Black boys as they embark on
a lifechanging summer. The boys spend one special summer exploring the Mississippi woods — and the woulds and coulds of sharing the kind of freeing friendship that is love. Watched over and given space to discover by Grandmama and Mama Lara, New York, Country, and little C find camaraderie in their contrasts and all the unspoken things between them while playing games of Marco Polo in the thick garden and sledding on cardboard by the underpass. With text brimming with love City Summer, Country Summer illustrates the tenuous bonds of friendship Black boys forge with one another.
“A heartfelt, elegantly wrought, and triumphant tribute to Black boy kinship. On the sunny porches of their grandmothers’ neighboring houses and in the cool shadows of the surrounding woods, hesitation becomes tenderness, anxiety becomes laughter, and difference becomes safeness.”— Kirkus Reviews, starred review
"Laymon’s text is lyrical and specific . . . Franklin’s digital illustrations . . . clearly
centers each emotion the boys experience . . . deeply moving . . . reveling as it does in the tender bonds of Black boy friendship." — The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
Kiese Laymon is a Black Southern writer from Jackson, Mississippi. Laymon is also the author of the genre-bending novel
Paid Advertorial by The Christian Science Society of Beaufort
In light of the brutal attack on Israel and its punishing response, many are seeking comfort in prayer. More than anyone, those still anxiously waiting for news about their loved ones’ safety and whereabouts, and those grieving their loss, need to feel God’s loving presence and almighty protection.
I thought of a Jewish family that my tour group crossed paths with several months ago in Israel. The family had fled from their home to escape sporadic rocket fire and was unsure if their home would still be there when they returned. I wondered, too, about a Palestinian friend who had essentially been stateless his whole life. All were gentle, peaceful individuals caught up in a cycle of fear, misunderstanding, and hatred. Were they safe?
During grievous times, prayers may sometimes seem futile and words hollow. But there are beautiful promises in the Bible that unburden the heavy heart and wing it with hope. For instance, in the book of the prophet Isaiah: “For thus saith the Lord . . . As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you” (66:12, 13)
And in Psalms: “Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even
the night shall be light about me” (139:7-11)
What could be more comforting than to feel in the deepest recesses of our heart that not a single one of God’s children can be separated from Her love and saving power? There is no person or circumstance that is beyond the reach or help of God, infinite good. Wherever we are, God is, for we are at one with our divine Parent as the image, or spiritual reflection, of divine Love. Not even those seemingly caught in the web of hopelessness, fear, or hatred can be cut off from God’s redeeming love. God is here, now, guarding and guiding all of us.
Long Division and the bestselling memoir Heavy: An American Memoir, winner of the 2019 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction, the 2018 Christopher Isherwood Prize for Autobiographical Prose, the Austen Riggs Erikson Prize for Excellence in Mental Health Media, and named one of the 50 Best Memoirs of the Past 50 Years by The New York Times. He was also the recipient of the 2020-2021 Radcliffe Fellowship at Harvard and a MacArthur Genius grant. He currently teaches English and creative writing at Rice University.
E Achurch is founding president of the DAYLO chapter at The Complete Student and Emily Alaia is president of the Battery Creek High School chapter of DAYLO. Both are rising juniors. Learn more about the Conroy Center at www.patconroyliterarycenter.org. Learn more about the Storybook Shoppe at https://thestorybookshoppe.com/
loving care. Despite what we saw (or didn’t see) on the surface, this individual’s life was continuing uninterrupted because God, the creator of all that truly is, is Life. There was no place this individual could go or be taken to that would separate them from our loving Father-Mother, from Life itself. As God’s spiritual offspring, each one of us reflects divine Life, is the child of Life, and has an eternal life – an identity that is indestructible.
Holding to the spiritual fact of everyone’s unbreakable unity, safety, and life in God brings light, hope, and strength to go forward.
As I prayed along these lines, I was reminded of a time when our family had lost contact with someone very dear to us who had been struggling with a challenging situation. We feared we might have lost them. All of us were praying for peace and comfort.
A family member later told me that as she was sitting and praying by a bay one day, a cormorant – a water bird common to the area – came into view. After paddling on the surface of the water for a few minutes, the bird suddenly dove into the deep and disappeared from sight.
In a flash of understanding, my family member saw that while our loved one was out of our sight, they had never left God’s
Whether we saw this individual again or not (and ultimately we did), nothing could change these spiritual facts. This was the comforting message that came to my family member through Christ – God’s powerful, universal message of truth and love –and replaced the darkness of fear and grief with light.
The discoverer of Christian Science, Mary Baker Eddy, gives this prayer of gratitude for God’s light and love:
“May the great Shepherd that ‘tempers the wind to the shorn lamb,’ and binds up the wounds of bleeding hearts, just comfort, encourage, and bless all who mourn.
“Father, we thank Thee that Thy light and Thy love reach earth, open the prison to them that are bound, console the innocent, and throw wide the gates of heaven” (Miscellaneous Writings 1883-1896, p. 275)
May the light and love of God be known and felt by all –in the Middle East and everywhere.
By Suzanne Smedley
Libraries for Kids, International www.libraries4kids.org is pleased to announce an author talk featuring Brenda Sutton Rose on Monday, July 21, 2025, from 10:30 to 11:30 am at the Roasting Room, 1297 May River Road, Bluffton, SC. The event is free and open to the public; however, a $5 donation is suggested.
Following the author's talk, attendees are invited to join the author for an optional Dutch Treat lunch.
Space is limited, so reservations are necessary, and early arrival is recommended. For more information or to RSVP, please contact Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or tamelamaxim@gmail.com or tamela.maxim@ libraries4kids.org
Featured Books: Dogwood Blues, A Wiregrass Childhood
About the Author: Brenda Sutton Rose is a Southern author and visual artist whose work captures the rich textures of small-town life in Georgia. Her writing is steeped in the rhythms of the South, often blending humor, heartbreak, and redemption with a lyrical voice that resonates deeply with readers.
Brenda will talk about her debut novel, Dogwood Blues, and her recently released novella, A Wiregrass Childhood.
A Wiregrass Childhood is a nostalgic and imaginative novella that paints a vivid portrait of rural life in Georgia’s Wiregrass region. The book blends fictional storytelling with threads of local history, drawing inspiration from the early settlers and Creek people of Irwin County.
Rose describes the work as “a creation of my imagination,” though she skillfully weaves in historical details from Turner and Irwin County records to enrich the narrative. The result is a heartfelt tribute to the spirit of the South — its landscapes, its people, and its enduring traditions. While the characters are largely fictional, the emotional truths they carry feel deeply rooted in the region’s past. Her award-winning debut novel, Dogwood Blues, is a vibrant piece of Southern fiction set in the fictional town of Dogwood, Georgia, near the Alapaha River. The story follows Kevin Kilmer, a New York author returning to his hometown to confront his past, and Boone Marshall, a blues pianist and farmer whose new marriage stirs gossip in the community. With a cast of eccentric characters – including the sharp-tongued women of the Honeysuckle Bridge Club – the novel explores themes of betrayal, forgiveness, and the tension between tradition and change.
“I’ve been known to slow dance with words over graves of buried prayers, drink words undiluted under the shadow of my grandfather’s whiskey bottles, lift words from where they’ve spilled around my father’s brogans. I write from the seeding syllables of my gardens, from the crumbling graves of my ancestors, from sorrow sleeping in my grandmother’s tattered Bible. I dig for stories in the soil of the southern landscape, under longleaf pines, ancient oaks dripping with Spanish moss, and in the fields of callused
farmers. When the mood hits me, I extract poetry from the juice of freshly picked blackberries and haul memories from the soles of my bare feet. With the barbed-wire nouns and plural verbs of my mistakes, with the cast iron consonants and sweet, silent vowels of my mother’s kitchen, I write. But in the end, the most important thing is that I give these stories life.”
Libraries for Kids, International is a 501(c)(3) organization providing leisure and reference books to schools in rural Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda for recreational and supplemental reading. Libraries for Kids works exclusively with schools with little or no electricity or internet access in communities facing significant environmental, climatic, and cultural challenges.
For more information, contact Tamela Maxim, Board Member, Libraries for Kids, International, tamela.maxim@libraries4kids. org, 843-683-4100.
UPCOMING AUTHOR TALKS:
August 18, 2025 – Author Mark O’Neill will discuss his book To Catch a Spy. www.markoneill.com
September 15, 2025 – Author Pat Branning will discuss her subscription offering, The Diary of Southern Lifestyle. www.patbranning.com
October 20, 2025 – Author Scott Gould will discuss his book Peace Like a River (release date August 2025). www.scottgouldwriter.com
November 17, 2025 – Authors Lynn and Cele Seldon will discuss their book, 100 Things to Do in the South Carolina Lowcountry Before You Die. www.seldonink.com
December 15, 2025 – Author Annelore Harrell will discuss her book Et Cetera Y’all, Volume 2. www.anneloreharrell.com
We had heard friends mention a great sandwich shop on Lady’s Island for the past few years. And a recent visit by Cele’s mother—a tough dining critic — provided the perfect excuse to make a mother-daughter lunch at Mameem & Maudie happen. And we sure are glad it did. Because now we’ve found a new staple for lunch (or breakfast, or cup of coffee, or an afternoon pick-me-up) and a charming new retail shop (who knew?).
Time passed and Sherry and Chris found themselves in Atlanta owning a dental management business and raising their family of three kids. Leslye and Billy were in Columbia, South Carolina working for competing department stores and raising their family of three.
Fast forward to the mid-2010s, and everyone was in a transitionary period.
Sherry and Chris had sold their dental management business; Morgan had graduated from college and was looking for her next chapter; and Leslye and Billy had left their retail positions and were looking for a new opportunity. Being familiar with the Bluffton area and with some family background in retail, the quintet decided to open a cute and quirky shop in Old Town Bluffton that carried a bit of everything from women’s clothing to jewelry, gift items, accessories, and children’s clothing and gifts.
Located on Sea Island Parkway across from the entrance to Beaufort High School in the strip center where Groucho’s Deli used to be, Mameem & Maudie (pronounced like ma’am-ēēm) is a family affair that originally started in Bluffton ten years ago but moved to Beaufort in 2020. Thankfully for us.
Owned and operated by twin sisters, Sherry Johnston and Leslye Tapp, their husbands, Chris and Billy, and Sherry and Chris’s daughter, Morgan, the restaurant is part café and part retail shop, with plenty of indoor and alfresco dining between the two. Sherry and Leslye grew up between Ridgeland and Hilton Head Island in the 1960s and 70s. Their father was a sailor, and he would often bring his boat (and his kids) to Beaufort, docking at Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club. So, the area was familiar to them.
The unique name is an homage to Sherry and Leslye’s great-grandmother and great-aunt, who left fond memories and a lasting impression on the girls. Their goal was to create a shop where anyone would feel welcome and the eclectic merchandise mix and customer
service would leave a lasting impression. Just like Mameem and Maudie’s legacy.
Cele & Lynn Seldon
Business in Old Town Bluffton was booming as the historic district was expanding. The family wanted to expand their concept by adding a café, but the regulations of Old Town Bluffton forbid any café to open on the side streets. Instead, they added a walk-up ice cream window and served ice cream cones, milkshakes, and shaved ice.
Around the same time, an opportunity presented itself in Savannah and the family opened another retail store and ice cream shop, which expanded into sandwiches, soups, and salads the following year.
Although that concept didn’t last long due to its location, it satisfied the family’s café bug and provided them with the experience they were craving. And as often happens, when one door closes, another opens.
When they decided to close the Savannah location in 2019, they learned that Groucho’s deli in Beaufort had closed, and that the space was available. Kismet. The kitchen infrastructure was in place so with a little cleaning, painting, and refurbishment, Mameem & Maudie opened in January of 2020 as a café serving breakfast and lunch. Although COVID was lurking around the corner, the new café was uniquely positioned to ride out that storm with grab and go soups, sandwiches, and salads, along with a robust curbside pick-up scenario. Naturally, it wasn’t ideal, but it did give the shop a chance to get the kinks out of the new location and plan for the non-COVID future. They even started writing inspirational notes and uplifting scripture on the takeout bags to help brighten everyone’s day, which they still do today. They weathered the storm quite successfully in Beaufort. The Bluffton location wasn’t quite as successful, however, and they closed in 2021, moving the retail operation to the Beaufort location.
Today, they have expanded into three-quarters of the building, with one side being the convivial café (details to come), along with an eclectic selection of T-shirts, hats, bags, notecards, and sauces; the middle section providing plenty of indoor seating; and the third section housing the unique merchandise mix of women’s clothing and
There’s even an outdoor patio, with plenty of tables and chairs to have a cup of coffee, enjoy your meal, take a meeting, or simply relish the weather.
Now that all the dust has settled, the family dynamic is stronger than ever. Leslye manages the retail buying and the books; Chris handles HR and customer service; Sherry pursues product development and helps prepare food; and Morgan is the manager and runs the day-to-day operations of the café and shop. Even Uncle Trey (Leslye and Sherry’s brother) is now part of the operation, with his screen-printing business making all the T-shirts, bags, note cards, coffee cups, and more. Now, let’s get to the meat of the café (see
shoes, jewelry, home décor, gift items, bath and body products, books, readers, and kids clothing and toys. There is also a wonderful selection of local artwork — much of it with a coastal vibe — throughout the entire store.
what we did there?).
M&M features Grind Coffee Roasters out of Bluffton for their varied coffee and espresso beverages. They also offer smoothies and juices, as well as croissants, bagels, and breads from various gourmet artisan bakers, along with house made muffins, sticky buns, and cinnamon rolls. For heartier morning appetites, choose from a wide selection of breakfast bagels (the bacon, egg, and cheese is the most popular, natch); biscuits (don’t miss the biscuit and southern sausage gravy); break-
fast entrees like yogurt parfait with a muffin, power bowls, granola bowls, and avocado toast; and even breakfast bubble waffles, which are custard batter waffles served with butter and house made brown sugar syrup (pecans are optional).
Lunch offers a cornucopia of creative sandwiches — all with nautical names as an homage to their seafaring father and grandfather — served on toasted sourdough or multigrain with lettuce, tomato, onion, and a pickle on the side. According to Morgan, fan favorites include The All-American (grilled turkey, ham, roast beef, bacon, and muenster with a side of ranch) and The Stowaway (chicken salad, Swiss, and bacon). For us, we also like The Helmsman (roast beef, provolone, and horseradish) and The Jib (turkey, coleslaw, muenster, 1000 island dressing on grilled rye).
But don’t overlook their soups and salads. The Chicken & Orzo with dried cranberries, feta, pine nuts, and basil is to die for, and The Blackberry is loaded with, well, blackberries, goat cheese and almonds. You can even turn any sandwich into a salad. The tomato basil soup is a crowd favorite, as is the rotating soup of the day. Other sides to choose from include caprese couscous, coleslaw, peppermento cheese (think pimento cheese with pepper jack), and chips. M&M will even cater for a variety of events.
Be sure to leave room for dessert, where Mameem & Maudie really shines. Whether it’s the oversized scratch made cookies; ice cream in all kinds of flavors, cones, and
toppings; more than a dozen flavors of milkshakes (don’t get us started on the salted caramel!); shaved ice (available in 36 flavors including all the standards, plus crazy options like cake batter, dill pickle, white chocolate, and tigers blood); and specialty bubble waffles in to-die-for flavors like Nutella Delight, Oreo Blast, and Pecan Explosion. Starting soon, they plan to offer whole cakes and pies for special orders.
If you haven’t been to Mameem and Maudie, plan to make an outing of it. Stop in for a late breakfast, do a little shopping, and enjoy a cup of coffee on the patio. Then stick around for lunch and dessert. That’s what we call one-stop shopping!
If you like cottage cheese, and even if you don’t, you’re going to love ricotta! Ricotta and cottage cheese are both fresh, soft cheeses, but they have distinct differences in taste and texture. Ricotta cheese is a whey cheese made from sheep, cow, goat, or Italian water buffalo milk. Ricotta curds are creamy white in appearance, and slightly sweet in taste. Ricotta has a smoother and spreadable consistency, while cottage cheese, made from milk curds, has a firmer, lumpy, and often tangy flavor. Cottage cheese is lower in calories than ricotta. Neither ricotta or cottage cheese is better than the other. Both are excellent sources of protein and calcium. While some recipes opt for either ricotta or cottage cheese, they are not truly interchangeable due to differences in moisture content. Either can be used in baked entrees like lasagna or stuffed shells, but cottage cheese is not a suitable substitution for most baked desserts, as it can make the dish runny. Both can be used in dips and spreads, but cottage cheese may require draining and/or blending to achieve a smoother consistency. In summary, it’s important to be mindful of the texture and moisture differences to achieve the desired outcome. Personally, I prefer the flavor and texture of ricotta cheese, even after eating cottage cheese in lasagna for most of my life. With a bit of extra time on my hands this summer, I've been able to experiment with several recipes that include ricotta cheese. I'd like to share three of my favorites. Happy Cooking!
PESTO AND RICOTTA PASTA WITH ASPARAGUS AND PROSCIUTTO
Made in less than 30 minutes, this yummy pasta is super easy, uses minimal ingredients and is packed with flavor!
4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
8 ounces thin spaghetti pasta
1 bunch asparagus, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 cup pesto (homemade or store bought)
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
Salt and pepper, to taste
Shredded parmesan cheese
Chopped fresh tomatoes
Chopped green onions
Fresh basil, to garnish
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange
prosciutto slices in an even layer on prepared baking sheet. Transfer to oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until crispy. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the spaghetti to al dente, according to package directions. During the last 2 to 3 minutes of cooking, add the asparagus to the boiling water. Drain well. Toss the hot pasta with pesto, ricotta, lemon juice and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper. Top with crispy prosciutto. Garnish with shredded parmesan, tomatoes, green onions, and fresh basil. Serves 4.
LEMON RICOTTA PASTA WITH SPINACH
This light and zesty pasta makes a delicious side dish that's ready in less than 15 minutes. Simple with fresh ingredients, delicious flavor, and minimal effort.
1 (12-ounce) container ricotta cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons lemon infused olive oil (or extra-virgin olive oil), divided
¾ cup shredded parmesan cheese, divided
1 unwaxed lemon, zest, and juice
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 (12-ounce) package egg noodles
6 ounces fresh baby spinach, washed Red pepper flakes, optional Lemons, to garnish
In a medium bowl, combine ricotta with garlic, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ cup parmesan cheese, lemon zest and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. In a large pot of boiling water, cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. In the last minute of the pasta's cooking time, add fresh spinach to the pot. Submerge the leaves in the water to cook for 1 minute then drain pasta and spinach. Return pasta and spinach to the same pot and add the ricotta sauce. Stir gently to evenly coat the pasta in the sauce. Garnished with remaining parmesan cheese and drizzle with remaining olive oil. Sprinkle with crushed red pepper flakes. Serve with lemon wedges for an extra blast of fresh lemon juice. Serves 6.
I used a dark chocolate cake mix and Godiva dark chocolate pudding.
1 (15.25-ounce) box chocolate cake
1 (32-ounce) container ricotta cheese
¾ cup sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (3.6-ounce) package instant chocolate pudding
1 cup whole milk
1 (8-ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed in refrigerator Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a
deep 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. In a large bowl, prepare cake mix according to package directions. Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan, using a spatula to spread evenly. In the same bowl, with an electric mixer, beat together ricotta cheese, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract until smooth. Gently spread ricotta mixture evenly over the cake batter. Bake for 60 minutes or until center of cake is set. (The ricotta layer will sink into the cake batter while baking. You will end up with a very thin layer of cake on the bottom, a cheesecake layer, and a thicker cake layer on top.) Let the cake cool completely on a baking rack. In a large bowl, whisk the pudding mix with the milk until smooth. Gently fold in the whipped topping until well combined. Spread the pudding mixture over the cooled cake. Cover the cake and refrigerate, for at least 8 hours, before serving. Best served cold. Serves 12 to 15.
Gardening has always been regarded as a hobby that provides health benefits. The physical act of gardening is a good work out. I wear a fitness watch while gardening and I get my 10,000 steps in every day. The bending, digging, and lifting can keep us fit, maintain flexibility and balance, and keep us feeling young. The medical community is studying the effect of being outside and engaging with nature on illness prevention and mental wellbeing.
According to Mayo Clinic’s Speaking of Health newsletter, gardening has “been shown to lighten mood and lower levels of stress and anxiety.” All new hospitals in the U.K. must be designed with a garden for both patients and staff and many existing hospitals in both the U.K and the United States already have gardens. Particularly during the Covid lockdown, these gardens became places of solace and peace. Doctors in UK are even prescribing garden therapy for people with anxiety or depression. There are gardening programs in the UK especially for people suffering from PTSD and they are quite successful. I am not sure that in this country we are quite there yet, but it is something to consider and cheaper than those medications you see advertised constantly on the television.
One thing that has been studied for the past few years is the transformative effect gardening can have on people. The act of being outside and interacting with nature can be good for the body and the soul. This is wonderfully documented in one of my favorite movies titled “Greenfingers.” It is a story of a group of prison inmates who find redemption and solace in planting a garden that goes on to win a major gardening award. The film is based upon a true story of inmates at HMP (His Majesty’s Prison) Leyhill, a minimum security prison in the English Cotswolds. The story is loosely based on the prison gardeners’ success at winning prizes at various prestigious flower shows and encouraging a prison gardening program that exists to this day. Upon release many of the former inmates found jobs in horticulture or landscaping.
Another excellent examination of the power of gardening on mental well-being is Psychiatrist and psychotherapist, Sue Stuart-Smith’s seminal work about gardening and wellbeing titled “The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature.” She
came to gardening after her marriage to one of the world’s foremost garden designers, Tom Stuart-Smith. She writes “Like a suspension in time, the protected space of a garden allows our inner world and outer world to coexist free from the pressures of everyday life.”
In study after study, the writer takes us on a horticultural journey to such diverse places as a drug rehabilitation center in Italy, a garden at San Quentin Prison in California, The New Roots Community Garden in the Bronx, New York, and a rehabilitative garden in Alnarp, Sweden. All use gardening as a form of therapy and renewal.
Two therapy gardens in the U.K. which I find interesting are Maggie’s Centres and Horatio’s Gardens. Maggie’s Centres were started by a young woman, Maggie Keswick Jencks, who was diagnosed with breast cancer and felt that she did not have a serene place in the hospital to process her diagnosis. She was a gardener and felt that hospitals were sterile and not places of comfort. She and her husband made plans for centers for cancer patients and their caregivers that were in stand alone buildings with gardens. The emphasis in a Maggie’s Centre is that it is a place of calm and welcoming. There is no signage, no uniforms, but there is always a kettle on for tea as well as outdoor space in a garden. Some even have greenhouses. Many famous architects and garden designers have volunteered their services to plan and build these places. Usually on the grounds of a hospital, these gathering places provide all kinds of support from workshops on financial aid to how to talk to children about cancer. All are at no cost to the patient or family.
Horatio’s Garden is a charity founded by two doctors whose son was tragically killed on a school trip. Their son, Horatio, had worked at a spinal rehabilitation facility and wanted to become a doctor. He was concerned that patients recovering from a spinal injury did not have safe access to the outdoors and gardens. In his memory, the charity Horatio’s Garden was born. These gardens are built on the grounds of spinal injury hospitals and again, world famous garden designers have been honored to create these sanctuaries that are so accessible that
By Wendy Hilty
even hospital beds are accommodated. When surveying the patients and the impact of the garden, 100% of the patients wrote that Horatio’s Garden improved their wellbeing and 95% said that it helped their mental health. Plants do not argue and they have no agenda. Gardens and green space are ecological, cost effective, and promote a healthy lifestyle.
Gardens provide something in our rather chaotic world that we can control and nurture with our own hands often in restorative solitude.
Wendy Hilty is a Master Gardener and member of the Lowcountry Master Gardeners organization. She is also a member of the Royal Horticultural Society and likes to spend her time attempting to grow an English Cottage Garden in our heat and humidity. Her Comyagardener blog won a state-wide award from Clemson University last year. Wendy firmly believes that the most important tool for a gardener is a good sense of humor.
This article seeks to underscore genetic influences in relation to human mechanisms, based upon Phenotypic Plasticity (ability of individual genes to produce observable changes including appearance, development, and behavior of an organism). This conjugated with the historical cycle of brutality by controlling entities will help assist you in understanding that you are a slave to your genetic programming; our emphasis however will be on freedom from bondage.
Natural selection is a methodology through which populations of organisms acclimatize and adapt based upon environmental factors. Individuals within a said population are inherently varying. The variations within a species indicates that some individuals will develop traits that are superiorly befitting to the environment than others. These traits are called adaptative traits as they enhance survival.
Let’s consider for a moment, individuals within an ancestral population which employ behavioral adaptivity (Phenotypic Plasticity) to respond to their environment. If this adaptative response equates to heightened viability, natural selection would favor individuals that demonstrate the trait earlier on in development. This trait would then be passed on to the offspring.
When Orthodoxy Became an Adaptive Trait:
The Inquisition (Europe 1184) was an
influential office set up internally by the Catholic Church to combat and punish heresy, i.e., the “belief or opinion contrary to orthodox religious, especially Christian doctrine” (Oxford Languages). The most deplorable of its manifestations came in Spain in 1478, lasted 356 years and resulted in approximately 32,000 executions. The Inquisition gained considerable infamy for its grievous tortures and persecutions of Jews and Muslims.
In 1563 John Foxe, an Anglican Divine (authoritative theologian on matters of faith and spirituality) publishes, “The Actes and Monuments of the Latter Perilous Dayes,” — an extensive historical account of martyrdom and persecution of Protestants in England and Scotland during the English Inquisition. Foxe recounts 84 Englishmen being burned alive at the stake in one year. Their offense, being “filthye Hereticks.”
Renaissance scholar Giordano Bruno (1548) was tied to a stake, his tongue was cut out and he was set on fire for fostering the theory that God may have populated the universe with other inhabited planets. There were nearly 2 executions per month for 356 years during the Inquisition. These environmental factors of extreme stress over the course of multiple centuries resulted in a genetic response to suppress genes associated with curiosity and rebelliousness.
In cases of extreme stress in the external environment, evolution can take place over the course a few hundred years or less.
Oppositions To Orthodoxy Your Genetic Makeup Won’t Let You Consider:
The Old Testament and New Testament are amalgamated portraying some sort of unification, yet Jesus never mentions Yahweh’s name once in the New Testament. Verily, Jesus seems to be exceedingly distressed by Yahweh when talking to the Pharisees (Yahwehists) in John 8:44.
Jesus further illustrates his disparaging view of Yahweh when he asks, “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish will give him a snake instead?” (Matthew 7:9). Interestingly enough in (Numbers 21:5-6) Yahweh gives his people snakes when they ask for bread . . .
John 1:18, Jesus speaks saying, no one has seen God. However, in the Old Testament Yahweh reveals himself multiple times (Genesis 3:8-11, Genesis 33:11, Genesis 18, and so on)
Let us move to consider more oppositions to orthodoxy natural selection has suppressed:
In the Hebrew language there is no terminology indicating the word “God” as it us understood in its modern identification (an omnipresent, omnipotent, divine spiritual entity). The oldest word that gets translated as God is Elohim. While often translated in singular form, in actuality it has the form of a masculine plural. When used in the Bible, Elohim is most often times supplemented by plural verb forms surrounding it while exhibiting plural functions namely, conversations, conflicts, and wars.
The aspect of multiple Gods is highlighted by Psalms 82, Yahweh’s first commandment to the Hebrews to “have no other (gods) before me, the El Ba’adat (Council of Power) and Genesis 3:22 - “the man has now become like one of us . . . ”
Current Effects of Phenotypic Plasticity & Altered Human Behavior:
People will argue on behalf of what any authoritative figure who they deem worthy may say. This is not necessarily due to an agreement reached as a result of arriving at a similar conclusion via research, but this comes as an outcome of a genetic adaptative trait for survival that has been hereditarily passed on. Let’s consider some modern-day examples.
Climate Change- The Kyoto Conference (1997) - World leaders gather together to address the issue of climate change and reduce carbon emissions worldwide. Republican lawmakers dismiss the agreement for its unfair demands on
by Jared Madison WHOLLY HOLISTICS
developing countries like the United States. Fox News reports three times as many dismissive stories of climate change than supportive stories (2007-2008).
Oklahoma Senator James Inhofe (s.19942023) says of climate change, “if you say the same lie over and over, people will believe it.” Climate change is something easily understandable and real . . . if you question it: When certain things burn like trees or fossil fuels, carbon dioxide is released in the atmosphere. The more trees or fossil fuels burned, the more CO2 in the atmosphere. CO2 traps heat. More CO2 in atmosphere, more heat . . . hotter planet. What happens if you run a fever?
No Tax on Tips (2025). According to The Congressional Budget Office removing tax on tips adds, $3.5 trillion to the deficit from 2025-34. Adding to the deficit increases inflation. An increase in inflation increases the value of the dollar. An increase in the value of the dollar adds to our trade deficit which stimulates the economies of our economic rivals.
For almost 400 years, submission to authority and the suppression of curiosity equated to survival and viability for humans. From a genetics perspective this response was rational. The conundrum now, however, is that this adaptive mutation has created generations of humans that won’t question anything and will accept everything at face value.
Who’s El Elyon ? Why is Yahweh worshiped if he is a junior member of the El Ba’adat? Are tariffs really good or are they just a form of currency manipulation by a country attempting to reverse its trade deficit? Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find. Freedom from bondage awaits you, just ask more questions . . .
Jared Madison is a self-proclaimed “New Renaissance Man.” From practicing Reiki to earning a degree in Math & Science, he is a student of life who calls creativity his superpower. A photographer, graphic designer, poet, writer, and entrepreneur, Jared also loves to travel, ride rollercoasters, and eat good food. For more of Jared’s writing check out his book, “The 30 Day Guide To Inner Peace” available where books are sold.
ITALY: Tuscany townhouse for rent by the week in historic UNESCO village. Sleeps 4, large furnished garden, easy walk to shops and excellent restaurants. www.cozyholidayrentals.com or 401-862-2377.
FURNISHED LUXURY APT In the heart of downtown Beaufort. 2BR, 2BA, W/D, Housewares. Please call 843-812-4229.
FOR RENT ON FRIPP 371 Speckled Trout Rd, Charming coastal retreat! Enjoy serene water views, mod -
ern amenities, a fully equipped kitchen, spacious living, and quick access to fishing, beaches, and local dining. $3,500/mo. Call Diana Lopez at 276-6851260. Relaxation awaits!
YARD SALE - Professional power and hand tools. Table saw, drill press, routers, etc. Outdoor iron furniture, ladies 3 wheel bike, Oreck vacuum, housewares, and much, much more. Saturday, July 19, starts at 8am. 1606 Battery Creek Rd. Beaufort.
FREE HYPNOSIS/HYPNOTHERAPY INFORMATION session and guided group meditation workshop. This free session will focus on stress reduction and relaxation. Open to the public, every 3rd Monday of the Month, at 7 pm Eastern via Zoom. Bring a friend, learn more and RSVP for Zoom Link at www.guidepathhypnosis.com or contact Chris at chris.guidepath@gmail.com
BEAUFORT COUNTY LIBRARY ONGOING PROGRAMS & CLASSES Stitch Happens, Mondays @ 1:30, Bluffton; Basic Computer Skills Class 1st & 3rd Fridays @ 11:30am, Lobeco; Dungeon & Dragons Teen Club Mondays @ 4; Teen Gaming Club 1st & 3rd Wednesdays @ 4.
FRIDAY SOCIAL DANCES The Hilton Head Carolina
Shag Club hosts Friday dances from 6-9:30 pm at Dolphin Head Golf Club, 59 High Bluff Rd, Hilton Head Plantation. Open to the public. Shag, ballroom, swing, country, or line. Singles welcome. Cash bar and light dinners available. $5 floor fee. HHICSC also teaches beginner Shag lessons Tuesday nights. www.hiltonheadshagclub.com, or www.facebook.com/HHICSC
ART LEAGUE OF HH CLASSES & WORKSHOPS
With over 25 local professional art educators, and guests from around the world, Art League of Hilton Head offers classes and workshops in all media for all levels of students. Visit www.artleaguehhi.org or email academy@artleaguehhi.org for more info.
POTTERY CLASSES IN BEAUFORT McSweeney Clay Studio offers morning, afternoon and evening classes for children and adults. Pottery dates and parties available as well. Classes are on going. Beginner or advanced welcome. mcsweeneyclaystudio.com or call 843-694-2049.
LOWCOUNTRY SHAGGERS Mondays - Holiday Inn, 2225 Boundary St. 6-9pm. Shag Lessons with Tommy & Sheri O'Brien and others. Occasional Ballroom and once a month Line Dance. Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced
lessons. Open dancing after lessons. Visit www.lowcountryshaggers.com or lowcountryshaggers@aol.com
WEDNESDAYS, BEAUFORT SHAG CLUB meets evenings at AMVETS, 1831 Ribaut Rd., Port Royal from 7-9pm, and the 2nd Sat. of the month 7-10pm. Free lessons to members Sep. to June. Visit The Beaufort Shag Club on Facebook
FREE VESSEL SAFETY CHECK by local members of the America's Boating Club of Beaufort. If your boat passes, you will receive a VSC decal to mount on your boat that will be visible to other boaters and maritime law enforcement personnel. Contact safety@beaufortboatingclub.com
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED to staff The Lending Room, 954 Ribaut Rd across from Beaufort Memorial Hospital. Help us receive donations of gently used medical equipment and distribute them to those in need. We need to staff our showroom M-F 9:30-3:30 and Sat. AM. Shifts only 3 hours long. No experience is required but a familiarity with commonly used medical equipment helpful. Training will be provided. If you are looking for a rewarding volunteer job, learn about TLR and find volunteer application forms at lendingroombft.com or call Barbara at 314-660-4233.
LOCO SCRIBBLERS 3:00 5:00 p.m. every 1st and 3rd Sunday of the month. Are you a scribbler (professional or hobby writer)? Check out our small, informal Beaufort area writers club. All skill and subject levels welcome: fiction, short stories, poetry, non-fiction, and memoirs. Free. Call or email for more info and meeting location in Port Royal: beaufdick@gmail.com or 843-322-0616.
SEA ISLAND ROTARY CLUB has a 12:15 lunch meeting every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month at Sea Island Presbyterian Church, 81 Lady’s Island Drive, Lady’s Island. Social gathering every 3rd Tuesday at 5:30 pm, locations vary and posted on our website. For more information about the Rotary Club of Sea Island please visit our website at www.seaislandrotary.org
BRIDGE CLUB at the Beaufort Branch Library Wednesdays at 11am. Join a session for beginners new to the game, other sessions will provide some instruction and we will learn as we play. Join us if you want to learn a new game, practice your skills, or need more players. Call the Library at 843-255-6458 for more information.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for military lounge at the Savanna/Hilton Head Airport operated by a cadre of volunteers. The former USO Lounge is now “Savanna Salutes,” and continues to provide a respite for travelling active duty, retired and reserve military, veterans and families. We need volunteers to keep the lounge open from 8 am to 9 pm, seven days a week. There are three shifts each day, with two volunteers for each shift. Interested in volunteering? Info and application forms are at the www.savannahsalutes. org or call John Findeis at (912) 507-4848. The airport provides free parking.
VETERANS FIRST THRIFT STORE is in need of volunteers. Summer hours are Thursday thru Saturday10am-4pm. Volunteer hours are very flexible! Stop in the store at 612 Robert Smalls Parkway to fill out a volunteer application or call the store at 843-263-4218. Please consider helping this very worthwhile organization!!
SECOND HELPINGS seeks volunteers to crew trucks in Bluffton and Beaufort to distribute food to local charities. Offering a flexible schedule at your convenience. Email officeadmin@secondhelpingslc.org
BEMER LONGEVITY TECHNOLOGY 9a Wednesdays via Zoom. Seen the buzz on “life span VS health span”? Want to grow better, not older? Haven’t heard of BEMER yet? Come for Q&A about how this longevity-enhancing medical device can enhance your health, fitness and overall well-being in just 8 minutes 2X/day. Offered by BEMER Specialist - Human & Equine, Elizabeth Bergmann. Text 410-212-1468 to get the Zoom link. Free.
CARIS HEALTHCARE: WE HONOR VETERANS Hospice Program. You a Vet with a little time to share with other Vets with limited time? The We Honor Veterans program seeks volunteers who are Vets to offer a listening ear for our Veteran patients. Volunteers also participate in our Pinning Ceremonies for Veteran patients. Contact 843473-3939 or smilliken@carishealthcare.com
SPIRITUAL COMMUNITY: Non-denominational meditation, silent prayer and healing group forming. All welcome. No meditation experience needed. 843-489-8525.
HABITAT RESTORE NEEDS VOLUNTEERS We're looking for volunteers. Cashiers, sales floor associates, donation processing, donor data entry, and donor ambassadors. Visit lowcountryhabitat.org/volunteer or call 843-525-0055.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for Calhoun Station Thrift Store in Bluffton. All funds generated are returned to other nonprofits in the community. Open Wed & Sat 10am to 1pm at 77 Pritchard St. Volunteers can stop by or contact Cate Taylor, 843-310-0594 or catetaylor@frontier.com
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for HELP of Beaufort, 530 Charles St. Looking for committed volunteers for clothes sorting, pantry help, front desk help and Mobile Meals drivers. We are open M-F from 9:30-12:30, Mobile Meals delivers to home bound seniors 5 days/week, routes takes about 3045 mins. Email Lori at helpbeaufort@gmail.com, or call 843-524-1223, or stop in and fill out an application.
PORT ROYAL MUSEUM is open Thursday through Sunday at 1634 Paris Ave., from 10 - 3 or upon request. Free admission! Call 843-524-4333 or email historicportroyalfoundation@gmail.com to request a special opening.
PARKINSON’S SUPPORT GROUP - First Thursday of the month at Beaufort Memorial LifeFit Wellness Center, from 1:30-2:45pm, 900 Ribaut Rd. Beaufort. We're individuals with Parkinson’s, care partners of those with Parkinson’s, and individuals or companies providing products or services for Parkinson’s patients. For more info: Rick Ostrander at pdawaresc@gmail.com or Facebook at Parkinson’s Support Group Of Beaufort SC Port Royal & Lady’s Island
TOUR HISTORIC FORT FREMONT – Running through July, the Fort Fremont History Center will expand operating hours to Thursdays from 1 to 4 pm, Fridays from 1 to 4 pm, Saturdays from 10 am to 4 pm, and Sundays from 1 to 4 pm. No admission fee. Docent-led tours are available by request. The Fort Fremont Preserve is open from dawn to dusk, Monday through Sunday. A selfguided walking tour is available for smartphones from the Apple or Google Play stores. For more information or to download the app, visit www.fortfremont.org
US COAST GUARD AUXILIARY, Flotilla 07-10-01, Port Royal Sound, a uniformed, all volunteer component of the U.S. Coast Guard. We conduct safety patrols, assist search & rescue, teach boat safety, conduct free vessel safety checks and other boating activities. Monthly meetings are open to all and held on the 2nd Tuesday of the month at the Port Royal Sound Foundation classroom at 7pm. For info call Flotilla Commander Pattie McGowan (706-633-6192) and on FacebookUSCGA Beaufort
BEAUFORT TOASTMASTERS CLUB meets from 5:30 pm - 6:45 pm the first & third Tuesday, in the Beaufort College Building, Rm. 103 (USC-Beaufort Campus), 801 Carteret Street, Beaufort. To learn more visit beauforttoastmastersclub.toastmastersclubs.org
FREE ACUPUNCTURE FOR VETERANS – Veterans, Active Duty, Transition. Their Families and First Responders are Eligible. First & Third Wednesday 46pm. Walk In Clinic. No Need to Pre-Register or Call. Nourishing Health Acupuncture and Herbs Clinic. 1214 Prince Street, Downtown Beaufort.
CRESCENT HOSPICE SUPPORT GROUP: Last Wed. and Thurs. of the month. Weds. 10-11am at Sun City; Thurs. 12-1pm Brookdale Hilton Head Ct., Hilton Head; for those who provide physical, emotional or practical support to a family member or friend. Jodi Johnson, LMSW. Bereavement Group: 5-6 pm., Fridays, 10 Buckingham Plantation Drive, Suite A, Bluffton; for those who have experienced a loss and would like support and info associated with grief and bereavement. Corrie VanDyke, LMSW or Marie James, MA. 843-757-9388.
INTERESTED IN HEALTHY EATING? Second Helpings, of Beaufort, Hampton, and Jasper counties, seeks committee members and chairperson for Healthy Food Program. Funding available to procure fresh produce and protein for the 60 food pantries and soup kitchens served by Second Helpings. Contact Exec. Dir. Lili Coleman, 843689-3616 or execdirector@secondhelpingslc.org
BORN TO READ working for early childhood literacy, needs volunteers to deliver books and materials to new mothers at Coastal Community Hosp., HH Hosp., and BMH. Visits are from 10am – noon. More info at borntoread.org or call 843-379-3350.
ALZHEIMER’S FAMILY SERVICES OF GREATER BEAUFORT, Support Groups: Caregiver - Fridays., 12:30pm, Living with Alzheimer's - for those in very early stages - Mondays 1pm, Respite Programs: Social Day Program- 10am-1:45pm $40 Day Fee, Weds. & Friday. All meetings are at Carteret Street Methodist Church, 408 Carteret St., Beaufort; In Home - Respite Aides available for 2 hr. minimum, $13-$26. Early Memory Loss: Maintain Your Brain - 2nd & 4th Thursday, 1011:30am, $10/person, $15 couple, Carteret Street Methodist Church, 408 Carteret St., Beaufort; Memory Screenings available call 843-521-9190 or make an appointment, 1500 King St., Beaufort, free; Purple Haven Project - Educate local staff's to better interact with a person with Alzheimer's call 843-521-9190.
THE LITERACY CENTER is seeking volunteers to tutor adults in reading, writing, math and ESL. Students hope to acquire skills to pursue life goals, support families, and contribute to our community. Daytime and evenings in Bluffton and HHI. Call 843-815-6616 (Bluffton); 843-6816655 (HHI). No teaching, tutoring or other language knowledge necessary. www.theliteracycenter.org
THE SANDALWOOD COMMUNITY FOOD PANTRY. Volunteer-based, non-profit provides groceries, clothing and basic items to ANYONE in need. Open Tuesdays 9am12pm at 114 Beach City Rd., Hilton Head. Donations of food and funds needed. For info: Rev. Dr. Nannette Pierson at 843-715-3583 or sandalwoodpantry@gmail.com
PARRIS ISLAND MUSEUM. The legacy of the Marine Corps and the history of the Port Royal region. Thousands of artifacts, images, and other materials illustrate the stories in exhibit galleries from Native American to modern Marines. FREE admission. Mon-Sat 10am4:30pm and 8am on Graduation Days. Closed Federal Holidays. Info at parrisislandmuseum.org or 843-228-2166.
Foolish Frog, 846 Sea Island Pkwy, St. Helena Island. (843) 838-9300. Foolish Frog on Facebook
Luther’s Rare & Well Done, 910 Bay Street. (843) 521-1888 or Luther's on Facebook
Q on Bay, 822 Bay St, Beaufort. (843) 524-7771 or www.qonbay.com
Rosie O’Gradys Irish Pub, in Beaufort Town Center. Irish American Sports Pub & Eatery. C'mon down! Rock & Roll Lunch. Monday - 25% Off Burgers; Tuesday - 25% off Phillys; Karaoke Wed, Fri & Sat - 10pm. Daily Lunch Specials. (843) 379-7676 or Rosie's on Facebook
Saltus River Grill, 802 Bay St, Beaufort. (843) 379-3474 or www.saltusrivergrill.com
Big Bamboo, Coligny Plaza. (843) 686-3443 or www.bigbamboocafe.com
The Jazz Corner, Village at Wexf1ord, Hilton Head. Sundays - Deas Guyz; Mondays - A Journey Through Jazz with The Martin Lesch Band; Tuesdays - Fat Tuesdays: A Swingin' Celebration of New Orleans and Beyond; Thursdays - Lavon Stevens with Louise Spencer. 7/16 Grammy winning vocalist Quiana Parler with The Lavon Stevens Trio, 7/18 & 7/19 Noel Freidline & Maria Howell - With a Little Help From My Friends: A Jazz Celebration of the Beatles, 7/23 Bobby Ryder, 7/25 & 7/26 Trumpeter Alphonso Horne & the Gotham Kings. (843) 842-8620 or www.TheJazzCorner.com
The Music Farm, 32 Ann Street, Charleston. 7/18
Tropicoque TA Dance Party, 7/19 Now That's What I call a Rave, 7/24 Unbound Ballet ProjectEverything Moves and Nothing Stays, 7/25 Disco Throwdown, 7/26 Hot in Herre - 2000s Dance Party, 7/27 Est Gee, 7/29 Descendents; Teen Mortgage; Liquid Mike, 7/31 Pony Bradshaw; Zach Russell, 8/1 80s & 90s R & B Hip Hop Party, 8/2 Lovesong: The Cure Tribute; First Wave. (843) 853-2252 or www.musicfarm.com
The Pour House, 1977 Maybank Hwy,
Charleston. 7/16 Hot Like Mars, 7/17 Dog
Named Squid; Colors in Corduroy; Channel Bluff, 7/18 The Budos Band; Benny Trokan, 7/19 The Stolen Faces - Grateful Dead tribute, 7/20 Spafford, 7/24 Skitch; Freesurf, 7/25 Grateful for Biggie; Grandaddi Caddi, 7/26 Same As it Ever Was - Talking Heads tribute, 8/1 & 8/2 Dumpstaphunk; Magnolia Boulevard. (843) 5714343 or www.charlestonpourhouse.com
Windjammer, 1008 Ocean Blvd, Isle of Palms. 7/17 DJ Medic, 7/19 Mr. Fahrenheit - Queen tribute, 7/20 The 502s, 7/25 & 7/26 Wilderado, 7/27 Brian Kelley, 7/31 Superfine, 8/2 Easy Honey; Freddie McClendon. (843) 886-8596 or www.the-windjammer.com
Editors Note:
Events listed here may be subject to postponement or cancellation. Please check for further information.
Now – 8/10, Flight-n-Fancy, exhibit of featured artist Janet Urbanic at SOBA Gallery in Old Town Bluffton. www.sobagallery.com
Now – 8/17, Wild Bees Photography Exhibit, featuring work by Paula Sharp and Ross Eatman at the Coastal Discovery Museum. For more info, visit www.coastaldiscovery.org
Now – 8/22, Two Points of View, featuring photography by William Bosley and oil paintings by Murray Sease. Reception Wed 7/23, 5-7pm. Free and open to the public. Art League Gallery on Hilton Head. www.artleagueHHI.org
Now – 8/30, Beth Stern’s ‘Reflections’ is the featured exhibit at the Beaufort Art Association Gallery in downtown Beaufort. www.beaufortartassociation.com
7/22 – 7/30, Halfway Home, a special sea turtle-themed art exhibit, returns to Art League Academy in partnership with Sea Turtle Patrol HHI. The week-long event showcases creative works from the community, all celebrating HHI’s most beloved coastal creature. Twenty percent of all artwork and class sales will benefit Sea Turtle Patrol HHI. Closing Reception Wed, 7/30 from 5–7pm. Class registration available at artleaguehhi.org.
8/3 – 8/30, Everyday Life on Hilton Head featur-
ing the work of Nancy Huson at The Society of Bluffton Artists (SOBA) Gallery in Old Town Bluffton. Opening reception from 3 - 5 pm on 8/7. www. sobagallery.com
Thur 7/17, Evening with novelist Katherine Scott Crawford (The Miniaturist's Assistant), sponsored by the Pat Conroy Literary Center, in partnership with Beaufort Bookstore. 5 pm at the Conroy Center, 601 Bladen St., Beaufort. Books will be available for sale and signing through Beaufort Bookstore. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025.
Mon 7/21, Author Talk with Brenda Sutton Rose (Dogwood Blues, A Wiregrass Childhood) from 10:30 to 11:30 am at the Roasting Room, 1297 May River Road, Bluffton, SC. The event is free and open to the public; $5 donation is suggested. Sponsored by Libraries for Kids, International. Attendees are invited to join the author for an optional Dutch Treat lunch afterwards. Space is limited, so reservations are necessary, and early arrival is recommended. For more information or to RSVP, please contact Tamela Maxim at 843.683.4100 or tamelamaxim@gmail.com or tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org
Wed 7/23, Evening with bestselling novelist Karen White (That Last Carolina Summer), hosted by the Pat Conroy Literary Center and the Storybook Shoppe from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at 711 Bladen Street (Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce). This event will also feature a special welcome by Conroy Center honorary chair and bestselling author Cassandra King. Advance registration required: https://karenwhite-beaufort.eventbrite. com. $40 event fee includes an autographed copy of That Last Carolina Summer, the author's presentation, and refreshments.
Thur 7/24, Evening with award-winning author Kiese Laymon hosted by The Storybook Shoppe from 6 – 7:30 pm at Robert Smalls Leadership Academy (43 W. Alston Dr., Beaufort). This free program for families will include a writing opportunity inspired by our Lowcountry summers as well as discussion of Laymon’s debut picture book City Summer, Country Summer in conversation with local students E Achurch and Emily Alaia from DAYLO (Diversity Awareness Youth Literacy Organization). Books will be available for sale and signing.
Sat 7/26, Book Launch Party for novelist Mary J. Nestor (Bus No. 7) at the Beaufort Bookstore from 4:30 – 6:30 pm. For more information visit www. maryjnestor.com
Sat 7/26, Lowcountry Children’s Book Fair sponsored by the Pat Conroy Literary Center from 10am - 2pm at the Port Royal Sound Foundation Weezie Educational Pavilion (310 Okatie Hwy). A dozen local and visiting writers will be on hand with books for sales and signing, along with art activities and readings throughout the day. www.patconroyliterarycenter.org
Tues 7/22, Tower of Funk and the Choosy Mothers Horns will perform a FREE concert beginning at 7:30 pm, at Lowcountry Celebration Park at Coligny, Hilton Head Island. Sponsored by the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra.
Tues 8/5, Martin Lesch Band will perform a FREE concert beginning at 7:30 pm, at Lowcountry Celebration Park at Coligny, Hilton Head Island. Sponsored by the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra.
Now - 7/20, 69th Annual Beaufort Water Festival in Waterfront Park downtown. For a full schedule of events visit www.bftwaterfestival.com
Sat 7/26, Gullah/Geechee Nation 25th Anniversary. The public is invited to attend Gullah/ Geechee Famlee Day from Noon - 3 pm at Penn Center, Inc. on St. Helena Island. Registration Required on EventBrite: https://www.eventbrite. com/e/1288366180929?aff=oddtdtcreator
Tuesdays, Tours of Hunting Island sponsored by Friends of Hunting Island Keeper Ted and his team. For info call the Nature Center at 843-8387437. Tours free are and park entry fees apply.
2nd Tuesdays - Most Months at 6pm, Beaufort Chapter of America’s Boating Club Monthly Meeting, at various Beaufort/Port Royal venues. Meetings begin with a Social, followed by Dinner and may include an guest speaker. For info or educational opportunities, contact Paul Gorsuch: admino@beaufortboatingclub.com Boat ownership not required, but a passion for safe boating is mandatory.
First Saturday of the Month, Teddy Bear Picnic Read-Aloud at Port Royal Farmers Market. DAYLO students and other volunteers will read to young children between 9am and noon. Children are encouraged to bring their favorite stuffed animal.
Third Thursday, TECHconnect, a monthly networking event for professionals working in and around tech. Join the conversation at BASEcamp 500 Carteret 5:30-7:30pm. 843-470-3506. www. beaufortdigital.com
Thursdays, History Tours of Fort Mitchell by Heritage Library, 10am. $12/Adult $7/Child. 843-686-6560.
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