Good news in the middle of March Madness
Vol. 1, No. 8 edition of the What's Happening in Bluffton newsletter
Welcome to the March Madness edition of the What’s Happening in Bluffton newsletter. Very exciting times as we have a couple new visuals to share with you this week and some great news from all around the community.
First off, we have a new logo to share with you!
It’s tough to encapsulate the full extent about what we’re all about with WHIB. It’s about Bluffton, but what defines Bluffton in a fun way? Golf carts!
And we wanted to include our official mascot, Bluffton wonder dog Whibbles Magoo. So we’ve come up with this:
Whibbles has the bullhorn behind the wheel of the Bluffton-logo’ed cart and is shouting out emojis — a smiley face because we’re all about positive and happy vibes, and the note and the glasses for live music and events information we share!
You’ll be seeing a lot of this in the coming weeks and months. Let us know what you think!
HUGE THANK YOU to everyone involved in DJ’s Day of Giving
We made a change to DJ’s Day of Giving this year, the event we started to help seed and endow a scholarship fund in honor of D.J. Fields, who was shot and killed on March 5, 2021. We switched the event to the 55th day of the year and we could not have asked for better weather!
A huge shoutout to the 45 businesses that took part in giving a portion of their sales from the day and the 30 more that donated brings for our Epic Wheel of Names Spin-A-Rama. We’re still tallying all the numbers from donations but y’all came out even stronger this year on Feb. 24. We’re already planning for Feb. 24, 2023. I will be posting a longer thank you on WHIB in the coming days.
It’s something I wish I never had to think up. The wheels of justice are moving slowly as the family commemorated a year since DJ’s passing with a balloon release at Eagles Field on March 5. We hope the cowards that perpetrated this tragedy are properly identified and face their day in court.
Ending on a happy note, we have a new logo for the event (above). We plan to have t-shirts and merchandise for next year’s event and available online in the coming months, as well as more events throughout the year raising money for the Scholarship Fund!
Town to host mobile town halls
Did you ever wonder how development happens in Bluffton? How did the town grow from a one-square mile town to a 54-square mile town? What are the rules, regulations and ordinances which govern how our town is developed or not developed? How does South Carolina annexation law operate and how does this law explain why the Town’s jurisdictional boundaries zig zag through areas?
These questions and others will be answered at the Town’s quarterly Mobile Town Halls. The first Mobile Town Hall will be Thursday, March 31, 2022, at 6 p.m. at Bluffton Council Chambers in Town Hall (20 Bridge Street.)
During this free workshop, participants will receive an overview of town government, operations, initiatives, projects, and policies. Town staff will also give short presentations on annexation, economic development, and governance.
“As the Town continues to grow, educating our community about the how and the why of Town ordinances and operations is important,” Town Manager Stephen Steese said. “As we welcome all our newer residents, we want to give them a baseline of the Town’s history, development rules and laws which govern the community. We hope this context will help our residents understand the issues which currently face the town and the parameters of their local government.”
Representatives of the Town’s departments such as the Bluffton Police Department, Public Services, Watershed Management and Growth Management will be available for a question-and-answer session after the presentation.
The Town will schedule a Mobile Town Hall once a quarter and plans to hold them in various locations throughout Bluffton. If you have any questions, please contact Debbie Szpanka, public information officer, at (Email) dszpanka@townofbluffton.com.
Click the banner above to vote on your favorite Coligny Plaza stores and potentially win a $250 shopping spree to your favorite Coligny store!
The next chapter of community healing
Mark your calendars for a wonderful event coming up in Bluffton.
The St. Johns Baptist Church and its affiliated St. Johns Newbirth Family Life Center is hosting an event called the "Ribbons in the Sky Celebration" that will include a history walk through Old Town.
It’s a walk that will start at the Pritchard Pocket Park at 3 p.m. on April 3, walk through the town and end at the Martin Family Park where food trucks and vendors will be set up.
This is a wonderful event to remember loved ones from Bluffton who are no longer with us.
Further, later that evening at 6:30 p.m., there will be a light parade that starts at the Bluffton Town Hall. Golf carts and bikes are welcome to participate. That light parade will go down Prichard Street then up Bruin Street and through the town. It will then turn left by the old Scott’s grocery store onto Heyward Street, turning left again onto Bridge Street and then ultimately back to the Martin Family Park.
The event symbolizes a fresh start of healing from the suffering we all have endured during the pandemic - the loss of loved ones, the isolation, and mental and chronic illness struggles.
Okatie alligator wrestler McCarter named Carnegie Hero
On Friday, Sheriff P.J. Tanner presented the Carnegie Medal to Okatie resident Kenneth Brian McCarter. The Sheriff nominated McCarter for this award following his heroic efforts in saving his neighbor’s life after she was dragged into a lagoon by an alligator.
The Carnegie Medal is given throughout the U.S. and Canada to those who enter extreme danger while saving or attempting to save the lives of others. This year, 17 Americans received the Carnegie Medal.
A 73-year-old woman, Carol S. DeLillo (seen above with McCarter), was tending her Okatie backyard on the evening of July 3, 2020, near the bank of an 8-foot-deep pond when an alligator, weighing 275 pounds and measuring 10 feet long, emerged from the pond, bit down on her leg and dragged her into the water.
Neighbor Kenneth Brian McCarter, a 44-year-old plant operations manager, was nearby when he saw her splashing in the water and calling for help. He entered the water and swam about 70 feet to DeLillo. He grabbed her around her waist and attempted to pull her up to the surface of the water, but he could not.
They were then both pulled under the water. McCarter attempted again to pull her to the surface, yanking her free of the alligator’s jaws. McCarter dragged and pushed DeLillo, who was heavily bleeding, back toward the bank where McCarter’s teenage son was waiting to assist them from the water.
DeLillo underwent multiple surgeries but regained the ability to walk with a cane.
The ghosts of Nonna Lucia: The rest of the story
I used to be a huge fan of the weekly Paul Harvey radio broadcasts. He was a master storyteller and his signature line was “And now … the REST of the story.”
I got a ton of feedback on WHIB when I posted my story on Michelle and Julio Licona and their paranormal nightmare as owners of the Italian restaurant Nonna Lucia. Their story was recently featured on the Travel Channel show “Dead Files.”
As is always the case, there is only so much room in print to tell the story. Michelle told me about her work with local medium Dwanna Paul. She talked to me about a ceremony to retrieve souls and rid spirits called a table tipping.
“If I had not been there to witness, I would have said no freakin’ way did that happen,” Michelle said. “It’s like what folks would think of a seance. She brought another medium with her. We begin this talking to spirits and the table starts trembling and shaking. She’d ask questions and if it was a ‘yes,’ the table would go up on two legs. There was a lot of knocking and drumming. We were just speechless.”
Licona mentioned in the story how many Nonna Lucia staffers reported being tripped and pushed in the kitchen hallway without seeing anyone do it. This also happened to the medium who came to the table tipping.
“She got tripped and pushed very hard and she went down hard, she was shook up something fierce,” Licona said.
I talked to that medium this week. Her name is Diane Taddie, a 35-year veteran medium who said the Nonna Lucia spirits were among the worst and most active she has encountered.
“I suffered a concussion and am still having migraines and dizzy spells. It was awful,” Taddie said. “We brought through a spirit that had died in the Westbury Park area that the Liconas knew of. It was a very active event.”
And now you know … the REST of the story.
Newbies Guide: Explaining donut holes and why you might think you’re a townie but you’re not
My latest “Newbies Guide to Bluffton” tackled the history of annexation in Bluffton. It’s crazy to think that there were 500 people in town and just one restaurant, the Squat N’ Gobble, as recent as 1998. Sun City’s creation and the blossoming of Palmetto Bluff led to a boom that has had several waves, the latest of which we’re in the midst of now.
It was a fun column to write, but I know this is serious business for many of you. If you want to get clear-cut answers, check out the Annexation History map on the town website, or type your address into the Am I In Bluffton? app.
ATAC non-profits grant deadline coming up
The Town of Bluffton’s Accommodations Tax Advisory Committee (ATAC) will be accepting applications for this quarter’s accommodation tax grant awards through Thursday, March 31, 2022, at noon. Applications can be emailed to BusinessLicense@townofbluffton.com.
The Accommodations Tax funds are generated from a tax on the gross proceeds derived from the rental of rooms for lodging or sleeping accommodations. These funds are then dispersed to non-profit organizations for their events which promote tourism, arts, cultural events, and other tourism-generating activities. In fiscal year 2022, the Town has averaged $432,800 per quarter to disperse to non-profit organizations.
Each quarter the Town’s Accommodations Tax Advisory Committee (ATAC) reviews grant applications and makes a subsequent recommendation to Town Council regarding awards. The next ATAC meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 17, 2022, at 6:00 p.m. at Town Hall.
For further information regarding eligibility and/or how to apply for an Accommodations Tax grant award, please call Natalie Majorkiewicz at (email) nmajor@townofbluffton.com or (office) 843.706.4546.
The Accomodations Tax Application is located on the Town’s website by clicking here.
As a side note, I have been appointed to this town committee. I am still learning about the committee but will be happy to answer any questions you might have about applications and/or point you in the right direction for answers. Just email me at lowchron@gmail.com.
Links Worth Clicking
Beaufort County School district will re-start program with Gullah farmers to serve fresh produce to students … Broadband project to connect all of Beaufort County to Internet … A reminder: BCSD’s School Choice Program application deadline is March 31 … The latest new business update from The Bluffton Sun …
We want to hear your good news - especially in the schools!
Next edition, we’re going to share a lot of good news we’re hearing out of the schools. These kids deserve town-wide love for some of the things they’re doing.
I am also doing the “What’s Happening in Bluffton” report on WHHI-TV’s “Bluffton News,” so there is even more ways to spread the good word around.
If you have stories you want to share or events you want to promote, please email me at whibtim@gmail.com.
Attention Small Business Owners …
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Text me at 843-290-6242 or email me at whibtim@gmail.com to get information on our sponsor plans and the win-win you can be part of in helping good news get spread wider in the Lowcountry.
Have a great weekend, everybody!
- Tim Wood