Lowcountry Companion

08/14/2024

How cool is this? Wood storks and Roseate Spoonbills enjoy time together at sunset in Pawleys Island. Love this Tanya Ackerman!

07/14/2024

Kaela Rogers FYI

03/21/2024

If you care about the marsh or love oysters, get involved with this great project!

Volunteers make wire mesh reefs for oyster bed renourishment in Murrells Inlet on May 2. All urged to recycle shells at area drop off bins to help environment.

03/19/2024

Murrells Inlet is where serene marsh vistas serve as a backdrop for history, delicious seafood, and outdoor fun—and our beloved fishing village is now a contender for this year's "Best Small Town in the South." Vote every day, once a day, until April 1!

Voting for the Best Small Town in the South is open! Cast your vote daily to help pick the 2024 10Best Readers' Choice Award for Best Small Town in the South.

01/11/2024

Gulp.

A recent study analyzed bottled water bought at a major retailer and found one liter contained an average of 240,000 microscopic pieces of plastic.

01/07/2024

😡

Georgetown County Councilman Bob Anderson is pushing for a major tax increase on timberland in South Carolina and says a change in state law would allow Georgetown to increase taxes on farms and timberland by $6 million. FASC is strongly opposing the proposal that was mentioned in an article published today in the Coastal Observer. “This is single-handedly the most absurd proposal from an elected official during my 12 1/2 year tenure as President of the Forestry Association of South Carolina [FASC],” Cam Crawford says. “Simply put, if enacted this will cripple the forest industry, the environment, and our rural communities.”
https://coastalobserver.com/anderson-says-state-tax-credit-costs-county-5-4-million/

09/02/2023

OMGosh, ya'll! It's at Lowes Foods! Congrats!

08/30/2023

'Will be fun to see the finished product at Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club.

Founders Group International closed Pawleys Plantation in Pawleys Island, S.C. on May 22 for a comprehensive greens, bunkers and clubhouse renovation

08/30/2023

This information regarding Idalia is provided by the Georgetown County, SC Chamber of Commerce.

By Friday though, the sun will be shining and life'll be good for the holiday weekend!

As we prepare for Idalia’s impacts in our area, please remember to rely on official sources for information.

See the list below with hyperlinks to webpages and social media. It’s also a great time to subscribe to CodeRED notification system: https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/en-US/27F44EE4891E.
Georgetown County Emergency Management

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GCEMD
X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/GCEMD

Website: https://www.gtcounty.org/247/Emergency-Management

Georgetown County Government
Website: https://www.gtcounty.org/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GtCounty



City of Georgetown

Website: https://www.georgetownsc.gov/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cityofgtown

Town of Pawleys Island: The Town of Pawleys Island Police Department encourages residents and guests on the island to move vehicles to the mainland this afternoon/evening as the greatest impacts for flooding are from approximately 9 pm to 2 am.

Website: https://www.townofpawleysisland.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TownofPawleysIsland

X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/PawleysIslandPD

Town of Andrews

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TOWNOFANDREWSAndrewsSouthCarolina29510

Georgetown County School District – Wednesday, Aug. 30 after school activities cancelled; Thursday, Aug. 31 eLearning day with schools and offices closed.

Website: https://www.gcsd.k12.sc.us/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GeorgetownCountySchoolDistrict

Tidelands Health
Website: https://www.tidelandshealth.org/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tidelandshealth

X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/tidelandshealth
South Carolina Emergency Management

Website: https://www.scemd.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SCEMD
X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/SCEMD

South Carolina Department of Transportation:

Road conditions: 511SC.org
Website: https://www.scdot.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SCDOT

National Weather Service – Wilmington
Website: https://www.weather.gov/ilm/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NWSWilmingtonNC
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NWSWilmingtonNC

Couple of reminders:
Do not drive through standing water.
Be mindful of cones, barrels or barriers that have been placed in roadways by public safety officials– do NOT drive around these barriers.
The bridges into and out of Georgetown are OPEN.

The Town of Pawleys Island Police Department encourages residents and guests on the island to move vehicles to the mainland this afternoon/evening as greatest impacts for flooding are from approximately 9 pm to 2 am.

A number of businesses are closing early Wednesday or opening late Thursday. Please check with them before you make a trip to be sure they are open.

Official Twitter Account for National Weather Service Wilmington, NC. Details: https://t.co/xddayClj1u

08/01/2023

Say it ain't so.

A roseate spoonbill ventured far outside of its usual territory to make an appearance near Green Bay, delighting local birdwatchers in the process

07/22/2023

07/12/2023

This is terrific news for our neck of the woods. We are so fortunate to have so much protected land. Congratulations to the stewards of this particular piece of property, Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge!

GEORGETOWN COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – A significant portion of the largest intact Carolina Bay in coastal South Carolina has been transferred to the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge, according to The Nature Conservancy (TNC). The 2,110-acre property in Georgetown and Williamsburg counties – known as...

02/01/2023

He was a champion. He will be always.

John Henry Whitmire's Memorial Service is tomorrow at 11 AM at Holy Cross-Faith Memorial Episcopal Church. You can read his obituary below:

"When a restaurant closed at the Hammock Shops, several years ago, John Henry Whitmire thought about what had gone wrong. “I think they missed the idea that Pawleys Island is a very casual place; that we like our fun and we don’t like to get dressed up to have it,” he said.

A jeweler who spent most of his 51 years in business at Pawleys Island, John Henry embodied the stylish and the casual in pieces that combined artistry with coastal themes.

He died Jan. 18 at his home on the river at Hagley. He was 71.

John Henry, as he was known to everyone, was an adventurous, gregarious and charming unofficial world ambassador for the community where he lived and worked.

He was born Dec. 28, 1951, in Greenville, the son of Woodrow and Arla Mae Piephoff Whitmire. He grew up in Easley, and attended and played football at Easley High School before entering the University of South Carolina and majoring in English.

At USC, John Henry took a class in jewelry making. After leaving Columbia, he worked for a jewelry shop inside the Gay Dolphin gift shop in Myrtle Beach.

He was asked to open a new location in North Myrtle Beach, where he was joined by his childhood friend, John White.

“At the end of the season, the shop got robbed,” White said. “We lost a bunch of cash and lost most of the jewelry inventory. It really set us back. It was a hungry fall and winter.”

In a demonstration of his resourcefulness, John Henry took his craft on the road, doing enough jewelry shows to get through the winter.

“What I saw from that was his resilience and generosity during those times,” White said. “Even though we had very little stuff, if we met someone who had less, he would take them in. He made sure they had something to eat on the way out.”

He then opened his own business, October Silver, at Pawleys Island in a former chapel at the corner of Highway 17 and Waverly Road. He later moved to the Hammock Shops and renamed the business Whitmire Fine Jewelry.

“I felt like John Henry was a mentor for me in so many ways,” White says. “Nice and naughty and adventurous. He repeatedly taught me how to live life to the fullest, recover from the hard knocks and love people unconditionally. He was a true character in the Southern sense. He was a living legend.”

If charisma was a form of legal tender, John Henry was loaded. He rarely entered a building on Pawleys Island where he wasn’t approached by old friends. He never left without trying to make a new one.

A world traveler, who’d made his way through Europe, Australia, Asia, South America and many places in between, he had a talent for spinning tales.

Louis Osteen, the renowned chef, once joked that John Henry believed “it’s more important to have a good story, than for it to be absolutely, totally true.”

When Osteen and Warren Johnston started the Pawleys Island Crawfish Festival, John Henry became its first director. It grew to become a state-sponsored event to promote aquaculture.

John Henry saw life as a series of adventures; stories to be told, to be shared and told all over again. The more dramatic, the better, even if he needed to use a bit of poetic license honed during his years as a creative writing student at USC.

There was the tale about him riding in a carriage at Buckingham Palace, where he had friends, past the startled queen’s window. Or, the time he and a traveling companion were mistaken for terrorists in Ireland. He talked of being at Woodstock.

The late journalist and author Christopher Dickey recalled John Henry offering to teach him to play the harmonica. Dickey was skeptical. He discovered a YouTube video of a riff by John Henry with 30,000 hits.

Through his travel both in this country and abroad, he made thousands of true friends. A lifelong bachelor, he showed extraordinary dedication to his brothers, nephews, cousins, aunts and uncles. He enmeshed himself in the Pawleys Island community, adding to its lore and allure. He skied some of the world’s premier slopes and sailed in the ocean.

He had a long-time interest in politics, worked on several campaigns and once ran for Congress.

His generosity was legendary. He would complain of being broke, but then buy dinner for an entire table. He always was ready to repair someone’s treasured necklace, or throw an impromptu meal for dozens of friends or relatives. John Henry paid faithful attention over many decades to his oldest brother, Woodrow Wilson “Whit” Whitmire, who lived in a group home for most of his adult life.

He is survived by his brother Ralph Clayton “Clay” Whitmire (Lynn) of Indianapolis; his nephews, Andrew Whitmire (Leah) and Matthew Whitmire (Daphne); his great-nieces, Kate and Kendall Whitmire, and great-nephew, Will Whitmire; and four godchildren, many cousins, children of cousins and grandchildren of cousins.

In addition to his parents, his step-mother, Elizabeth Jones “Lib” Whitmire, and his brother Whit died before him.

A memorial service will be held Feb. 1 at 11 a.m. at Holy Cross-Faith Memorial Episcopal Church, followed by a celebration of his life at Frank’s Restaurant.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the charity of your choice or or to the next person who crosses your path."

01/03/2023

Brookgreen Gardens always comes up with the best ideas! This will be such a neat event!
https://www.brookgreen.org/events/romance-gardens

Celebrate Romance in the Gardens by renewing your wedding vows on Valentine's Day! A nondenominational ceremony will be held at the boat landing at Brookgreen Creek, followed by a reception at the Leonard Pavilion. We will have two ceremonies to keep groups smaller. Each couple will receive a person...

12/30/2022

THIS! YEEEESSSSSS!

Make a difference instead of noise.

12/30/2022

❤️Take heed - please.❤️

State officials are asking beachgoers to keep an eye out for lethargic and stranded sea turtles as temperatures warm back up.

07/15/2022

03/25/2022

Know this!

03/18/2022

We love this soooooo much. Thanks for the share, Marsh Deane!

12/17/2021

Make it seem like you've planned your gifts for months and check out our Holiday show.
Where? Old Town Hall
When? Friday - Sunday, look for the open sign!
https://www.scwnaa.org/oldtownhall

12/02/2021

Birds Of Prey Center, Awendaw, SC

UPDATE!
www.wandsforwildlife.org
Wands for Wildlife is now a separate nonprofit but not collecting right now due to the tremendous response to their efforts. So, instead of sending wands to this group (since they have already received a huge amount), please consider donating and spreading the word to help Wands for Wildlife! Just $10 will get a Wildlife Caregiver Resource Kit into the hands of one of the wildlife heroes giving the injured and orphaned wild ones a second chance at life in the wild! Kits include donated wands and other supplies to care for the animals. Let’s give these guys a big hand for all that they do, and contact your local Wildlife Refuge to see if they’re in need of donated mascara wands! 👏🏼👏🏼
https://www.facebook.com/donate/652212059276779/
________________________________________________

Please do NOT throw away your mascara wands. Instead, clean JUST THE WAND with dawn soap, place them in a ziploc bag and mail them to a Wildlife Refuge accepting donations. These little wands are able to be upcycled to clean away oil, larvae, fly eggs, mites, infections, mud and other contaminants from wildlife. Works great for medical care and wound treatment

11/25/2021

"When a man wantonly destroys one of the works of man we call him Vandal. When he wantonly destroys one of the works of God we call him Sportsman."
-Joseph Wood Krutch, writer & naturalist (25 Nov 1893-1970)