Charleston Currents – Charleston Currents

CALENDAR, Jan. 9+: MLK events, music and more

(NEW) 2017 MLK Celebration: Jan. 13-17, Charleston. There’s a full slate of events over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend to celebrate “A Dream Unfulfilled,” the theme of the community’s annual event. Click here for the full schedule. Some key events:

Jan. 15, 4 p.m.: MLK Ecumenical Service, Morris Street Baptist Church, Charleston.
Monday, Jan. 16, 11 a.m.: MLK Parade from Burke High School to Marion Square.
Tuesday, Jan. 17, 7:30 a.m., Gaillard Auditorium, Charleston: MLK Business and Professional Breakfast, with keynote by Eugene Woods, president and CEO of Carolinas HealthCare System.

by Charleston Currents · 01/09/2017 · Comments are Disabled · calendar

REVIEW: Our Man in Charleston: Britain’s Secret Agent in the Civil War South

History by Christopher Dickey | Fascinating little tidbit of Charleston history with a different perspective on antebellum Charleston, Robert Bunch was British consul in Charleston from 1853 to 1862.

by Charleston Currents · 01/09/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Features, Reviews

FEEDBACK: On tooting our horn, doing the right thing

Tom Ervin: Thanks for reminding us that real progress begins with a commitment to proven collaborative community-based strategies that focus on working together while rejecting divisive rhetoric and possessing a healthy skepticism for simplistic solutions.

by Charleston Currents · 01/09/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Feedback

FOCUS: A nourishing rain of books for Charleston County

By Patty Bennett-Uffelman | A recent article about urban “book deserts” in the New York Daily News highlighted a universal challenge for low-income families with young children: limited access to books.

The article focused on urban areas where concentrations of poverty and changes in technology have led to the closure of book stores, but in Charleston, some of our driest book deserts are rural areas, where families may live miles and miles from the closest book store or library.

According to authors Naomi Moland and Susan Neuman, “Book deserts are particularly detrimental for young children. Babies and toddlers (who do not yet have access to books in schools) need to be surrounded by books to develop preliteracy skills. …

by Charleston Currents · 01/09/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

GOOD NEWS: City Gallery to offer Sculpt Mettle! exhibit.

Staff reports | The City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs will present “Sculpt Mettle: Redux! A Henry G. Michaux Retrospective” on Jan. 21 through Feb. 26, 2017, at the City Gallery, 34 Prioleau St., Charleston. The show presents 30 years of works by Michaux, a former art professor at S.C. State University.

by Charleston Currents · 01/09/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Good news, News briefs

CALENDAR, Jan. 2+: Talks on WestEdge, Hamilton and Laurens

Maher to speak: Noon, Jan. 5, 2017, Hall’s Chophouse, 434 King St., Charleston. Michael Maher, CEO of the Horizon Project Foundation, will speak about his organizations guidance of the multi-million WestEdge development project…

Also: Save the Light oyster roast; new talk on Laurens and Hamilton; new exhibit at Gibbes.

by Charleston Currents · 01/02/2017 · Comments are Disabled · calendar

REVIEW: Digging Up the Dirt

Reviewed by Whitney Lebron | The latest installment of the Southern Ladies Mystery Series by Miranda James, Digging Up the Dirt brings back the two sassy sisters, An’gel and Dickce (pronounced Dixie) Ducote. Gone with the Wind meets Miss Marple in Miranda James’s Southern Ladies Mystery series.

by Charleston Currents · 01/02/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Features, Reviews

FOCUS: Making Emanuels out of us all

By Marjorie Wentworth, contributing editor | The relatives and friends of the nine people murdered on June 17, 2015, are facing a second New Year’s without their loved ones.

The strength and dignity the bereaved have displayed during the killer’s trial is an extension of the goodness of those who died at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. And we all must keep telling their stories — to remind us of who they were and all that we could be.

by Charleston Currents · 01/02/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

GOOD NEWS: Seniors get holiday cheer from Palmetto Goodwill

Staff reports | Martha Deveaux (left) and Mildred Simmons, above, are two Charleston seniors who received some holiday cheer at the Charleston Area Senior Center thanks to the annual Golden Angel program offered by Palmetto Goodwill. The program allows the non-profit to provide a hot meal, sing carols, and deliver vouchers for clothing and blankets to more than 1,100 seniors in lower South Carolina.

by Charleston Currents · 01/02/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Good news, News briefs

REVIEW: Rest Ye Murdered Gentlemen

A mystery by Vicki Delany: Ever wanted to immerse yourself in Christmas Town? Although Rudolph, New York, may not be called Christmas Town, it celebrates Christmas all year long. But this December might not be full of comfort and joy, as a murder is about to create havoc in this peaceful place.

by Charleston Currents · 12/19/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Features, Reviews