Charleston Currents – Special to Charleston Currents

Articles by: Special to Charleston Currents

FOCUS: Assessing an almost-invisible population in Charleston

By Becca Hopkins, special to Charleston Currents | People flock to Charleston. They come in droves for the weather, the culture, the food, the slower pace of life. For most people, Charleston is an eminently livable city and both the tourist industry and the pace of residential growth reflect that.

However, there is one almost-invisible population in Charleston that is not enjoying the advantages that Charleston has to offer. Charleston is home to hundreds of individuals under the age of 25 who are either experiencing homelessness or some variety of housing insecurity. An even greater number are experiencing food insecurity, meaning that they don’t get an adequate amount of nutritious food regularly. This population is mixed in with our K-12 students and college students, though there are many who are not in school and are living off the grid and outside of any systems.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 04/30/2017 · 1 comment · Focus, Good news

FOCUS: Educators urge governor to sign pension reform bill

By Bernadette Hampton, special to Charleston Currents | The South Carolina Education Association encourages residents of Charleston County, especially all educators in the Charleston area, to urge Gov. Henry McMaster to sign the responsible, bipartisan pension funding bill. This bill allows South Carolina to keep its obligations to public employees and remain competitive with other states. And, pensions remain the best bang for the buck for our taxpayers.

Public pensions cover over 549,000 teachers, firefighters and other South Carolina workers. In fact, 1 out 9 South Carolina residents are covered by our pensions systems. With an average benefit of just $21,000 a year, pensions provide a modest but dignified retirement for our public employees. Under this bill, teachers will contribute a greater percentage of their pay, now 9 percent of pay, toward their pension, sharing the sacrifice of increase with the state.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 04/24/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

FOCUS: S.C. Picture Project seeks sponsor to document culture, state

By Robin Welch, special to Charleston Currents | In just a few short weeks, SCIWAY will turn 21, which means we are now old enough to buy a good stiff drink!

As it turns out, we may need one. Over the past two decades, we’ve grown from a simple online portal with links to 23 other South Carolina websites – all that existed at the time – into a wide-ranging collection of original maps, detailed essays, and useful guides to state and local resources, including such things as S.C. events, S.C. elections, S.C. pronunciations, and – especially important this time of year – S.C. taxes.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 04/18/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news, Photo Essay, Photos

FOCUS: No Kill S.C. is changing the face of animal welfare

By Joe Elmore, special to Statehouse Report | Despite Charleston County becoming the Southeast’s first No Kill Community in 2013, tens of thousands of animals in other areas of South Carolina are dying needlessly due to a lack of best practices and resources.

To combat these alarming statistics, Charleston Animal Society, South Carolina’s first animal protection organization and one of the oldest (143 years) in the nation, launched No Kill South Carolina (NKSC) in 2015. Funded by a generous grant from Petco Foundation, No Kill South Carolina hit the ground a year later and is arguably the boldest grassroots animal care initiative ever undertaken in the U.S.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 04/10/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

FOCUS: Look at health care, not just police, in opioid crisis

By Elaine Pawlowski, special to Charleston Currents | I am thankful that it has been announced that more than 10 bills are filed to address the S.C. opioid epidemic. Although legislative steps are needed, I would say that the devil is in the details on whether the legislation will reduce the overdose rate.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 03/27/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

FOCUS: Government contracting is big part of area’s booming economy

By Joshua Hatter, special to Charleston Currents | When most people think of Charleston, they think of it as one of the best “new” places to go visit (or move to!) with historical architecture, friendly people, delicious cuisine and beautiful beaches. And while tourism has become a booming industry for the city and the surrounding region, most people don’t realize that the statewide economic impact of defense spending of $19.3 billion now exceeds tourism spending in South Carolina of $19.1 billion.

That statistic may come as a surprise, but I can guarantee everyone has heard about some part of Charleston’s long and rich military history – whether it was the siege of Charleston during the American Revolutionary War, the first shot of the Civil War being fired at Fort Sumter or, more recently, the U.S. Navy’s presence at the Charleston Naval Base from 1901 until its closure in 1996. That base closure in 1996 was a very visible change in the region’s operational military footprint.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 03/20/2017 · 1 comment · Focus, Good news

Young and older enjoy stories at Charleston Tells. Photo by Michael Kaynard.

FOCUS: Charleston Tells evolves into a quarterly storytelling series

By Cynthia Bledsoe, special to Charleston Currents | I’ve been a storytelling lover now for more than 40 years. What is it about stories, anyway?

As a child I loved listening to family stories: stories about how my parents met, what my father was like when he was a child, and what my brothers and sisters did before I was born. That love of stories quickly moved into a love of reading, though my love of listening never died. When I found out that there are actual storytelling festivals where professional tellers spin yarns and stories that make you tear up and laugh until your sides hurt, I was hooked and discovered I’m not alone.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 02/27/2017 · 2 comments · Focus, Good news

HISTORY: Home rule

S.C. Encyclopedia | The Local Government Act of 1975, otherwise known as the Home Rule Act of 1975, was passed by the South Carolina General Assembly to implement the revised Article VIII of the state constitution adopted in 1973 and dealing with local government. As amended, Article VIII conferred home rule on all South Carolina cities and counties and directed the General Assembly to establish standardized forms of city and county government. The 1975 act did this.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 02/06/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Features, S.C. Encyclopedia

HISTORY: John Rutledge

S.C. Encyclopedia | The exact date of birth for lawyer, jurist and governor John Rutledge (ca. 1739-1800) is unknown. The eldest son of Dr. John Rutledge and Sarah Hext, he studied law with his uncle Andrew Rutledge and with James Parsons in Charleston before attending the Middle Temple in London. Admitted to the South Carolina Bar in 1761, he quickly became one of the most successful attorneys in the colony. On May 1, 1763, he married Elizabeth Grimké. They had ten children, eight of whom survived to adulthood.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 01/30/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Features, S.C. Encyclopedia

HISTORY: Frederick B. Dent

S.C. Encyclopedia | Born in Cape May, New Jersey, on August 17, 1922, and raised in Greenwich, Connecticut, Frederick Baily Dent is the son of Magruder Dent and Edith Baily. He married the late Mildred Carrington Harrison on March 11, 1944, and they have five children.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 01/23/2017 · Comments are Disabled · Features, S.C. Encyclopedia