Charleston Currents

Focus

FOCUS: Photos from a Lowcountry oyster roast

Staff reports | Local Realtor Rob Byko has a real eye for capturing the essence of the world around us. Whether he’s scouting birds in the wild or people with his camera, his photos provide a real feel that puts you inside the spaces and places he sees.

In this issue, we welcome Byko, who lives on Sullivan’s Island, as a contributing photographer who will provide periodic photo essays of what he’s seeing around the area. In today’s essay, you get a real feel for the grittiness and steaminess of a Lowcountry oyster roast. It’s easy to smell and taste the briny sweetness of oysters as they left the cooker and were dumped on the tables of hungry patrons of a roast earlier this month on Sullivan’s Island. Enjoy these — and future — photos from Rob.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 02/18/2019 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Photo Essay, Photos

FOCUS: How to cut your home’s carbon footprint, home decor tips

From Digit Matheny, contributing editor | You may work to reduce your personal carbon footprint by driving less and recycling, but do you consider the footprint of your home? Here are some tips to make your home and your wallet a little greener.

Buy efficient appliances. Appliances are getting more efficient every year, and some have better energy and water-use ratings than others. The energy rating of an appliance is easy to find and can be a great guide for those looking to reduce their electricity and water consumption.

Install low-use fixtures. Shower heads, toilets, faucets and other fixtures now come in models that use less water than others. These fixtures can lower a home’s utility bill as well as reduce the amount of water a home uses.

by Charleston Currents · 02/11/2019 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news, Real estate

FOCUS: New literary and art collection features S.C. writers, artists

Editor Carol Bass, who lives iduring winter months on Edisto Island, offers an outstanding and fascinating array of poems, paintings, prose and photographs in a new collection, “Ripple Effect: Water Stories.” It includes some of South Carolina’s best writers and artists, such as Jim Harrison, Ben Moise, Josephine Humphreys, Ron Rash and our own Marjory Wentworth.

Bass, who grew up along the Edisto River, described the collection in the preface: “This book, filled with writing and art, was born from my love of a river and my hopes that through art, poetry and love we will grow to understand that rivers are our very own selves. All rivers of the world are connected to each other just like we are connected to every other person on earth.” Click headline for more — and a great poem.

by Charleston Currents · 02/04/2019 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Palmetto Poem

FOCUS: Flagship-Bridge incubator opens with 20 tech businesses

Staff reports | The Charleston Digital Corridor has opened the Flagship-Bridge, a tech-focused business incubator that is housing 20 tech companies. The development of the facility in downtown Charleston at 385 Meeting Street was necessitated due to the redevelopment of the property that formerly housed the Flagship and Flagship2, according to a press release

The Flagship-Bridge office is approximately 14,000 square feet on a single floor and contains 22 offices of various size configurations, two conference rooms and a sprinkling of open areas for co-working and team collaboration.

Some of the new business services now being offered by the Charleston Digital Corridor at the Flagship-Bridge include monthly co-working memberships, virtual offices and mail handling services exclusively for tech companies.

by Charleston Currents · 01/28/2019 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivering a speech.

FOCUS: Remembering Dr. King and 6 principles that guided his work

By Elliott Brack, special to Charleston Currents | As we observe Martin Luther King Day, it’s fitting to review the King Philosophy. Dr. King viewed three evils, that of poverty, racism and militarism that he said formed a vicious cycle. He felt these were intertwined and were barriers for reaching his nirvana, what he called the “Beloved Community.”

Let’s look at his thoughts in this area, this taken from his view as recorded at The King Center in Atlanta and available on the Internet.

Fundamental tenets of Dr. King’s philosophy of nonviolence are described in his first book, Stride Toward Freedom. The six principles include: …

by Special to Charleston Currents · 01/21/2019 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

FOCUS: King Day events in Charleston to continue Jan. 17

Staff reports | While area churches held services commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy on Sunday, community events and celebrations get started in earnest Thursday, Jan. 17, with the MLK Racial Equity Institute.

The nationally-recognized sessions will be held 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Jan. 17 and Jan. 18 at the College of Charleston’s North Charleston campus, 3800 Paramount Drive, just off Interstate 526. Leaders and others who attend will work to understand institutional racism and will ““come away with dramatically changed worldviews,” according to YWCA Greater Charleston.

Click the headline above to learn about more events.

by Charleston Currents · 01/14/2019 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

FOCUS: Neighborhoods should benefit from Lowcountry Rapid Transit

By Kyra Morris, contributing editor | Lowcountry Rapid Transit (LRT), a proposed dedicated bus system between Summerville and Charleston, should not be just a metro system for transportation. It should also be the focal point for comprehensive community redevelopment, especially for stations along Rivers Avenue in North Charleston.

Now is the time for the planning and fund-raising. All of the benefits and barriers should be considered. We need to seize this opportunity for all of the Tri-county community and create neighborhoods where there are green spaces, safe areas for pedestrians and cyclists, creative mixed use environments for housing and businesses, and social networking centers.

A lot of research has been done showing that improving the environment often provides the nudge for individuals to lead healthier more productive lives. A lot of research also has been done showing that the Charleston area needs to mitigate sprawl and develop blueprints that show desirable urban in-fill.

by Kyra Morris · 01/07/2019 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

Pictured above is a hand-colored 1863 image (Frank Leslie's illustrated newspaper) of the Emancipation Day celebration on Jan. 1, 1863, under a grove of oaks outside Camp Saxton along the Beaufort River. Columbia filmmaker and Charleston native Bud Ferillo, who provided the engraved image, tells us that celebration of the first Emancipation Day was the largest in the South of freedmen when sine 3,000 people attended. Today, the location is home to Naval Hospital Beaufort.

FOCUS: Morris Brown AME to host special Watch Night today at noon

By Herb Frazier | Today at noon, the Charleston community will gather at Morris Brown AME Church to celebrate a moment in history when enslaved people anticipated freedom.

This special event at Morris Brown will be an homage to services first held on Dec. 31, 1862. At that time, the enslaved met in praise houses and churches to await the end of slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863.

Those first freedom’s eve services in 1862 have become an annual celebration called Watch Night held on New Year’s Eve in black churches across America. While many congregations, like Morris Brown, have held this service its original purpose had been lost in time. Last year, the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission began an effort to preserve and sustain this cherished tradition.

by Andy Brack · 12/31/2018 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

FOCUS: Dining With Friends returns to the Lowcountry in 2019

By Jason Kirk, special to Charleston Currents | Dining With Friends is back, and party hosts all over Charleston couldn’t be more excited. On Jan. 19, 2019, hundreds of people around the greater Charleston community will host dinner parties in their homes, churches or workplaces as part of a massive fundraising effort to support the work of Palmetto Community Care.

Party hosts and their guests will then gather together for a Grand Finale celebration with drinks, desserts and dancing at Memminger Auditorium.

The great thing about this event is it’s a low-stress commitment for party hosts. They don’t have to worry about “asking their friends for money” – the invitations provided will do all the work.

by Charleston Currents · 12/17/2018 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

FOCUS, Morris: Lowcountry Rapid Transit project makes whole lot of sense

By Kyra Morris, contributing editor | Community anticipation has been growing in recent months for the Lowcountry Rapid Transit (LCRT) project, which would serve as the spine of a premium mass transportation system in the Charleston region.

As proposed, LCRT would connect Summerville, North Charleston and downtown Charleston, running largely in dedicated, separated lanes, while providing relief from traffic congestion.

The LCRT is often referred to as “light rail on wheels.” LCRT would perform more like a train service than a bus route with many of the same conveniences, such as level boarding and wide doors on both sides of vehicles, modern transit stations, pre-payment, free Wi-Fi and more.

by Andy Brack · 12/10/2018 · 2 comments · Focus, Good news