By Anthony Garzilli

The boys from Bees Creek Road stick together, so it's no surprise Jollie Orr's friends followed him when he started the Ridgeland Jr. Jaguars' youth football program three years ago.
Orr, Midgets coach Cedric White, Small Fry assistants Jacvor Patterson and Darryl Bush and Pee-wee coach Cedric Bush are among the program's coaches with ties to Bees Creek.
Orr and White were part of the Jaguars' varsity football team and graduated from Jasper County High in 1993. Patterson was a junior wide receiver and safety that season.
Cedric Bush graduated in 2005, but he was born on Bees Creek road. His cousin Darryl, a 1989 Jasper County High graduate, has always lived on Bees Creek Road.
"It's satisfying to know and it's positive knowing you can still be friends after all that time," Patterson, 36, said.
"We all have a bond," Darryl Bush, 41, said.
White grew up in the Cherry Hill area, but his father's from Bees Creek and he spent plenty of summers hanging out there with his friends Orr and Patterson. They all love football and point to the Jr. Jaguars as a way of giving back to the community.
The Lowcountry Youth Football League's season kicks off Saturday with the Jr. Jaguars' first game at Walterboro.
Patterson is prideful when talking about how the program has grown.
Orr has always stressed the importance of the players working with teachers, school work and teaching the kids to be respectful and Patterson said the children have been receptive.
"Every year it gets better, the relationships with the coach and teacher is greater, they let us know what the students are doing in school and we instill respect in the kids," said Patterson, whose 9-year-old son Jacvor Jr., competes in the program.
Cedric Bush, who played youth ball for the Ridgeland Tigers when he was young, said the Jr. Jaguars have taken things to another level.
"The Jr. Jags program is a step above when I was there," Bush, 25, said. "The Jr. Jags program is not all about winning games; it's about developing better people."
That development is not a suggestion, it's Orr's demand.
"Jollie has it to a point where we have to teach that at practice every day, you don't have a choice," Cedric Bush said.
White, 37, works at Hardeeville-Ridgeland Middle School where his 9-year-old son Malik goes to school.
White coached last season's Dynamites to a 9-1 record and the league championship. He was pleasantly surprised at how the young team adapted.
"As green as they were, having never played before....they went way beyond my expectations," said White, who was going to be a linebacker at Clark Atlanta University but was forced to stop playing because of shoulder injuries.
White hopes the Midgets will have the same drive the Dynamites had and will be willing to learn.
He expects the players will heed to the league's emphasis on school work. White said his son was named classroom ambassador last year, which meant he was the one the teacher asked to run errands or interact with other classes.
"It touched my heart," White said. "Football players aren't stupid."
Cedric Bush, who said he'll count on several returning players to boost this season's team, plans to go to the players' school during the season to make sure they are behaving.
Patterson, who said the Small Fry team has "veterans and up-and-coming superstars," is committed to the Jr. Jaguars. Even when his son moves on, Patterson plans to continue growing the program.
"I'll be a part of it for a while," he said. "I'm not in it just because my son is there. I'm here for the kids."

 

It was a sunny Saturday for the teenagers who gathered in front of Jessie Smith's home. At age 91, Miss Smith is no longer as spry as she used to be; she walks with the assistance of Miss Tameka while she's walking to the car for her doctor's visit. Her home's yard has been left to the vagaries of the Lowcountry weather - tall and lush, bushes blocked all view of her house and trees buried her roof in heaps of pine needles.
Cliff Smith watches over the teenagers who are cleaning up her yard, making sure that everyone is not only doing something, but doing it safely.
"Last Saturday was a long day," Smith said. "We had a lot more kids there, but the yard we worked on there was about three times the size of this one. They worked really hard on that."
Smith is the adult in charge of the Boys and Girls Keystone Club, a part of the Boys and Girls Club devoted to teenagers and getting them involved in the community.
With the help of sponsors such as the Jasper County School District, The Rotary Club, Garden Medic and Home Depot, the teens got to work, clearing out overgrown bushes, planting flower boxes and mulching in plants in the yard and repairing the fence to help keep Miss Smith, who is an Alzhiemer's patient, safe on her own property.
"We're building partnerships and relationships with everyone in the community," Smith said, "giving these kids the opportunity to learn how to do different things and give back to their community at the same time."
William Pinckney of Home Depot said his company sponsors community service projects such as this because the company's employees are residents of the neighborhoods involved. Supplies from the company and their vendors are donated for projects, such as plants and chain link fence, and the manpower comes from the store associates.
"Home Depot has a group called Team Depot that is made up of Home Depot employees. We volunteer for community service, we work with different non-profit groups," Pinckney said. "We volunteer our time and skills to help groups like the Boys and Girls Clubs. Sometimes we're asked to do things like this, and sometimes we already have groups that we're involved with that we offer assistance to. It's a great way for our associates to get together and give back to the community."
Pinckney grew up in the Forest Drive area of Ridgeland, down the street from Miss Smith - and Cliff Smith. He believes that giving back with time and effort helps keep the neighborhoods of the region alive. His daughter, who is now in college, was a member of the Bluffton Boys and Girls Club for several years.
Darryl Owens of the Jasper County School District pulls a rake along Miss Smith's roof, dislodging a pile of pine needles that is roughly six inches deep (and compacted) from the corner of the enclosed garage. He tosses an iPod to the ground - it was buried in the pine needles, where someone had tossed it to the roof.
"I don't think that's any good," Owens said, laughing.
Anthony Farris of Garden Medic was enjoying himself. He was donating his time and resources to help with the landscaping of the small home, and he said that his reason for doing so was simple.
"I wanted to give back. ‘Each one, teach one.' Let the lessons be learned by the inspired," Farris said. He said that he began working with the United Way while he was attending college to get funding for the Boys and Girls Club.
Paint, a new deck on the front of the house, the landscaping - the majority of the work was performed by about fifteen teenagers who wanted to give back to their community. Two of them have been involved in the Club for a while, and are looking forward to their National Community Service Project, which involves helping the homeless in Jasper County.
Tyshieka Dupont said that she's a new member of the Club, but that she's enjoying doing community service and going on trips. "We have to do work first in order to have fun, though," Dupont said. "This is a lot of fun."
Charrae Priester, a young cancer survivor, joined the Keystone Club at the end of last school year. "We did the Relay for Life in Hardeeville, and that was fun. We do fun stuff at the Club, and I've never really counted how many projects I've helped on," Dupont said. "We get to work with a lot of people when we do projects like this, and we get to help people."
All of them have put in a lot of time and effort this year toward helping their neighbors while learning valuable skills. They're also learning that their community is willing to give back to them by helping them gain those opportunities through donations of funding and time.

 

It was a sunny Saturday for the teenagers who gathered in front of Jessie Smith's home. At age 91, Miss Smith is no longer as spry as she used to be; she walks with the assistance of Miss Tameka while she's walking to the car for her doctor's visit. Her home's yard has been left to the vagaries of the Lowcountry weather - tall and lush, bushes blocked all view of her house and trees buried her roof in heaps of pine needles.
Cliff Smith watches over the teenagers who are cleaning up her yard, making sure that everyone is not only doing something, but doing it safely.
"Last Saturday was a long day," Smith said. "We had a lot more kids there, but the yard we worked on there was about three times the size of this one. They worked really hard on that."
Smith is the adult in charge of the Boys and Girls Keystone Club, a part of the Boys and Girls Club devoted to teenagers and getting them involved in the community.
With the help of sponsors such as the Jasper County School District, The Rotary Club, Garden Medic and Home Depot, the teens got to work, clearing out overgrown bushes, planting flower boxes and mulching in plants in the yard and repairing the fence to help keep Miss Smith, who is an Alzhiemer's patient, safe on her own property.
"We're building partnerships and relationships with everyone in the community," Smith said, "giving these kids the opportunity to learn how to do different things and give back to their community at the same time."
William Pinckney of Home Depot said his company sponsors community service projects such as this because the company's employees are residents of the neighborhoods involved. Supplies from the company and their vendors are donated for projects, such as plants and chain link fence, and the manpower comes from the store associates.
"Home Depot has a group called Team Depot that is made up of Home Depot employees. We volunteer for community service, we work with different non-profit groups," Pinckney said. "We volunteer our time and skills to help groups like the Boys and Girls Clubs. Sometimes we're asked to do things like this, and sometimes we already have groups that we're involved with that we offer assistance to. It's a great way for our associates to get together and give back to the community."
Pinckney grew up in the Forest Drive area of Ridgeland, down the street from Miss Smith - and Cliff Smith. He believes that giving back with time and effort helps keep the neighborhoods of the region alive. His daughter, who is now in college, was a member of the Bluffton Boys and Girls Club for several years.
Darryl Owens of the Jasper County School District pulls a rake along Miss Smith's roof, dislodging a pile of pine needles that is roughly six inches deep (and compacted) from the corner of the enclosed garage. He tosses an iPod to the ground - it was buried in the pine needles, where someone had tossed it to the roof.
"I don't think that's any good," Owens said, laughing.
Anthony Farris of Garden Medic was enjoying himself. He was donating his time and resources to help with the landscaping of the small home, and he said that his reason for doing so was simple.
"I wanted to give back. ‘Each one, teach one.' Let the lessons be learned by the inspired," Farris said. He said that he began working with the United Way while he was attending college to get funding for the Boys and Girls Club.
Paint, a new deck on the front of the house, the landscaping - the majority of the work was performed by about fifteen teenagers who wanted to give back to their community. Two of them have been involved in the Club for a while, and are looking forward to their National Community Service Project, which involves helping the homeless in Jasper County.
Tyshieka Dupont said that she's a new member of the Club, but that she's enjoying doing community service and going on trips. "We have to do work first in order to have fun, though," Dupont said. "This is a lot of fun."
Charrae Priester, a young cancer survivor, joined the Keystone Club at the end of last school year. "We did the Relay for Life in Hardeeville, and that was fun. We do fun stuff at the Club, and I've never really counted how many projects I've helped on," Dupont said. "We get to work with a lot of people when we do projects like this, and we get to help people."
All of them have put in a lot of time and effort this year toward helping their neighbors while learning valuable skills. They're also learning that their community is willing to give back to them by helping them gain those opportunities through donations of funding and time.

The annual Hardeeville Catfish Festival is Friday and Saturday. The family event is held behind Hardeeville City Hall every fall. There will be music, food and a lot of entertainment.
As always, food and craft vendors from all across the Southeast will be on site. Expect to see new things this year as well. The amusement rides start at 6 p.m. on Friday and will run all day Saturday. Take the whole family and get day passes for a full day of excitement.
Every year there's a best-of-the-best competion as part of our bake-off and Catfish Stew cook-off. This year we have added a jams-and-jellies contest; these will be judged on taste and appearance. This event will be Friday and the winners will be announced Saturday. Please have your favorite recipe prepared and entered at the concessions building by 6 p.m. Friday. Make sure you are there Saturday when we auction off each of our wonderful baked entries.
Friday night kicks off with the annual Land Boat race. Get your craft and three person crew ready for action. The race is always as funny as it is competitive.
New this year is the children's parade sponsored by the Hardeeville Friends of the Library. Each entry will represent a favorite children's book or character. Children from ages 1-year-old to 8 years old can ride tricycles, "Power Wheels", or other ride on toys. Kids aged 9 to 12 are asked to walk the short parade route from behind the festival stage to the main festival entrance. There will be prizes, including a book donated to the Hardeeville Library in a child's name. Dress up your little ones and be ready by 6:30 p.m. Friday.
Brad Wells and The Brad Wells Band will headline Friday.
Saturday morning get ready to line the streets of Hardeeville for the big parade. If you aren't in the parade, don't miss the opportunity to watch it. We have all of our regulars, from pageant queens to clowns and several new entrants to entertain you. The Veterans Tribute will be back to give our locals a chance to be recognized. Military veterans from every branch are encouraged to ride, just show up at the line up start on Main Street. There will be awards given for parade entrants and the parade watchers will get to vote for the "Best of Crowd Favorites" trophies. Stop by the Festival committee booth to cast your vote.
Another new event this year is the first cornhole tournament. Come show off your skills and join in Saturday for the all-day event. Register your two-person team in advance by calling Ronald Spikes at 384-2168. There will be prizes and lots of competition.
The car and motorcycle show is Saturday. This year it will be better than ever thanks to a new sponsor, NAPA of Hardeeville and Okatie. Register at the event, or get a discount and register early by calling Joseph or Heather Arzillo at 683-4659.
Comedian Mike ‘The Chicken Man' Culver will take the stage at 5 p.m. If you were ever a fan of the famous Ray Stevens, you will really enjoy this family-style comedy. After you have laughed yourself silly, take advantage of the free shag lessons. The Beaufort Shag Club will travel to Hardeeville to teach us all how to do the state dance of South Carolina. The Headliners of Hilton Head will take the stage at 7 p.m. on Saturday and you will be glad you were there for the dance lessons.

FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
FRIDAY
• Catfish Stew Cook-Off
• Bake-Off
• Jams and Jellies Contest
• Amusement rides
6 p.m. - Land boat race
6:30 p.m. - Children's parade
7-10 p.m. - The Brad Wells Band
SATURDAY
10 a.m. - Parade
10 a.m. to 2:20 p.m. - Car and bike show
• Live entertainment
• Food and craft vendors
• Amusement rides
• Cornhole tournament
5 p.m. - Comedian Mike "Chickenman" Culver
6 p.m. - Hilton Head Shag Club gives free shag lessons
7-10 p.m. - The Headliners Band
10 p.m. - Fireworks

Mike Reichenbach plans to open a new Chevrolet dealership in Jasper County.
Reinchenbach is owner of Mike Reinchenbach Ford Lincoln in Florence. He purchased last week about 11 acres from O.C. Welch who owns O.C. Welch Lincoln on U.S. 278. The property is outside Hardeeville city limits in Jasper County.
Reichenbach said he plans to start construction as soon he works out agreements with the general contractors. The new dealership will offer all Chevrolet makes and models as well as pre-owned vehicles and part services, he said.
"I'm looking forward to this opportunity to service the market," Reinchenbach said. "There are a lot of great people and I look forward to meeting them, but also provide new Chevys and automotive services to that community."
Reinchenbach said he will be looking to hire locally three to six months before the dealership opens.
The property sold by O.C. Welch is about 10.5 acres and was the only property Reinchenbach was interested in.
"I'm just glad there is a new business coming to Jasper County," Welch said. "I think he's going to be a great businessman."
Deani Hall of the Jasper County Assessor's office said the purchase price and details will not available until they receive a receipt of the deed.
Hardeeville City Manager Bob Nanni said this week that City Council had been talking with Reinchenbach about property, but had not been in recent communication with him.
Nanni said he was unaware Reinchenbach closed on a property in Jasper County.

 

The response was beyond Christopher Green's expectations. About 150 children and adults participated recently in a community youth day in Tarboro.
A deputy from the sheriff's office spoke about bullying and there were representatives from Job Corps and Cynthia Robino of the school district spoke about careers.
Green, 36, a 1995 Jasper County High graduate, organized the event, hoping to inspire the kids to reach toward goals.
"Continue to work hard in school," Green said last week. "Work toward your future goals, reach as high as you can."
Green lives in Orangeburg and works at Bamberg Job Corps Center. He grew up in Tarboro, where his parents still live.
The day also featured bounce houses, volleyball, impromptu talents shows (featuring a mom and son rap duo) and words from pastor Donald Sheftall.
Green reveled in the turnout.
"Oh, man it was awesome," he said.
The deputy spoke about bullying and encouraged the kids to report incidents to teachers or go to student resource officers.
Denmark Tech College and Vorhees had representatives.
Green said it's important for the children to aspire.
"When I was younger, I pushed myself to go to college, be successful," he said. "A lot of people in Tarboro did not have the opportunity to go to college. I wanted to let (the kids) know you can be successful. I really believe the kids understood."
Green hopes to make the day an annual event

The Friends of the Pratt Memorial Library is starting a new way to bring money to the library. Beginning this week, the group will hold book sales inside the Ridgeland library every Wednesday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Leslie Jones-Hart, secretary for the Friends of the Library and former middle school English/Language Arts teacher, said the group is always looking for ways to encourage literacy and feels this might help.
"We usually have our annual book sale down at the EMS building, but none of us are getting younger, and hauling all those books down there just for one day is a lot of work," Jones-Hart said.
Jones-Hart said when the Chamber of Commerce moved to its new location, the back rooms of the library were left open, giving the Friends of the Library a chance to try something different.
The group hopes to raise funds for the library by selling books that are duplicates of those already on the library shelves. And while the annual book sale was bringing in about $1,000, they hope to surpass that by offering the sale on what Jones-Hart calls a "perpetual basis."
"We want to encourage literacy," Jones-Hart said. "It's important for so many reasons, and having the sale on a regular, twice-weekly basis will allow more people to come out and buy books for their own collections at home."
There is a variety of books for readers of all ages for sale. Hardbacks will cost $1 each and paperbacks are 50 cents. Donations of books to be sold are welcome, according to Jones-Hart.
The Friends of the Pratt Memorial Library hold their meetings on the first Tuesday of every month at 5 p.m. at the library, and they welcome new members.
"Stop in and see us. We want people to join us, and it's been a really good way to meet people," Jones-Hart said. "Even if you come in late, don't worry about it. Just come in."
The money that the group raises helps to pay for things like summer programs at the library. According to librarian Marcia Cleland, the programs have been a huge success this year.
"We had 218 people here for Ronald McDonald in June," Cleland said, "and 168 for the Fisherman and His Wife puppet show. The only event that wasn't super crowded was the comedy show by Todd Key, but that was because we had really bad weather while he was here."
Cleland said that the last two events for the summer, the July 20 Craft Show and the "Creatures of the Night" on July 27, which will feature live animals, will probably also be very well attended but that there is always room for everyone to come in and enjoy the programs.
For more information about the Summer Reading Program or the Book Sale, contact the Pratt Memorial Library at 726-7744.

 

Police officers (both human and dog,) firefighters and local wildlife are ingredients for a huge batch of curiosity when it comes to children. Palmetto Electric's "Safety Days" served that dish with panache to a room full of youngsters Wednesday.
Jonah Jenkins of the Jasper County Sheriff's Department and Fannie, his K-9 partner, enchanted the children with Fannie's drug-sniffing abilities - and her fascination with her baseball. The kids listened while Jenkins talked about the amount of training involved for the K-9 officers and their human partners.
"Fannie is from Belgium," Jenkins said. "She had to come through customs at the airport and have her identification checked just like any person would have to. Then she had to learn a new language - and so did I."
Ridgeland firefighters were the next to wow the kids with a demonstration of how a firefighter looks when he's in full firefighting gear. For a child, particularly a very young child, a fireman can be a scary figure in an emergency.
Hardy Youmans explained to the kids that they need to go to the center of the room and lay down if they can't escape the room so that firefighters can find them.
"Don't hide under the bed or in the closet. We want to be able to rescue you," Youmans said as firefighter Bradley Bonds circulated through the room in full gear, breathing through his respirator and later startling the kids by pulling his alarm so that everyone could hear what it sounded like. The kids got a brief tour of the fire engine after the presentation.
Bruce Lampright, naturalist, was once again the hit of the day with his baby alligators and snakes. He showed how the alligators called for their mother - a mother who, unlike most reptiles, cares for her young for roughly two years. The children watched, fascinated, some reaching out to touch and some cringing away as he carried non-venomous snakes through the room.
The quietest moments came when Lampright brought out a black widow spider in a clear container so that the children could identify - and avoid - this common Lowcountry spider.

Editor's note: This is in response to a notice posted before the elections. It said: Don't Stop Now!! From noon June 15 till June 25th you may vote early at the election commission office to avoid a run-around or vote June 26th in your precinct. We can take our County back. It's your duty to vote. Please do!!

Encouraging others to vote is a good thing. It is a privilege and each registered individual has that right. What one does not have the right to do is to tell someone who to vote for. One does not have the right to feel that this county belongs to a certain person(s) based on gender, race, age, political or religious affiliations, and position in the community or the work place, the rich, middle class or the poor.
Politics will work best when we, as a people, focus on what is best for everyone in oppose to I.
Jasper County belongs to its people. All who live here and pay taxes here can call this great Lowcountry home.
Home is a place where one should feel a sense of love, a place of security and peace. People of Jasper County, this is our home.
Tale our county back, from whom? In order for our county to survive, to grow, and be a home of love, peace and security, we must all see this place as the home for its entire people.
- Get rid of (the mentality of) me, mine and them; replace it with us and ours
- Love others, do not hate.
- Love does no harm to its neighbor.
- Pray for those who mistreat you; do not seek revenge.
- Agree to disagree on a matter, but do it in a peaceable way.
We may not all travel in the same circle but we must respect each other's space. The common ground must be justice and equality for all mankind.
I am a native of Jasper County. I've worked 57 of the 63 years I have lived. Only 11 of those years were outside of this county. I am gainfully employed and gratefully so. As a mother, grandmother, a minister of the gospel, a spiritual leader in this community, and a lover of all people I felt it was my duty to respond to the notice.
Jasper County is a small community and has the potential of becoming a major attraction for tourists to visit and make it their home.
Let us come together, work together and reason together for the common good of all.
It will take us to move our county forward.

Betty Bright