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Daily Archives: 10/06/2015

Pumpkin Fest set for Saturday

PUMPKINTOWN — Fall is here again, and thousands of visitors will descend upon the 37th annual Pumpkin Festival in Pumpkintown this Saturday, Oct. 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The festival will kick off at 9 a.m. with the parade from the Pumpkintown Fire Department to the Oolenoy Community Building, located at 5301 Dacusville Highway.

After the parade, the Pickens High School ROTC will hold a flag-raising ceremony, and then the fun and games will begin, and continue until 5 p.m.

This year’s festival will feature more than 150 arts and crafts vendors, who will be displaying and selling products that are all handmade, or homemade — no commercial products are accepted at the festival.

There will be food available throughout the festival grounds and inside the Oolenoy Building. There will be burgers, hot dogs, sausage dogs, barbecue, fried pies, fried fish, barbecued chicken and homemade ice cream, in addition to the numerous baked goods available around the perimeter of the community building. The famous barbecued chicken plates will be available around 11:30 a.m.

Bluegrass/gospel music and clogging will also be featured throughout the day.

Amusement rides for children will be available on the back side of the festival grounds. Cotton candy and kettle corn will be offered in the children’s area.

Raffle tickets for the festival quilt can be purchased inside the community building. The quilt, which is given away every year, was designed and quilted by Susie Flowers. The tickets are $1 each, or six for $5. The drawing will be held around 4 p.m. You do not have to be present to win.

Pumpkins of all sizes will be available for purchase at the entrance to the community building. TD Bank will have a tent set up with paints available for children to dress up their pumpkins. The pumpkin pile is also a popular spot for parents to take pictures of their kids.

The festival is free and open to the public. Handicapped parking is available in the Oolenoy Baptist Church parking lot, and golf carts will be available to shuttle folks to and from the festival grounds.

No pets will be allowed on the festival grounds, other than service animals.

The festival is sponsored and organized by the Pumpkintown Community Club and raises money for community projects that benefit many area organizations. The festival is also funded in part by the Pickens County Accommodations Tax.

 

Think pink for breast cancer awareness

The Courier is going pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. In honor of those whose lives have been affected by this devastating disease, we will accent our front page with pink every week of October.

The pink ribbon has been synonymous with breast cancer for years. Nowadays, people rarely think twice when they see pink ribbons, having grown accustomed to the pink ribbon and what it symbolizes.

Breast Cancer Awareness Month has been celebrated each year since 1985, and many other breast cancer awareness initiatives have been devised since then. While the pink ribbon may seem like it’s been in use for just as long, it was actually established only about 20 years ago.

Although you can see waves of pink every October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, many people don their ribbons year-round. Great strides have been made with respect to breast cancer, but with about 225,000 new cases popping up each year in the United States alone, there is still work to be done.

 

A personal view

Years ago, my mother had what my family generally calls “medical issues.”[cointent_lockedcontent] ben6-25 Page 4A.indd

We are a quiet, almost invisible family in the mountain area of Pickens County. So what medical ailment a person may have is considered “their own business.”

Then when that person finally has to give up, the issue becomes available for discussion. “She fought it as best she could, but it finally got her.”

A recent case of this was about 17 years ago, when my mother had breast cancer. My parents were rather silent about this to me. I knew my mother had health issues, but quite frankly I was too busy with my low-paying job to spend any time worrying about it.

My father had some health issues of his own during this time and had to spend some time in the hospital. To make things more complicated, my father was at Baptist Easley Hospital while my mother was at Greenville Memorial Hospital. So I was trying to put together not having time to visit them and take care of them with working too many hours for anybody to keep their sanity.

Of course I make it sound like I was doing most of the sacrificing, but I was healthy and blissfully ignorant. My main concern was not having a hot meal on Sundays (I ate at fast-food restaurants for all other meals). Looking back years later, I see just how brave my mother was.

She insisted on going through a stem cell transplant. I understand that this is common now, but it was rare then.

I remember my mother saying, “I want to make sure I do everything possible to get over this,” as she moved ahead with the treatment. I guess she was thinking that if she moved forward then it would be easier on her daughters, Rhonda and Cyndi, if they ever faced breast cancer.

Both have, by the way, and after dealing with their mother’s experience with the disease, both were more hopeful that breast cancer was not some kind of death warrant.

Cyndi smoked when she was younger, but just one time of her daughter Jessica saying “I can’t wait until I grow up so I can smoke like Mommy,” broke her of the habit. As far as I know, Jessica, now in her 20s, still does not smoke.

Cyndi’s bout with cancer was several years ago. She won despite some other health problems she has developed.

Rhonda’s cancer showed up just more than a year ago. It was not as extreme as Cyndi’s, but having experienced what my mother had been through, she agreed to chemotherapy in hopes of actually defeating the disease. And she’s winning, too.

So what is my contribution to this whole thing? To try to spread the word: Breast cancer is no longer a death sentence. With the help of the medical community we have around us, there’s hope anyone can fight this dreaded disease and win.

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Rain doesn’t dampen Founders Day

Rocky Nimmons/Courier

Despite Saturday’s rainy weather forcing it to move from the downtown amphitheater to Pickens High School, Pickens’ annual Founders Day Music Festival went on as planned, offering arts and crafts, entertainment, food and, of course, plenty of live music. Above, Volume Five perform on the stage during the event.

 

Confederate Railroad, Blount to headline benefit concert

PICKENS — A pair of nationally known acts will headline a benefit concert planned by Azalea Festival organizers at Bruce Field in downtown Pickens next month.

Country legends Confederate Railroad and local boy gone big Benton Blount, who has garnered a national following with his recent appearances on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent,” will perform at the Rock the Fall Ball, set for 7 p.m. on Nov. 13.

Organizers have also promised to add more bands to the concert, which will benefit Upstate Warrior Solution, a nonprofit dedicated to helping warriors in the Upstate.

Tickets are $14 in advance and $19 at the gate for adults and $10 in advance and $15 at the gate for children 12 and under. Tickets can be purchased by visiting SquadUP.

“The decision to add a fall benefit concert to the Azalea Festival’s lineup came easy,” board member Kristen Henry said. “Our mission is to support our area nonprofits, and Upstate Warrior Solution is a great choice. We are very excited to bring this to the community and the Upstate.”

Visit pickensazaleafestival.org for more information.

 

We were lucky-County avoids major issues from heavy rainfall

Photo courtesy Sue Nodine

A fallen tree rests atop a home in Clemson in the aftermath of the weekend’s storms. Although much of the state was devastated by flooding and other rainfall-related issues, Pickens County was mostly spared from major damage.

By Eric Sprott
Courtesy The Journal

esprott@upstatetoday.com

COUNTY — With only a handful of exceptions, Pickens County residents were were counting their blessings after rain moved out of the area Sunday afternoon.

They faced only relatively minor inconveniences compared to the devastating flooding that has occurred in the Midlands and Lowcountry that’s led to at least 14 deaths throughout the state.

Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative and Duke Energy officials said Monday all customers who had lost power in the area had their service restored.

Joshua Palmer, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Greer office, said area rainfall totals — which were projected up to 10 inches — fell well short of expectations, as the weather system largely spared the area.

“What ended up happening was we really had intense rainfall develop to our south across Columbia and Charleston, and fortunately for us, and unfortunately for them, the moisture was extracted out of at the atmosphere down there more efficiently than it was here,” he said. “Unfortunately for them, they got catastrophic flooding and a life-threatening situation that’s still ongoing now.

“We were very fortunate here in the Upstate that it wasn’t worse, because the catastrophic rainfall that was received was just to our south and east. I would say we definitely dodged a bullet.”

Pickens County was spared for the most part, though a tree fell on a home on Pendleton Road in Clemson, while another house in Clemson suffered damage to its garage due to a fallen tree.

The NWS reported Clemson received 4.49 inches of rain, while the highest reported total in the county was 6.12 inches.

No injuries were reported in either case, Pickens County emergency director Denise Kwiatek said, adding there was “no major flooding” in the county.

Clemson public works director David Conner added there were nearly a dozen additional trees that fell in roadways, and it may take several days to remove all the debris.

“It’s been going pretty good out there,” he said. “We’ve been getting some wind, which dries the ground, but hope it doesn’t blow any more trees down.

“We were lucky, very lucky that we didn’t get what they did in Charleston and Columbia.”

In a news release, it was announced the South Carolina Botanical Garden — which was closed Friday through Sunday due to the weather — sustained little damage from the rains and reopened Monday at 10 a.m.

The garden sustained some road erosion and several downed trees, and some new exhibits received damage, but it paled in comparison to the rain event of July 2013, when it suffered hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of damage after receiving 9 inches of rain in just four hours.

Central fire chief Ed Reynolds, meanwhile, said there were no power outages in the area, and apart from a minor one-car accident, there was nothing major to report.

“We were very quiet,” he said. “We had one or two trees that blew over roads, but nothing to report from flooding or damage.”

That was a welcomed relief for Central, which got a reported 4 inches of rain Thursday that resulted in flash flooding, notably on Eighteen Mile Road near Jerry’s Pizza.

“We were very lucky,” Reynolds added.

Nearly two feet of rain fell in other parts of the state, and West Columbia fire chief Wyatt Coleman told The Weather Channel on Monday morning he believed up to 100 people were still trapped in their Columbia homes due to floodwaters.

According to NWS figures, reporting stations in the greater Columbia area received anywhere between 11.26 to 15.46 inches of rain.

At least 14 people in the Palmetto State have died due to the weather, and the Red Cross was operating 26 shelters across the state as of Monday morning.

 

Service projects part of student veterans’ mission

Tri-County Technical College’s Student Veterans Association (SVA) chapter and campus safety officers surprised Christopher Morton, far right, and his parents, Kelli and Jeff Morton, standing, far right, and his service dog, Buddy, with gifts after learning about the family’s struggle with finances and the health setbacks associated with a recent car accident that injured Christopher and Buddy. Pictured from left are student veterans Alex Thompson; Drew Pitman; Julio Salazar; and William Griffin; Campus Safety Officers Jackie Howard and Teresa Summers; student veteran Nathan Barron, and veteran family Kelli and Jeff Morton and their son, Christopher.

By Lisa Garrett
Courtesy to the Courier

news@thepccourier.com

PENDLETON — For 10-year-old Christopher Morton, Monday and Wednesday afternoons are reserved for him to visit Patriots’ Place and meet with newfound buddies Drew Pitman and Jeremy Max, and other student veterans who are friends and fellow classmates of his father, Jeff, at Tri-County Technical College.

Christopher, who, at age three, was diagnosed with autism and mitochondrial disease, an inherited disorder resulting in mental disabilities as well as developmental or physical disorders, has asked to see both men every day since Drew, Jeremy, other members of the Student Veterans Association (SVA) chapter at Tri-County and campus safety officers invited him to visit Patriots’ Place, a campus veterans’ center, under the guise of playing. They surprised him and his parents and his service dog, Buddy, with gifts after learning about the family’s struggle with finances and the health setbacks associated with a recent car accident that injured Christopher and Buddy.

Drew, 24, an Air Force veteran who is back at Tri-County in the university transfer program, said he hasn’t been able to get the family off of his mind since learning of their plight. “I was in Patriots’ Place studying for a chemistry exam when Jeff’s wife, Kelli, and Christopher came in to wait for him while he was in class. I was a canine handler in the military and I talked with her about their service dog, Buddy, who is a comfort and calming agent for their son. I noticed Christopher was in a wheelchair and I learned they had been in a car accident months ago which had set him back and injured the dog,” said Drew.

“Christopher showed me his toys and as I listened to him and Kelli, I realized how hard they have had it, what they are sacrificing and what go they go through to give him quality of life. They have devoted themselves to him and he is their life,” he added.

“He told me he was getting braces on his legs and he began to cry. He told me he was scared. I realized that as a group of veterans at Tri-County, we could touch this family and bring a smile to his face,” said Drew.

Drew wanted to give Christopher a “big day” after getting his leg braces so he went into overdrive, gathering toys and donations for the boy. Within 48 hours, he, other student veterans, and Tri-County faculty and staff were able to get a trunk full of toys, which included GI Joe and Star Wars toys, and a stamp set and legos to help Christopher with his cognitive skills. The group also obtained pet supplies, including medication for Buddy.

Campus Safety Officer Teresa Summers arrived at work with a car full of items, including a handicap shower chair she and her husband had purchased for the family.

Tri-County Campus Safety Director Jonathan Finch, a veteran himself who serves as the advisor for the SVA, is proud that the veterans are helping others and making service projects a part of their mission.

“I was very quickly impressed with their motivation and initiative. After meeting Christopher, the SVA team immediately determined this was something they wanted to help with. The attitude displayed by these young TCTC student veterans is amazing,” he said.

“Not only is this just a great experience with someone having been helped, there is no doubt in my mind Tri-County students have been impressed with the immediate and overwhelming support shown by College employees. I look forward to working with this impressive team,” said Finch.

The next project for the SVA is to raise enough money and donations to build a handicap-accessible shower for Christopher. Currently, Kelli has difficulty bathing him in their small bathroom in their single-wide mobile home. “We hope to raise $2,000 through upcoming fundraisers,” Drew said. SVA is planning an angel tree for Christmas and a food drive. They plan to visit an elementary school on Veterans’ Day and read to the students and talk about Veterans’ Day.

Jeff, who spent eight years in the Army (working in homeland security), is now an associate degree nursing student. After Christopher was diagnosed, he began to rethink his career. After leaving the military, he worked in food services at resorts, as a ski lift operator and at an animal shelter. He says Christopher’s medical condition was a motivating factor for choosing the health care field.

His wife, Kelli, a Tri-County Computer Technology graduate, is a stay-at-home mom now and homeschools Christopher. Jeff, who doesn’t qualify for the GI Bill because he has been out of the service so long, is attending Tri-County on a Pell grant and lottery, leaving the family strapped for funds.

The Mortons are overwhelmed at the selfless outpouring of support from their Tri-County family.

“They are such a humble and gracious family,” said Drew.

“Christopher still talks about the day they presented him with the gifts. He really latched onto Drew. Christopher will remember their faces forever,” said Jeff.

“He knows he has a second family here. That’s what we do for each other; we reach out to veterans and their families and help them,” said Jeremy, an Army veteran and university transfer major who serves as a veteran student ambassador.

“As veterans, we gave to our country; now we want to continue serving other veterans and their children,” said Jeremy. “They’ve got my back and I’ve got theirs.”

 

County Republicans meet

10-7 Page 2A.inddMore than 50 [cointent_lockedcontent]Republicans attended the September meeting of the Pickens County Republican Party. The group heard from Dave Swartz, director of Americans for Prosperity. Swartz gave a presentation on road funding and emphasized that there is plenty of tax money available to maintain our roads, but it is being poorly managed. The next meeting will be Oct. 15, where the topic of foreign refugee resettlement will be discussed and explained by a panel of experts. For more details, visit PickensGOP.com.[/cointent_lockedcontent]

 

70th anniversary

Winchester Anniversary 10-07-15Jackson Lemard (Jack) Winchester, an Air Force retiree, and native of Wyoming, and his English WWII bride, Sheila Florence Olive Howard Winchester, were married in a small London castle on June 25, 1945. Jack is the only living child of late Pickens native John Hamilton Winchester, who migrated to Wyoming by working as a ranch hand in Texas, and other states en route there, where he built by hard work the large Winchester Ranch. John and Goldie David Braskett were married on July 26, 1908, and raised a large family. Jack and Sheila were totally surprised to be the honored guests at the Sept. 20 annual Winchester reunion at the Shady Grove Baptist Church fellowship building with a special cake and a video viewing of a “this is your life” presentation. They have four daughters, and daughter Sarah of Columbus, Ga., shared the joyous occasion.
Jake and Sheila are retired in St. Augustine, Fla.

 

UCM Feet for Heat 5K to help provide warmth this winter

EASLEY — United Christian Ministries will host the annual UCM Feet for Heat 5K on Saturday, Oct. 24, in downtown Easley.

The purpose is twofold: raising awareness of the emergency heating assistance provided by UCM each winter and raising funds to support these critical services. Sponsors and supporters throughout the community make Feet for Heat possible each year.

“Obviously, we want to raise money, but we also want Feet for Heat to help get the word out about UCM heating assistance services. Who among us doesn’t know someone who has struggled to make ends meet during a difficult time?” said Teresa Nash, UCM Executive Director. “Those of us with full time employment and paid sick leave may not realize the plight of the many hourly wage earners in our community.

Many are making ends meet, but one bout of the flu and lost wages creates a hurdle. We want to help them clear that hurdle and get back on their feet.” The cold, winter months are especially hard on the limited resources of many senior adults on low, fixed incomes. “Amazingly, we’ll see senior adults who’ve been managing month to month on Social Security income well under a thousand dollars a month, that is until their heating costs rise beyond their reach”, said Nash.

The event will be held in downtown Easley on the South 1st Street side of Old Market Square. UCM welcomes all to lace up their shoes and use their “Feet for Heat!” A one-mile fun run/walk is available as well as the certified 5k route through Easley. Registration is available online at www.ucmpc.org. The entry fee for the 5K is $30, and the One Mile is $25. Event-day registration begins at 8 a.m., with the 5K start at 9 a.m. followed by the One Mile. Medals, awards, lots of door prizes, and t-shirts (while supplies last) will be enjoyed by participants. Lizz Ryals, of iHeart Media MY102.5, will be emceeing and playing some great music to get the crowd warmed up and ready.

For more information, contact Teresa Nash via email at teresa@goodsamalliance.org or call 855-0853, ext. 33.