By Greg Oliver
Courtesy The Journal

goliver@upstatetoday.com

EASLEY — A number of options, including school consolidation, are on the table for consideration by Pickens County School Board members as they look at the long-range future of academics and facilities in the district.

The consolidation of Hagood Elementary School, in particular, was among a number of options presented to the board last week by the firm of Jumper Carter Sease.

While the consolidation option of Hagood was proposed in order to house other district programs such as Adult Education and Alternative Education, district spokesman John Eby said details of rezoning student attendance areas for Hagood Elementary were not part of the consultants’ presentation, nor has any action been taken by the board on any of the recommendations or plans presented.

“The authority to consolidate schools lies solely with the board of trustees,” Eby said. “While the district has made no recommendation on Hagood or moving central services, should they take action it would obviously have an impact on the capital needs plan, so revisions and new recommendations would have to be made accordingly.

“Our goal is to determine a permanent home for Alternative Education in time for the 2017-18 school year.”

During the school board retreat last summer, trustees and district administration reviewed the academic and operational position of its schools and discussed various ideas regarding long-term planning.

In order to help facilitate the process, the district hired JCS in September to provide recommendations regarding the efficient use of many of its programs and buildings.

The firm was told the two most important goals involved looking for a place to house the alternative program and to relocate Accountability, Information and Technology Services and Operations due to South Carolina Department of Transportation work taking place at the current Ann Street location.

Last week, several master plan options were presented to the board by the firm. Each of the options, district officials say, address in some way the facilities or programs the board requested they examine.

The district is recommending that either Plan B or C for capital needs be adopted, with Plan B allowing the district to keep its facilities in good shape, while Plan C would move the district closer to what officials say is “achieving our vision” by expanding the programs it can offer.

If the board were to adopt Plan C, the additional funding required would all come from the fund-balance.

But district officials, who favor Plan B, said they would not recommend using more than $2,158,207 toward capital needs and remaining additional funding would have to come from a tax increase or an unexpected financial windfall.

JCS also addressed moving Adult Education to the Northside facility and using vacant buildings at the former B.J. Skelton Career Center for housing central services, currently located in the Curtis A. Sidden Building on Griffin Mill Road in Easley, as well as nutritional services and transportation and operational services.

Eby said the presentation by the consultant “has started the process.”

“We will continue to explore the most efficient ways to bring the greatest value possible to our students,” he said. “Our long-range planning must not be comprised of year-to-year thinking, but must be focused on long-range planning and a vision for our facilities. We are completing a 25-year study of our facilities in early 2016.”

But trustee Alex Saitta said he is concerned with the finances involved, adding it cost $50,000 for the firm just to perform the study and much more to address facilities recommendations.

“The general fund is already spending $500,000 more than it is bringing in, and the capital maintenance plan that has been proposed will spend $2.2 million more than is coming in,” Saitta said. “Plugging the deficit with savings can only last so long because savings are being run down to zero. The district has put forth plans to spend $15 million to $22 million in new construction and renovation, and there is no money for that.”

District officials say their goal is to be as transparent as possible throughout the decision-making process while also being clear about the impact those decisions will have once they are made.

By Eugene Jolley

Courier Sports

ejolley@thepccourier.com

PICKENS — When Pickens senior kicker Matt Gravely takes the field Saturday in the 2015 Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas at Gibbs Field in Spartanburg, not many will understand the long journey it took to get there.

John Bolton/BoltonPhoto.com
Pickens kicker Matt Gravely will be the first Blue Flame player to participate in the Shrine Bowl since 2006 when he takes the field at Gibbs Stadium in Spartanburg on Saturday.

You see, the game itself will be the capping to a road of redemption, forgiveness and finally triumph.

After two successful seasons kicking as a freshman and sophomore, Gravely, the brother of former Blue Flame and North Greenville standout kicker Justin Gravely, had a junior season in which the world around him was seemingly crashing down around him.

The summer before his junior season, he and some teammates were suspended for the first three games of the season. Then, after playing in two games, Gravely was suspended for the rest of the season after another off-the-field incident.

“That was just a real low moment for me,” Gravely said. “I really messed up. I’m really proud of where I came to now and from where I can go to from here.”

Schoolwork wasn’t a picnic either, as he was failing every class.

“A year ago, he was suspended the first three games,” Pickens coach John Boggs said. “He comes back and gets kicked off the team at the end of the year making some poor decisions. We sat down back in January when I got hired, and he was one of the first kids I talked to. I told him ‘The slate is clean. Here is what you need to do to get back on this football team.’ I laid it out for him. Every single thing that I’ve asked of him, he’s done. Maybe not with flying colors, but he’s cleared the hurdles.”

“That was a big deal for me when he did that,” Gravely said of Boggs. “He came up to me personally and called me into his office. I knew I was the first person he talked to, player-wise. He really helped me through being a friend and helped me through coming back this year being the best I could be. “

But, the light turned on. Gravely saw the light just as bright as Saul on the road to Damascus. Suddenly, the grades began to change.

“It was like something smacked me in the face,” he said. “I needed to get my act together.

“Everything bad turned to good when that wakeup hit me.”

Boggs said Gravely busted his tail in the classroom.

“In December, he was failing every class, and then come May, he ended up passing everything,” Boggs said. “At one point in December, we didn’t know if he would be eligible to play. We’re proud of what he’s done academically to get himself eligible.”

“I slacked off in the classroom a lot, and I know I do and people get on to me for it,” Gravely said. “This year has been really different. I’ve really been nose-in-the-books, grinding hard and trying to get those good grades so I can pursue other things.”

Still, there was a lot of work to do to get back on the playing field and the question of whether he would be accepted by his coaches and teammates.

Spring workouts began, and there was Gravely. Every summer session, nobody worked harder. Entering the pre-season, there he was, not only back booming kicks with his powerful right leg, but now the golden-cleated athlete was starting at outside linebacker and making plays.

“That’s real fun. It keeps me loose and I stay in the game,” Gravely said. “I get to hit people, which is really fun. I have fun doing it, too.”

Defensively, he tied for the team lead with three interceptions and was third in tackles with 59, eight for losses. He broke up two other passes, forced one fumble and recovered another.

“He’s been one of our leaders in the offseason,” Boggs said. “He does a great job in the weight room. He works extremely hard. And look at the job he does on defense, too. He’s just a heck of a kid that goes out and plays his tail off.”

And for the Gravely family, he joins his uncle — and special teams coach — Harold Alexander as a Shrine Bowler.

“He’s family on the field and off the field,” said Gravely, the son of Bill and Tonya Gravely. “He is my mom’s brother. It’s great having him around. I used to go at 5:30 in the morning and work out with him every morning at the YMCA. He’s been working with me since seventh grade. Just as much as Justin, he’s got me here. I’m really thankful for him being there for me, on and off the field. “

Alexander made the 1988 Shrine Bowl before going to Appalachian State, followed by a long NFL career as a punter.

“Obviously, he’s worked very hard to get to where he is,” Alexander said. “This past offseason, in the summer, he really started to focus in on some things, doing what he needed to do, so that he could get back on the field and do what he loves to do, which is obviously play football. It’s been a great ride so far. I can’t be more proud for what he has achieved and going to the Shrine Bowl. That’s a great accomplishment, and it really just shows how much work he has put into playing this year. Not only that, but also at outside linebacker. Whatever position he is playing, he’s giving it 100 percent. He works hard in practice.

“Coaching him has been a pleasure over the past three years. He works on everything we work on, and the little things we talk about, he’s more than happy to try the things I ask him to try. He’s just one of those guys that work hard all the time.”

“It’s fun for me to see him getting to kick in the Shrine Bowl, which is what I got to do as well,” Alexander added. “That is just neat. It’s a great experience. Seeing who he’s going to see and being around who he is going to be around, the atmosphere, I couldn’t be more proud of him.”

For the season, Gravely finished 27-of-27 on extra points, 36-of-52 on touchbacks on kickoffs, and 11-of-19 on field goals, with a long of 49 yards. As the Blue Flame punter, he punted 44 times this season for 1,867 yards, good for a 42.4 average.

As for colleges, right now, there is not a lot of attention, with the Shrine Bowl likely to change that.

“Right now, it’s not a whole lot,” Gravely said. “We’ll see after the Shrine Bowl where life takes me.”

The selection is special for his brother Justin as well, who had a great career at Pickens and at North Greenville, but didn’t get selected for any all-star games following a senior season where the state was blessed with many great kickers.

“It really motivated him after he went through high school, and now that I’m in the position he was and I made the Shrine Bowl, it’s really thanks to him for being my role model and my go-to guy when I’m struggling on the field and at home, too,” Gravely said. “I really appreciate him being there for me. I’m really glad that I made the Shrine Bowl as well.”

Gravely is the first Blue Flame to make the Shrine Bowl since offensive lineman Wilson Norris made the team in 2006.

“I just want to see what happens and go through the motions and practice like I practice here at Pickens,” Gravely said. “I just want to keep everything the same and see how I do.”

“I will go up there several times to check him out and be part of it, and if he needs anything, I will be happy to,” Alexander said. “I will definitely be there at the game.”

So when he kicks off, or makes that first punt, understand that the journey to the Shrine Bowl wasn’t just about the mileage from Pickens to Spartanburg. It was longer. But for Gravely, it was all worth it.

Dillard Funeral Home/Hillcrest Memorial Park and the Liberty Mortuary each held their annual Christmas candlelight services of remembrance on Saturday. Hundreds were in attendance at both locations. Loved ones got the chance to hear beautiful music along with inspirational messages as they gathered to light candles at their loved ones’ places of rest.

Top left: Families gathered to light candles at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens. Bottom left: Michelle and Aubrey Moore light a candle at the grave of Michelle’s mother and father, Weldon and Jean Porter, in Liberty. Bottom right: The Carolina Boys Quartet performed at the Liberty Mortuary event.

Kerry Gilstrap and Rocky Nimmons/Courier

Five local organizations to

benefit from fundraising efforts

SUNSET — The Reserve at Lake Keowee’s Charitable Foundation announced recently that its 2015 giving totaled $110,000, nearly doubling the nine-year-old program’s record for a single year. The funds, raised throughout 2015 and presented during a ceremony Tuesday evening at The Reserve, are being shared by a quintet of local organizations who each received $22,000.

The group includes Pickens Senior Center, Safe Harbor, Pickens County Meals on Wheels, Feed a Hungry Child and Helping Hands of Clemson.

“The recipient organizations are each thoroughly deserving and have an excellent track record of community assistance and improvement,” said Cathy Washburn, the first-year executive director of The Reserve at Lake Keowee’s Community and Charitable Foundation. “This funding will have direct and tangible impact in Pickens County.”

The annual contribution was made possible by proceeds from the BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by SYNNEX Corp., The Reserve at Lake Keowee’s 2015 Charity Golf Classic and Auction and The Reserve’s Swine and Dine culinary event and fundraiser.

“The Reserve at Lake Keowee community and staff support the Foundation’s goal of giving back to our Pickens community each year,” Washburn said. “It is through their diligent efforts, as well as the fantastic support of our sponsors, that our financial contribution to local organizations continues to grow.”

Since the charitable foundation’s inception in 2006, The Reserve at Lake Keowee has raised and distributed nearly $400,000 to support the Pickens community. In addition to financial support, Reserve community members volunteer hundreds of hours annually with various organizations.

The Reserve at Lake Keowee’s annual Charity Golf Classic and auction, which celebrated its seventh anniversary in 2015, is a primary fundraising tool for the charitable foundation. The event raised more than $80,000 this year. Organizations can register as early as July to play in the next Charity Golf Classic scheduled for Oct. 24, 2016. Sponsorship opportunities are also available.

The Charitable Foundation, part of The Reserve at Lake Keowee’s Community Foundation, is a 501(c)(3) dedicated to funding outreach and charitable giving in the community. Members of The Reserve annually select local charitable organizations for the foundation to support.