Shark research could one day cure human illness + Bluffton neighbors band together around community leader
Happy Friday! It’s Chase Karacostas.
First up this week, The Sun News’ Caroline Williamson wrote about a new trend of restaurants holding onto customers’ credit cards and IDs while they eat. Several restaurants in Myrtle Beach claim it’s to prevent customers from dining and dashing, but the practice is also leading some customers to avoid the restaurants altogether.
“I do understand their reasoning, but if a customer has cash, they shouldn’t have to give your driver’s license and credit card for them to hold,” Myrtle Beach visitor Lori Ferrero said. “Too much scamming and identity theft going on.”
Here’s what else happened this week.
1. For decades, Wally Sumner has been Alljoy’s backbone. Now he needs a helping hand
To say Walter Sumner is an Alljoy institution is a bit of an understatement. Lovingly called Wally and known for cruising around in a golf cart with the family’s pet pig, Miss Lila, the master carpenter has been the community’s right-hand-man for decades, The Island Packet’s Sarah Haselhorst reports.
“Mayor” of Alljoy: Laura Wilson, a close family friend and neighbor, said she jokingly introduced Wally to a local pastor as “the sheriff and mayor of Alljoy.” Responding with his signature wit, Wally ran with the joke, never letting on that no such position existed in the unincorporated nook of Bluffton.
His kindness had no bounds. He would mow neighbor’s yards He would help anyone who needed help at the boat landing near his house.
Now, Wally needs the kind of help he gives out. After suffering a spinal stroke which put him in the hospital, paralyzing him and creating a pile of medical bills, the community he spent decades helping is rushing to his aid. A GoFundMe and corn hole tournament fundraiser at a local tavern have supported Wally in his road to recovery.
2. Gov. McMaster honors 2 York County keepers of SC history — one for a lifetime of work
Earlier this month, Gov. Henry McMaster honored Wenonah Haire with the Governor’s Award for lifelong work preserving state historical structures or sites. Historic Brattonsville was also honored with a state Stewardship Award for restoration work on its Brick House, The Herald’s John Marks reports.
Haire is a member of the Catawba Nation and serves as the executive director of the Catawba Cultural Preservation Project. Haire worked with several universities to preserve a 4,200-year-old dug-out canoe found in the Cooper River, and create a 10-year plan to identify and excavate Catawba sites.
Historic Brattonsville is part of the York County Culture & Heritage Museums, and it’s landmark Brick House was built 181 years ago. A decade of work stabilized the house’s foundations, and returned it to it’s Reconstruction-era appearance.
The two awards marked significant achievements for historical preservation in York County.
3. ’They’re trying to push all the homeless people away.’ Myrtle Beach axes boardwalk benches
The city of Myrtle Beach has become the latest Grand Strand town to stir up controversy around what one expert says is an attempt “criminalize activities associated with being human.”
After the city received complaints about people occupying benches for long periods of time, the city removed the benches from the boardwalk of Myrtle Beach, The Sun News’ Caroline Williamson reports.
The decision follows a high volume of arrests for loitering in the boardwalk area over the past four months. The arrests did not include violent or disruptive behavior, including public intoxication.
Earlier this month, North Myrtle Beach came under fire for blaming its growing homeless population on the local bus system’s free fare program, saying the people were being driven from Myrtle Beach to North Myrtle Beach.
4. ’Nothing like Richland Library.’ Artists and entrepreneurs find community beyond bookshelves
Richland Library’s reputation spans the state. Heather McCue, a 15-year veteran employee of the library, jumped at the chance to join its staff a decade and a half ago, leaving behind her home in the Upstate.
“I’d always known that when you talk about the libraries in our states, Richland Library (has) just always been really thoughtful and really intentional and really willing to take risks,” McCue told The State’s Makiya Seminera.
McCue is now the library’s children and teen services manager, where she has pushed the library beyond books to foster growth among the younger population and expanding accessibility. Under her management, the library is exploring how it can make the arts more accessible, including renting out photography equipment and other tools to aspiring artists.
Over the last decade, the library has expanded from being a home for books to a community space of learning, entrepreneurship and connection. (Don’t worry, books are still a big part of the library.)
5. Watch the teeth! Hands-on shark research in Lowcountry may one day help cure human illnesses
It’s Shark Week, and we’ve shared a host of stories about those beautiful and (sometimes) deadly creatures. I’m often the person to remind people that shark attacks are incredibly rare. Go swimming, you’ll be fine. The most interaction anyone usually gets with sharks on the beach is finding their teeth buried in the sand.
The Island Packet’s Sarah Haselhorst wrote a story this week that backs up my belief that sharks really are not that bad.
Shark researchers at the University of South Carolina-Beaufort caught a great white recently and took samples by cotton swabbing the white shark’s nostrils, teeth, gums, dorsal fins, and cuts and wounds/
The reason? Sharks have incredible self-healing abilities and great white’s rarely develop cancer. The researchers hope that by studying the infamous ocean-dwellers that they might be able to find ways to replicate what sharks do to treat human patients and save lives.
What I’m Reading
Four years ago, Zerihun Wolde drowned after he was caught in a riptide off the shores of Myrtle Beach and couldn’t get free, The Sun News’ Adam Benson reports. Now, his family is suing the company that offers lifeguard services to the city.
Monarch butterflies are now endangered in the U.S. The State’s Patrick McCreless wrote about what South Carolinians can do to help save them.
Greenville resident Bob Reese is headed to the finals for “American Ninja Warrior” for the second time. And, on the side, he trains “ninjas” himself, The State’s Lyn Riddle reports.
That’s all for today. If you don’t already, subscribe to The State here. If you’re already a subscriber (thanks!), download our iOS or Android app to get connected.
Stay updated with us at thestate.com, and follow along on Twitter and Instagram to see more from us. Thanks for reading!
Did someone forward this newsletter to you? You can sign up here.
