Hilton Head Monthly Voice Voice of the Lowcountry 
TIPS FOR FINDING TUITION ASSISTANCE
BY NINA GREENPLATE
Financing a college education can be a challenge. In 2022, collegeboard.org determined in-state tuition averages $10,740 annually for a four-year public university, with out-of-state students paying well over twice that amount.
SIGNE’S HEAVEN BOUND BAKERY & CAFÉ CELEBRATES 50 YEARS
BY AMY COYNE BREDESON | PHOTO BY ROB KAUFMAN
It all started in August 1972, when a young mother from Guilford, Conn., decided to open a food emporium in Harbour Town, selling fresh juices, protein drinks, salads and sandwiches to residents and visitors of Hilton Head Island.
Now 81 and just as hardworking as she was five decades ago, Signe Gardo is celebrating 50 years in business.
CHARLESTON CARRY SISTERS CREATE CUSTOM-MADE SOUTHERN ACCESSORIES
BY NICOLE CRAM | PHOTOS SUPPLIED
It all began in 2014 when Kathie Hall Rainsford was planning her wedding with a little help from her sister, Karen Hall Caraway.
One of the first engagement gifts Kathie and her then-fiancé received was a beautiful sweetgrass basket created by artisans in Charleston’s renowned City Market.
CAROLINA GROWN AND AMERICAN MADE, COVERED IN COTTON GIVES BACK
BY BARRY KAUFMAN | PHOTOS SUPPLIED
The story of Covered in Cotton is one written in miracles, signs and wonders. Starting in tragedy and heartbreak but carried along by hope and a determination to create positive change, it’s ultimately a tale of faith in action.
The first miracle came, appropriately enough, on Christmas Eve 2015, when young Tobin Woodard defied all the odds to beat a severe case of bacterial meningitis at just 3 months old.
BY VICKIE MCINTYRE | PHOTOS SUPPLIED
All eyes turn toward the flag on Independence Day, but for Max Berry and his business partners, Katie and Wes Lyon, admiration for Old Glory is always front and center.
In 2018, the Charleston-based trio founded Allegiance Flag Supply, which produces high-quality American flags with American-sourced materials and workers.
BY AMY BARTLETT | PHOTOS BY ROB KAUFMAN
When Katie Silva tells the story of how her business venture began, she leans heavily into the networking angle, but the heart and impact of the brand have all the poetry, purpose, and personality we’ve come to expect from anything that’s Lowcountry Made.
“Lowcountry Made began creating pop-up markets during the pandemic to provide a safe platform for makers to engage with shoppers,” she said.
Shoreline Commercial enjoys growth in the Lowcountry
STORY AND PHOTO BY TONY KUKULICH
Chris Dalzell, owner of Shoreline Commercial, is a different kind of businessman who runs his business differently.
The first clue to that is evident upon entering the company’s office in Old Town Bluffton. Displayed prominently in the office is a banner with the Shoreline Commercial’s mission statement.
BY AMY COYNE BREDESON | PHOTOS BY RITTERBECK PHOTOGRAPHY
If you live on Hilton Head Island — or have ever visited the area — you’ve most likely heard the name Hudson, and it was probably in the same breath as the word “seafood.”
The Hudson family came to Hilton Head more than a century ago and made quite a name for themselves in the seafood industry. Now the fourth generation of Hudsons, Tonya Hudson, is at the helm, with her mother, Barbara Hudson, always nearby to lend a hand.
Paint & Paper Tiger under new family ownership
BY JAMES A. MALLORY | PHOTO BY RITTERBECK PHOTOGRAPHY
Bobby Heuser has done many things in his young career, including earning a degree in mechanical engineering, an MBA and working in private equity, strategic consulting and banking. But he never forgot a childhood dream of owning a family business.
His dream turned into reality seven years ago when Heuser, 38, and his parents, Bob and Renee, opened Heuser Ace Hardware at Buckwalter Place.
LED BY BURNT CHURCH DISTILLERY, WATTERSON BRANDS BUILDS BUSINESSES, BRINGS JOBS, AND GIVES BACK TO THE LOWCOUNTRY
BY BARRY KAUFMAN | PHOTOS BY RITTERBECK PHOTOGRAPHY
Stop us if you’ve heard this one before.
A guy moves to the Lowcountry from the Midwest, having amassed a successful career up north. He’s thinking about retiring but knows that his Type-A personality doesn’t make that even remotely possible. So he decides he’s going to stretch his creative muscles a little and see what he can come up with.
