Hilton Head News

In grade school, I used to enjoy reading the dictionary (weird kid, right?). My sixth-grade teacher challenged the class to find the longest word in the dictionary. 

I won by finding a 46-letter word. This exercise helped me begin to understand the power of words and why it is important to attempt precision in word choices. 

An early-morning crash on May 1 in the Lowcountry killed three people. A pickup and a sedan crashed on the westbound Hilton Head bridges, sending the truck into the water, according to the Associated Press. Three Jasper County residents, Tyler Cameron Carroll, 23, of Ridgeland; Jonathan Green, 27, of Hardeeville; and Jordan Amari Johnson, 21, of Ridgeland died at the scene. The crash happened at 2:15 a.m. 

Dustin Johnson is set to compete at the Palmetto Championship at Congaree Golf Club in Ridgeland, June 10-13. He is a 24-time PGA Tour winner. The event is expected to draw a field of 156 golfers. Standouts Tyrrell Hatton and Matt Fitzpatrick are also set to contend for the title. Congaree Golf Club was voted Golf Digest’s Best New Private Course in 2018. 

The Savannah Book Festival announced plans to host the 2022 Savannah Book Festival in person Feb. 17-20, 2022. Executive Director Erika Dongre said the festival will incorporate safety recommendations from the CDC and state and local governments. SBF pivoted to all virtual events following the cancellation of the February 2021 festival. The festival plans to offer some virtual events in 2022. 

Ashley Jacobs, who resigned last October as Beaufort County’s administrator, was hired to be chief information and innovation officer in Wake County, N.C. Jacobs had been Beaufort County’s administrator since 2019. Her first day in her new position will be June 14. She will oversee the county’s technology infrastructure, according to a news release. 

Beaufort County’s Register of Deeds launched a free service that gives property owners e-mail alerts whenever a document is recorded with the owner’s name or property ID. 

The public can sign up by visiting the Beaufort County Register of Deeds website and following the links to register. More than 70,000 documents are recorded annually at the Register of Deeds office. 

Crews have begun work on a $42 million project that spans from the S.C. 315 intersection close to Hardeeville to the Back River Bridge near Savannah. 

Work that has been completed includes most of the re-striping that creates narrower, 11-foot lanes during construction that will widen the highway from two lanes to four. 

MC RILEY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL RECEIVES ATHLETIC EQUIPMENT DONATION

The American Heart Association said MC Riley Elementary School received an athletic equipment donation from Southern Coast Heart Ball sponsor Enmarket. The American Heart Association’s Move More initiative, which encourages physical activity for better physical and mental health, kicked off in April.

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HILTON HEAD ISLAND AIRPORT TERMINAL PROJECT PART OF MULTI-YEAR IMPROVEMENT PLAN

Change is constant at Hilton Head Island Airport these days. Heads up. More is in store.

Airport officials are powering up for final phases of a multi-year plan to expand, upgrade and market the 54-year-old airport. The ambitious project already has:

The University of South Carolina Beaufort and partners have received a $1.3 million federal grant to develop programs at the South Coast Cyber Center. The grant was awarded to the non-profit South Coast Cyber Center, which is a partnership among the University of South Carolina Beaufort, Technical College of the Lowcountry, Beaufort Digital Corridor, city of Beaufort and Beaufort County Economic Development Corporation, and with business leaders. The South Coast Cyber Center aims to help recent graduates, exiting military personnel, and members of the community attain high-paying jobs by delivering affordable and relevant cybersecurity education and training. 

Paul Ianuario has been named chief judge of the 2021 Hilton Head Island Concours d’Elegance & Motoring Festival. He was the 2018 Honored Collector. Ianuario is a retired engineer who spent more than 40 years in the automotive supplier industry and has degrees in engineering, mathematics and physics. He is on the steering committees and boards of several major automotive museums, according to the Concours d’Elegance. 

John Farrell has been named director of sports operations at The Sea Pines Resort. Cary Corbitt, vice president of sports and operations, is retiring in May after a 44-year career at the resort. Farrell will be responsible for all golf operations in addition to overseeing golf operations for the RBC Heritage, tennis operations, and the longstanding relationship with the Smith Stearns Tennis Academy, a news release said. Corbitt joined The Sea Pines Resort in 1977 as a golf professional at the original Plantation Club. Corbitt has overseen sports, retail and resort operations, as well as special projects including golf course and clubhouse renovations. 

A Hilton Head Island resident bought a Powerball ticket in honor of her late mother and won $1 million, the S.C. Education Lottery said. The winner purchased 10 Powerball quick picks at the Speedway store on William Hilton Parkway on St. Patrick’s Day. The first five numbers matched to win her prize. The odds of winning $1 million are 1 in 11,688,054. For selling the ticket, Speedway received a commission of $10,000.

The town of Bluffton’s emergency ordinance that required face coverings in certain situations was not renewed. Town Council voted 4-1 not to extend the ordinance, which ended 12 p.m. April 14. “Whether to wear or not wear a mask in Town limits is now an individual’s choice,” Mayor Lisa Sulka said. “However, recognize there are still many who will prefer to wear their mask and we hope that individual choices will be respected by all.”