JOE DISTELHEIM AWARD RECOGNIZES LITERACY STUDENTS

BY AMY COYNE BREDESON

Throughout his 38 years in journalism, Joe Distelheim was a mentor to many. After retiring from his position as editor of The Huntsville (Ala.) Times, he and his wife, Dottie, moved to Hilton Head Island, where Joe continued to impact lives.

BEAUFORT COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT NAMES TEACHER OF YEAR FINALISTS

Karri Kearns, a May River High School math teacher, Laverne Stewart, a language arts teacher at Hilton Head Island Middle School, Kinsey Butler, a Bluffton Middle School band teacher, Justine Hardy, a health science teacher at Battery Creek High School, and Jennifer Lyles, a Coosa Elementary School third-grade teacher were named Beaufort County School District finalists for its 2022-2023 District Teacher of the Year. The final announcement is set for this fall.

STORY AND PHOTO BY TONY KUKULICH

RETIRED EDUCATORS GETTING KIDS EXCITED ABOUT THE OUTDOORS

A few years ago, with retirement looming in the not-too-distant future, longtime educators Bebe Cifaldi and Karen Penale each took a class that built upon their love of the outdoors without so much as an inkling that it would completely reshape their individual and collective futures.

BEAUFORT COUNTY LOOKING AHEAD WITH 2040 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN

By HILTON HEAD MONTHLY

Beaufort County, with input from the community, is planning for the future.

Within the past year the Beaufort County Planning Commission finalized “Envision Beaufort County — 2040 County Comprehensive Plan” after 17 months of work. The plan was approved last November and remains a document for the future.

SALES TAX REFERENDUM AIMS TO MANAGE DEVELOPMENT

BY MARK E. LETT

A penny doesn’t get you much. But put enough pennies together — and maybe, just maybe — you can amass a pile to protect and preserve precious swatches of Lowcountry land.

Such is the thinking of Beaufort County Council members asking voters to approve a proposed “Greenspace” sales tax to purchase land, establish conservation easements and limit density and development.

Bluffton’s Anne Fernandez shot a 4-under par 206 to win the Jimmy Self Invitational hosted by the Palmetto Dunes George Fazio Course. Fernandez won the girls 13-18 division. Fernandez won by 28 shots.

Susan Zellman, Lowcountry Regional Transportation Authority board member and former chairperson, died Aug 13. Zellman, a Sun City resident, represented Beaufort County on the LRTA Board since 2016. Under her leadership, LRTA and Palmetto Breeze Transit achieved many milestones, including launching two new transportation services (the seasonal Breeze Trolley service on Hilton Head Island and the Bluffton Breeze service in Bluffton), a Palmetto Breeze news release said.

The Moss Creek Charitable Fund is requesting grants for 2022. The deadline is Sept. 15. An application can be downloaded at: https://mosscreek-hiltonhead.com/mosscreek- charitable-fund. Last year the fund gave 15 grants to local charities.

A proposal for a large pickleball facility in Bluffton was tabled by the Bluffton Planning Commission. The commission cited parking and traffic concerns. The planned 10-acre Lowcountry Pickleball Club would include six indoor courts, six covered outdoor courts and six uncovered outdoor courts.