Hilton Head News

Jonathan Griz of Hilton Head become the youngest champion of the 89th South Carolina Amateur Championship. Griz, 16, shot a 5-under-par 67 in the final round at Columbia Country Club. He finished 14-under par for the tournament. Griz is committed to compete in college at the University of Alabama.  

Scott F. Wierman has been named president and CEO of Community Foundation of the Lowcountry. He will start effective Jan. 1, 2021. Wierman is currently president of The Winston-Salem Foundation in North Carolina and will continue in that role until late fall of 2020. Wierman will replace Jackie Rosswurm, PhD, who has served as interim president and CEO since April. Wierman joined The Winston-Salem Foundation as senior vice president for donor services in 1988 and was named president in 1997.

Danielle Adams of Coastal Carolina Hospital has earned the Daisy RN Award for Extraordinary Nurses. Adams began her nursing career at Coastal Carolina Hospital in June 2018. She works in the Medical-Surgical Unit. Adams was nominated for the award by her colleagues. 

The Town of Hilton Head was awarded more than $378,000 by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to assist low- and moderate-income families affected by COVID-19. The funds are specifically earmarked to address the prevention, preparation, response and recovery efforts related to COVID-19. To receive funds, the town submitted its 2020-2024 Consolidated Plan for the Community Development Block Grant Program, which HUD accepted. 

The Lutzie 43K Virtual 5K, part of the Town of Bluffton’s distracted driving campaign, raised more than $4,700. Bluffton Mayor Lisa Sulka accepted checks from the Kiwanis Club of Bluffton and CrossFit843 for donations collected in conjunction with the event. The Kiwanis Club of Bluffton presented a check for $2,535, and CrossFit843 presented a check for $1,000. The Mike Hostilo Law Firm contributed to the overall donations by advertising and promoting the event. 

The Beaufort County School District will temporarily adopt a full-virtual educational model when the school year begins Sept. 8. Superintendent Frank Rodriguez said the decision is in response to the rise in coronavirus cases. Rodriguez said he hopes to return to face-to-face instruction. “But before that can happen safely, conditions must be safer than they are today,” Rodriguez said in early August. The final day of classes is set for June 17. 

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster lifted coronavirus business restrictions for cinemas in July, and Park Plaza Cinema on Hilton Head was ready last month to welcome patrons to its theater. The theater initially reopened with private screenings of DVDs brought from home, but on Aug. 21 the theater debuted four new movies. McMaster’s order requires 50% occupancy and face masks or coverings for admission. 

With the November elections approaching, the Beaufort County election board is looking for 300 new poll workers. Workers would be paid $165 both for training and working the day. For more information, visit beaufortcountysc.gov/vote/. 

Arthur Anastopoulo of Pensacola Beach, Florida and Paul Pittman of Florence will be 2020 inductees into the South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame. Anastopoulo was one of the state’s best junior and college players during the 1970s. Pittman is a long-time volunteer who has been instrumental in the development of the Florence Community Tennis Association. 

St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church is in unincorporated Beaufort County, but it hopes to seek annexation into Bluffton. The property has a Bluffton address but is not in town limits. Church officials have made an annexation request to the Town of Bluffton. The property is located on U.S. 278 between the Buckwalter Parkway intersection and Bluffton Township Fire District Station 35. 

The Town of Hilton Head Island has relaxed temporary sign regulations through Sept. 7. Temporary signs will be allowed without a permit. Each business is permitted to have one sign per street frontage; each sign should be no larger than 18-by-24; and each sign must be located on the same site as the business. Banners (no larger than 24-by-48) are permitted to be located on buildings. 

The City of Beaufort was awarded a grant of $188,500 from the South Carolina Historic Preservation Office to restore windows at the Carnegie Library Building that were damaged by Hurricanes Matthew and Irma. During the hurricanes, water intrusion damaged the building, including many of the 29 windows. 

The Town of Bluffton awarded a construction contract to Jordan Construction of Hilton Head, Inc., to install sanitary sewers on Pritchard Street. This first phase is comprised of installing 2,550 linear feet of main sewer lines and will service 25 properties with houses and four additional undeveloped lots. The $513,431 project is funded through stormwater utility fees of $225,930, a South Carolina Appropriation grant of $95,950 and a portion of the S.C. DHEC grant totaling $191,551 for this project.

In August, Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic nomination for vice president at the Democratic National Convention. She is familiar with the Lowcountry. Last fall, as presidential candidates made their way through Beaufort County, Harris made a campaign stop at University of South Carolina Beaufort amid a standing-room-only crowd.

Matt Clancy, chief of the City of Beaufort Police Department, died after a long battle with cancer. He was 56 years old. In 1997, Clancy joined the Beaufort Police Department as a patrol officer, criminal investigator, investigative lieutenant, and deputy chief. In 2009, he was promoted to police chief.