People Profiles

CAPPY THE CLOWN HAS SOMETHING FOR THE CHILD IN ALL OF US.

If you’ve been to any event on Hilton Head Island where there was even the slightest chance that children would be present, odds are good you’ve seen Cappy the Clown.

And if you’ve seen Cappy the Clown, you know her trademarks: the big red chair, the impressively complex Gordian Knot balloon animals she makes, the Boston accent, the quick wit.

FORMER INTELLIGENCE ANALYST KEEPS LIBRARIES OPEN LONGER

The scene lacked a hero.

Library staff were stretched thin, and disagreements sparked between library trustees and county administrators: Could the county budget support extended library hours?

The answer, no, would be seen this summer, the library board of trustees announced. That’s when the 10 hours added at three branches — Bluffton, Beaufort and Hilton Head Island — would again be cut, following earlier cuts in 2011.

CONSERVATION A RESPONSIBILITY AND PRIVILEGE FOR LOCAL DNR OFFICER

Some of Michael Brock's favorite childhood memories are of times spent outdoors with his family — experiences that taught him a great respect and appreciation for nature, as well as the importance of environmental conservation. Now, as a law enforcement officer with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, Brock enforces state and federal laws designed to preserve the Lowcountry's pristine natural beauty for future generations. For him, it's more than just a job; it's a privilege.

EXPLORER KENT GRIMES CIRCUMNAVIGATES AREA ISLANDS

Give Kent Grimes some nautical and tide charts and you get in return a day’s paddle around an area island, riding the tide most of the way.

Kent and his wife, Pennie, moved seven years ago to Hilton Head Island from Memphis. About three years ago, he took a part-time job as a kayak guide and instructor at Outside Hilton Head.

He and a few staff members took a Master Naturalist class together and became friends. 

Hilton Head Island, consistently recognized among the top family beaches in the country, annually hosts more than 2 million visitors. Fortunately for both locals and visitors, Shore Beach Services employs highly qualified lifeguards, such as Taylor Smith, so that beachgoers can safely enjoy the island’s miles of sandy shores.

A native of Rice Lake, Wisconsin, Smith grew up enjoying the outdoors and being active in and around the water. Her swimming prowess garnered her a scholarship from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, where she served as the captain of the swim team while pursuing a double major in business management and Spanish.

Jim Lisenby came to Hilton Head Island 37 years ago looking for quiet and anonymity. Instead, he brought the whir of two blenders to Sea Pines Beach Club and made himself into a local legend.

“I came down here originally to write my book. I was living in Myrtle Beach and it was too distracting to try to write my book there. I’d met too many people in Myrtle Beach,” says Lisenby, who now has two books published, both on how to make the perfect frozen (and non-frozen) cocktails. “So I came here to get that book written, and I just never left.”

Karen Verechia thought she’d discovered nirvana the first time did yoga in the late ’90s.

“I have lived on the island for 30 years and spent much of it as a fitness instructor and personal trainer, but the first time I did a downward dog position, I was just hooked,” Verechia said.

Then she discovered an even greater fitness high: beach yoga. Now, the New Jersey native is in her 13th year of teaching what she loves in the perfect location to spread the gospel, in front of the Tiki Hut at the Holiday Inn Resort Beach House every spring and summer on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 9 a.m. sharp.

Genia Edelman of Hilton Head Island has a career and social interests that span both sides of the continental United States.

Edelman is executive vice president for sales and marketing at The Africa Channel, a television network based in North Hollywood, California. Back on Hilton Head, she runs the Hilton Head Beach Volleyball Academy, which has 12 teen-aged girls in the recreational program.

As a senior planner for the Town of Hilton Head Island and a member of the Hilton Head Island Sea Turtle Protection Project staff — lovingly dubbed “The Turtle Patrol” — protecting endangered species and conserving the environment is a way of life for Jayme Lopko. She joined the project a decade ago and has had a love affair with conservation work ever since.