RCRC Cares
2022-06-13 18:00 - 2022-07-13 18:00 (America/New_York) | AL
Richland County Recreation Commission Drive through Event. RCRC Event filled with music, snacks, giveaways, and REC2GO bags filled with toys and games for children aged 5-12. Will take place 6/13 at Crane Forest neighborhood park, 6/15 at Starlite Neighborhood Park, 6/17 at Killian Park, 6/20 at Crossroads Community Center, and 6/22 at Summerhill neighborhood Park; all starting at 6 pm.

Trustus Theatre presents First Date
2022-06-17 20:00 - 2022-07-16 20:00 | Trustus Theatre, 520 Lady St., Columbia, SC, 29201
The perfect date night show comes to Trustus Theatre this summer. First Date, Broadway’s musical comedy, opens on the Thigpen Main Stage on Friday, June 17th and runs through July 16th. The show features an ensemble cast led by Trustus Company members Michael Hazin and Brittany Hammock, and includes Company members Kevin Bush, Robin Gottlieb, and Jonathan Monk, as well as Rachael Mitchum and Jacob Wilson. The cast is directed by interim Artistic Director Dewey Scott-Wiley with musical direction by Randy Moore and choreography by Brailey Johnson and Shaun Moreland. Trustus is partnering with local restaurant Gervais and Vine to offer a Date Night package on select nights, including dinner and drinks and tickets to the show. Reserve tickets online at trustus.org/event/first-date or by calling the Box Office at (803) 254-9732.
Trustus Theatre is excited to partner with local restaurant Gervais and Vine for a fabulous Date Night package! On select nights, enjoy a dinner at Gervais and Vine before your performance. Your dinner includes access to the entire menu of Mediterranean-inspired small plates and tapas and a glass of wine per ticket. Simply book your tickets and dinner package online at trustus.org and arrive at the restaurant by 6:30pm for ample time to enjoy your meal ahead of your 8:00pm performance. Gervais and Vine is located at 620 Gervais Street, perfect for a short walk to Lady Street for the show. Limited spots are available, and advance reservation is required. For more information, contact the restaurant at (803) 799-8463.
First Date opens Friday, June 17th at 8:00pm and runs through Saturday, July 16th. Please note: matinees on June 26th and July 10th will be at 2:00pm with doors opening at 1:00pm. In observance of the holiday, there will be no matinee on Sunday, July 3rd. The box office and bar open one hour prior to show time. For more info on Trustus’ Safety Guidelines, please visit trustus.org/safety-guidelines. Reservations can be made online at trustus.org or by calling the Box Office at (803) 254-9732.

Gen. ‘Fig’ Newton will tell his impressive story of service in war and peace
2022-06-24 12:00 - 13:00 | SC Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum, 301 Gervais Street, Gervais, SC, 29201
Gen. Lloyd “Fig” Newton has a lot of fascinating stories to tell, having led a life of adventure and distinction serving his country.
He is a retired U.S. Air Force four-star general from South Carolina. He flew 269 combat missions in F-4s in the Vietnam War, 79 of them over North Vietnam. In 1974, he became the first African-American pilot to fly as a member of the Air Force’s Thunderbirds demonstration team.
Gen. Newton will tell about all of that and much more at noon on Friday, June 24, at the South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum in Columbia. The program is open to the public and free.
Much of what he will speak about is included in his autobiography, Living the Dream, released last year.
As a boy, Newton’s dream was to serve in the military, although not as a pilot. “I didn’t know anything about airplanes growing up.” He never flew in one until he was in college at Tennessee State in Nashville. Why did he go out of state to college? Well, he also wanted to study mechanical engineering, and he couldn’t do that at home, because the University of South Carolina and Clemson weren’t integrated yet.
That first flight hooked him – “It was electrifying!” – and launched him on his life’s work. And while he was still at Tennessee State in 1964, he saw the Thunderbirds perform for the first time, and decided he would join them one day – which he did 10 years later.
He is thankful to have survived his grueling Vietnam service, during which he earned the Legion of Merit, two Distinguished Flying Crosses, and 17 Air Medals. Most of all, “I returned safely, unlike some of my colleagues, my friends.”
He was stationed in the Philippines next, and from there he applied for the first time to the Thunderbirds. He would have to apply twice more before he made it.
Later he served in Washington as an Air Force congressional liaison officer with the U.S. House of Representatives. He served in the Pentagon a couple of times, at one point helping to develop such new aircraft as the F-22, the B-2 and the F-117 stealth attack plane.
Today, Gen. Newton lives in Bluffton, S.C., just about 35 miles from his hometown of Ridgeland.
