To Keep or To Give

  February 1, 2024

By Amy Coward   I can’t get rid of this bowl. I really don’t know why I’m so attached to it. It’s not very pretty – beige, plastic, divided down…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move

Being Thankful – A Different View

  February 1, 2024

By Jeff Becraft   I did not write today’s Friday encouragement – it was sent to me by a friend of mine named Rick.  It is from The Speaker’s Friend by Leonard…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move

Folk Artist Leonard Jones

  February 1, 2024
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Giving Old Tin New Life During my school days the yellow bus rolled me past chicken houses. In 1972, when I taught creative writing in Lincolnton,…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Aurora Farms, Inc.

  January 31, 2024

An indoor/outdoor elegant wedding and event venue for all occasions seating up to 250 in Taylors, SC

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Posted in: upstatebizsc   Category: life

Those who influence us

  January 25, 2024

By Jeff Becraft   It is interesting how we can influence one another.  (Interesting is really not the word… it is deeper than that.)  But someone who has greatly influenced…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Clawfoot Tubs Hold Memories

  January 25, 2024
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   When I see a clawfoot tub, which is rare, four memories surface. First, I go back to my grandfather’s old homeplace. Next I go back to…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

The joy of the handwritten letter

  January 24, 2024

  By Reba Hull Campbell When I was growing up, the family mailbox was a magic chamber that delivered cards with good wishes, postcards from interesting places and an occasional…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move

Veteran to speak of role of Army chaplains at Relic Room

  January 24, 2024

One day in November 1967, U.S. Army Chaplain Charles J. Watters’ unit was involved in heavy combat with the enemy in the vicinity of Đắk Tô, South Vietnam. Among many…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, military, on-the-move, veterans

So what are you going to do now?

  January 18, 2024

By Jeff Becraft   “So what are you going to do now?” That’s what someone said to me one time when I had just described a situation that years ago,…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move

Ron Hagell to tell how he collected intelligence in Vietnam

  January 18, 2024

The movies notwithstanding, intelligence work has little to do with drinking shaken martinis while wearing a designer tuxedo. In the real world, in wartime, it’s about things like sweating in…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, military, on-the-move, veterans

Ageratum, Wood, & Water

  January 17, 2024
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland On a Sunday walk I spotted a splash of blue. Blue wildflowers. They say blue flowers are sometimes difficult to grow in gardens. “They say.” That was…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

New pediatric dentist opens second office in Chapin

  January 12, 2024

The Town of Chapin will officially have a new Pediatric and Teen Dentist as Chapin Pediatric & Teen Dentistry will host their Grand Opening on January 18, and is now…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: chamber, entrepreneurship, health-care, life, on-the-move

A tale of three vacuums

  January 11, 2024

By Jeff Becraft   We have three vacuum cleaners… and I will try and explain the tale of the three vacuums. Vacuum #1 is a cannister style vacuum.  The kind…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move

Workplace Friends Best Come Naturally

  January 10, 2024
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   I stumbled across an old magazine feature of mine and it made me recall stops I’d made along that long, winding road called “Career.” Some memories…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

SC Green Industry Association Hosts Annual Conference & Trade Show

  January 8, 2024

The South Carolina Green Industry Association will bring together over 100 exhibitors and 17 industry speakers to cover an extensive range of landscape topics during its annual two-day Conference and…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: agriculture, business-services, engineering, environmental, hospitality, life, on-the-move

Footballs, gas stations, and embracing opportunities

  January 3, 2024

By Jeff Becraft One of the highlights of my YC  (Youth Corps) era might surprise some people.  After all the amazing experiences during those 17 years, this one happened at…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move

Like A Scene From An Old Western

  January 3, 2024
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   It was 1985 when I spent three days in Reno. I didn’t shoot a man just to watch him die, Johnny, but I conjured up images…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Improv and Idols at Harbison Theatre this January

  January 2, 2024

Improv and Idols at Harbison Theatre This January: Rumours are stirring that you won’t want to miss this! We’re kicking off the new year with some iconic performances headed to…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: entertainment, hospitality, life, music, on-the-move, the-arts

Conifers’ Fragrant Pull On Memory

  December 20, 2023
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   I read that fragrances stimulate recall more so than any other sense. I knew from experience that it had to be true. You and I, we’re…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Ring in the New Year with Capital City Fireworks!

  December 19, 2023

The City of Columbia will hold the annual “Capital City Fireworks” display to ring in 2024 on Sunday, December 31st. The fireworks display will begin right after midnight, and the…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: hospitality, life, on-the-move

Oh, Christmas Tree

  December 19, 2023

  By Reba Hull Campbell Christmas trees can gin up pretty strong emotions and opinions in people at this time of year. First, there’s the “live” vs. “artificial” tree debate.…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move

The Enchanting Origins of Mistletoe Kisses

  December 18, 2023

The tradition of kissing under the mistletoe has become a playful custom during the holiday season. While the act of exchanging kisses beneath this festive plant may seem like a…

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Posted in: laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move

The main thing

  December 14, 2023

By Jeff Becraft (Originally published on MidlandsBiz February 10, 2023) One of my mentors says, “Too many choices and too many voices.”  He is right. Taking a shower is a…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move

Laurens County 4-H Member Wins Fishing Project

  December 13, 2023

Laurens County 4-H member Nathan Meade recently won first place in the Senior Division of the Upstate 4-H Fishing Project. He did so by completing a project record book and…

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Posted in: laurenscountybuzz   Category: agriculture, education, life, on-the-move

There’s Just Something About A Barn

  December 8, 2023
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   On Highway 378 between Lincolnton and Washington, Georgia, stands a barn. I say a barn. It’s a home built to look like a barn. Or maybe…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, the-arts

Christmas card syndrome

  December 7, 2023

By Jeff Becraft   This was actually first put out there in 2020… but I have come across several people who are really down, discouraged and lonely… so I would like…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, non-profit, on-the-move, the-arts

Your Special Tree

  December 6, 2023
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   The Work Behind It When I was a boy, come Thanksgiving, we observed a tradition that’s decidedly different today. Dad would mix some two-cycle gas, sharpen…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Laurens County Community Foundation Announces Grant Recipients

  December 1, 2023

The Laurens County Community Foundation (LCCF) is pleased to announce grant awards given to support and benefit the lives of citizens in Laurens County. The LCCF contributes its resources to fund a broad…

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Posted in: laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, non-profit, on-the-move

Little surprises

  November 30, 2023

By Jeff Becraft   Life is filled with little surprises. Last week, I was on my way home from work and I decided to stop by a grocery store. As…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move

My Father’s Razor

  November 29, 2023
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   November 15 my father will have been gone twenty years. Twenty years. Seems like yesterday when he lay in a bed at MUSC in Charleston. Seems…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Treating people like people

  November 21, 2023

By Jeff Becraft   Last week we had our Gala for Our Place of Hope. We brought in a guy by the name of Luke Knowles. Now, I was part…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move

The Morning Routine

  November 21, 2023
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Come daybreak, my preferred time to get moving, I check on my neighbor’s flag. I check to see that his place is ok after another night…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move

The Work Of Hands

  November 16, 2023
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Folks say the future belongs to “Knowledge Workers.” A so-called knowledge worker is someone who manages information within a specific subject area. I suppose I’m a…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move

The importance of being there

  November 16, 2023

By Jeff Becraft   Have you ever experienced something that you thought was extremely important or significant or incredible… and then you try to explain it to someone else?  And…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz, laurenscountybuzz   Category: life, on-the-move

Columbia College hosts Columbia Fire Department

  November 14, 2023

On November 8 and 9, 2023, Columbia College hosted the Columbia Fire Department for their semi-annual Search and Rescue Training. Earlier this year, Columbia College announced several capital projects, including…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: construction, education, environmental, life, on-the-move, utilities

Election Reflection and Gratitude

  November 9, 2023

By Reba Hull Campbell I spent my early career years involved on the front lines of campaigns. The days before Election Day always gin up lots of emotions, good memories…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move

It is a great day to look up

  November 9, 2023

By Jeff Becraft   I already had today’s email written… but that was until my experience this morning. This morning I went to the memorial service for Bob Hudson.  There…

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Posted in: midlandsbiz   Category: life, on-the-move