Teamwork – effective and fun!
October 27, 2022By Jeff Becraft One of the most epic moments in my life happened in a grocery store. It was on an alumni trip back in the Youth Corps days. There…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, op-ed, the-arts
Greenville Theatre presents The Play That Goes Wrong – Oct 21 – Nov 13
October 24, 2022Greenville Theatre is thrilled to present the regional premiere of the longest running play in Broadway history, The Play That Goes Wrong! Come see the Cornley Drama Society as they “attempt”…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
Old Island Haunts
October 20, 2022By Tom Poland Add Hazel’s Café to the List Old island haunts. The fever to develop islands didn’t destroy all of them. In a few instances, someone decided, “Not…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Wild Rumpus of Sendak’s ‘Wild Things’ comes to Upcountry History Museum
October 17, 2022Stomping into Greenville in its only South Carolina stop, “Wild Things: The Art of Maurice Sendak” will open at the Upcountry History Museum-Furman University, a Smithsonian Affiliate, on Saturday, October…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: chamber, churches, education, entertainment, hospitality, marketing-and-communications, media, non-profit, on-the-move, social-scene, the-arts
The Feared Invader
October 13, 2022By Tom Poland Let’s talk invasive species. One will bite you. You can bite the other. You can eat it, but given time it will entomb all you possess. Fire…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Solid gold: 50 years of the S.C. Arts Foundation
October 9, 2022October is National Arts and Humanities month, and this commemoration of the arts’ importance to our nation is an opportunity to recognize a milestone that the South Carolina Arts Foundation…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
The CCC
October 6, 2022By Tom Poland FDR’s Tree Army If my mother didn’t like something, she’d tell you. If she liked something, you knew that too, and she liked the Civilian Conservation…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
The Pull Of The Macon Music Scene
September 29, 2022By Tom Poland I find my mind drifting back to Macon, and then I find myself driving kudzu-bordered roads. Macon, Georgia sits in the middle of Georgia. It’s not…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Tevis wins second Pushcart Prize for personal essay on hazing rituals, consequences
September 23, 2022Joni Tevis, the Bennette E. Geer Professor of English at Furman University, has won her second Pushcart Prize, this time for an essay published in The Georgia Review titled “If…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
Book Event Season Is Upon Us
September 21, 2022By Tom Poland She asked, and I told her. “What’s the writing life like?” “It’s a sentence to solitary confinement. You work in isolation for long periods, and that’s…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
The Power Of Moonlit Imagery
September 15, 2022By Tom Poland Herman Melville created Moby Dick, the great white sperm whale that bit off Ahab’s leg. James Dickey had a 12-point white buck that swam from island…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Original Fine Art Print Fair at GCCA on Oct 14-15
September 15, 2022Original Fine Arts Print Fair at Greenville Center for Creative Arts on October 14-15, 2022 Don’t miss the Printmaking Fair where you can chat with artists, watch printmakers demonstrate making…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
Peace Center announces two new music venues and more
September 13, 2022Major renovations underway for live music club, listening room, and more! The Peace Center announced a major renovation project designed to diversify Greenville’s live music scene like never before. Dubbed…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: headlines, on-the-move, the-arts
The National Park Nearest You
September 8, 2022By Tom Poland Here in the classic South, we have two choices when it comes to national parks. We have the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee and…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, the-arts
Greenville Theatre is thrilled to open season 97 with Broadway’s newest comedy smash, Something Rotten!
September 8, 2022This 2015 musical takes audiences back to the Renaissance time, where everything is new! With a book by John O’Farrell and Karey Kirkpatrick and Music and lyrics by Karey and…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
South Carolina State Fair discount tickets are now available
September 7, 2022Discount admission and ride tickets for the 153rd annual South Carolina State Fair are on sale now through Tuesday, Oct. 11. Patrons can save up to 50% by purchasing S.C.…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz Category: agriculture, education, entertainment, food, local-industry, marketing-and-communications, on-the-move, social-scene, the-arts
Botanical Beauty—For Women Only
August 31, 2022By Tom Poland What’s behind a name? Lots most of the time. Sometimes it’s obvious, sometimes it’s a mystery, but often it’s botanical. I’ve not met a woman named…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
S.C. Arts Commission doubles grantmaking record with $11.9 million investment
August 30, 2022FY22 grants for arts and arts learning impacted 43 counties The South Carolina Arts Commission is announcing that it more than doubled its previous grant-making record by investing $11.9 million…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
S.C. Arts Commission expands team of arts professionals
August 26, 2022The South Carolina Arts Commission is announcing that four skilled professionals joined its team so far in 2022, creating two departments, expanding another, and providing critical support for a growing…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
The Gospel. Sunday Piano Memories
August 25, 2022By Tom Poland The old book and instrument of wood and ivory need each other. In fact, they share what biologists call a symbiotic relationship. In my recall of…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Ferns, Nature’s Colonists
August 18, 2022By Tom Poland Ferns bless us with classic Southern settings but doing so isn’t always easy. Random winds pick up fern spores and scatter them, their destiny determined by…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Chapman Cultural Center announces expansion of its grants and funding opportunities
August 17, 2022Chapman Cultural Center announced the expansion of its various grant programs as of July 1, 2022, including changes to its General Operating Support Grant application process. In order to better…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
Contemporary Print Collective’s “Unmasked” to open at GCCA’s Community Gallery
August 17, 2022Greenville Center for Creative Arts (GCCA) in association with the Contemporary Print Collective is excited to announce the opening of the new Community Gallery exhibition, Unmasked. The exhibition features the…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: entertainment, non-profit, on-the-move, the-arts
Vintage Enamelware
August 10, 2022By Tom Poland I was visiting the past at the Lincoln County History Park when I spied a graceful blue enamelware pot sitting among fire logs. Warm memories came…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, the-arts
Greenville Center for Creative Arts names recipients of 2022-23 Brandon Fellowship
August 10, 2022Greenville Center for Creative Arts (GCCA) revealed the incoming class of the Brandon Fellowship at its Annual Showcase on August 5. The Fellowship is a 12-month program that aims to…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: non-profit, on-the-move, the-arts
Thistles, A Prickly Subject
August 4, 2022By Tom Poland We’d be walking to a farm pond in quest of bream when Grandmom Poland would spot a thistle. “Watch out for that nettle.” She’d hardly break…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, the-arts
Alchemy Comedy announces Ninth Annual Greenville Comedy Marathon
July 20, 2022Twelve Straight Hours of Comedy Alchemy Comedy Theater announces their 9th Annual Greenville Comedy Marathon. The shows will take place at Alchemy Comedy Theater located at 1 E Coffee St,…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
A Peach Of A Summer
July 20, 2022By Tom Poland From my orchard of memories a lonely peach tree stands in the front yard of my youth. The tree looked sickly and produced fruit a tad…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Greenville Center for Creative Arts opens 7th Annual Showcase on First Friday, August 5
July 19, 2022Greenville Center for Creative Arts (GCCA) will hold its seventh Annual Showcase on Friday, August 5, from 6 – 9 pm at 101 Abney Street in the Village of West…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: non-profit, on-the-move, the-arts
Porch Sitting
July 14, 2022By Tom Poland It’s a vanishing art, porch sitting. There was a time, though, when folks retired to the porch just to pass the time. As a boy, I…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, the-arts
Flavia B. Harton appointed to S.C. Arts Commission board
July 12, 2022The South Carolina Arts Commission welcomes Flavia B. Harton of Greenville to its nine-member board of directors after her appointment by Gov. Henry McMaster effective July 1. Harton has extensive…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: headlines, on-the-move, the-arts
S.C. Arts Commission names FY2023 fellowship recipients
July 8, 2022Program changes reinforce the arts’ influence in the creative economy A diverse group of four South Carolina artists working in different artistic disciplines are the latest recipients of new-look $10,000…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
The Rocky Shoals Highway
July 7, 2022By Tom Poland Come May-June I burn the Rocky Shoals Highway up. I drive from Irmo, South Carolina to McCormick County and on into Georgia. My mission? Visiting two…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, the-arts
Spartanburg Philharmonic Youth Orchestra announces new flexible program model
July 7, 2022Introduces Prelude and Symphony Ensembles For Student Musicians Grades 6th-12th The Spartanburg Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (SPYO) is growing once again. Since launching as an orchestra for 9th-12th graders in 2019,…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
South Carolina State Fair Accepting Entries for 2022 Competitive Exhibits
July 6, 2022The South Carolina State Fair is now accepting entries for this year’s competitive exhibits, which will be on display Oct. 12-23, 2022, at the S.C. State Fair. The annual exhibits will…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz Category: agriculture, entertainment, local-industry, marketing-and-communications, media, on-the-move, social-scene, the-arts
Folk Medicine Remedies
June 30, 2022By Tom Poland Like the Black Crowe’s “Remedy, and its line, I need a remedy”, folks of yesteryear needed remedies and they came up with them. We call their…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, the-arts
Through Broken Glass
June 16, 2022By Tom Poland The old church just wanted to be left alone, but that didn’t happen. Someone shot out her windows. Some kid’s BBs shattered panes, leaving sharp jagged…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
South Carolina filmmaker selected as one of five finalists for the American Black Film Festival’s HBO Short Film Award
June 13, 2022A Greenville-based writer and director was recently named one of the five finalists for the American Black Film Festival’s (ABFF) annual HBO® Short Film Award. Destiny Macon’s short film, TALK BLACK,…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
Upcountry History Museum is a 2022 Blue Star Museum
June 13, 2022The Upcountry History Museum – Furman University has joined museums nationwide in the Blue Star Museums initiative, a program that provides free admission to museums for the nation’s active-duty military…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: chamber, churches, education, entertainment, marketing-and-communications, media, military, non-profit, on-the-move, the-arts
A Creek Runs Through It
June 9, 2022By Tom Poland Writers title works and often they fail to come up with a good one. Half Asleep In Frog Pajamas comes to mind. Sometimes a gem of…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Arts Grow SC to expand, first executive director named
June 8, 2022The South Carolina Arts Commission and the South Carolina Department of Education announce the expansion of Arts Grow SC as a permanent fixture in the state’s arts learning landscape. An…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: education, on-the-move, the-arts
‘We’re Back!’ – Dinosaurs reawaken at Upcountry History Museum
June 6, 2022Hear the roars, feel the rattle of pounding footsteps, and marvel at the incredible creatures in the world of Dinosaurs: Land of Fire and Ice, the newest exhibition opening at…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: day-care, education, entertainment, non-profit, on-the-move, the-arts
International African American Museum receives second donation from TD Bank
May 25, 2022TD Bank’s donation of $250,000 to the International African American Museum builds on the TD Charitable Foundation’s 2016 donation of $250,000 The International African American Museum (IAAM) has received a…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
International African American Museum receives second donation from TD Bank
May 24, 2022TD Bank’s donation of $250,000 to the International African American Museum builds on the TD Charitable Foundation’s 2016 donation of $250,000 The International African American Museum (IAAM) has received a…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, upstatebizsc Category: banking-and-finance, on-the-move, the-arts
“In Flux” to open at GCCA’s Main Gallery
May 24, 2022Exhibition begins First Friday, June 3rd, 2022 Greenville Center for Creative Arts (GCCA) is excited to announce the opening of their Main Gallery exhibition, In Flux. The exhibition features the…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: entertainment, non-profit, on-the-move, the-arts
The Cedars Of Philomath
May 19, 2022By Tom Poland Long ago it was, in the late 1980s. I was in a hurry to get back to South Carolina. Thus did I take Georgia Highway 22,…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, the-arts
Greenville Theatre closes out Welcome Back season with the smash hit musical, Mamma Mia!
May 18, 2022Greenville Theatre is ecstatic to close out their Welcome Back season with the Broadway smash hit musical, Mamma Mia! Come see this energetic story brought to life like never before on…
Read MorePosted in: upstatebizsc Category: on-the-move, the-arts
A New Broom Sweeps Clean
May 18, 2022By Tom Poland “A new broom sweeps clean, but an old broom knows the corners.” Mom pulled out this old saw when a new preacher attempted wholesale change or…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Rediscovering An Old Friend
May 12, 2022By Tom Poland March 3rd is a day I’ll long remember. A bit earlier I had given a talk to the Kiwanis Club at the Darlington Country Club. Returning home…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
An Old Tree, An Old Academy
May 5, 2022By Tom Poland A Magnolia and a School of Consequence As you top the Edgefield County rise, that fine word “copse” comes to mind. Copse, a small group of…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts







