.....Advertisement.....
.....Advertisement.....

Features

  • Catching his breath

    From Day One, Michael Pardue’s life has been tough.

    He was born with cystic fibrosis, an inherited chronic terminal disease that affects the lungs and digestive system of about 30,000 people in the United States.

    But after struggling with just catching his breath for 24 years, the son of Joey Pardue and Len and Judy Robinson is now breathing a little easier.

    Michael underwent a double lung transplant during eight hours of surgery at the University of North Carolina Hospitals in Chapel Hill on Oct. 1.

  •
    Reluctant heroes

    KERSHAW – Ryan Phillips and Luke Pittman never got the sub sandwiches they were promised on Nov. 1, 2009, when they agreed to ride over into Kershaw County with Luke’s mom, Kelly Pittman, to pick up his younger sister, Grace, who was baby-sitting.

    Kelly’s sandwich bribe was pretty much forgotten about. But what the two boys – Life Scouts in Boy Scout Troop 74 – did that night hasn’t.

  •
    September Yard of the Month

    If you haven’t driven through the College Place subdivision adjacent to the University of South Carolina at Lancaster on Hubbard Drive, you are missing a treat.  

    Not only is the development beginning to fill with beautiful homes, the lawns are immaculately landscaped.

    One of those yards is especially eye-catching and grabbed the attention of Lancaster Garden Club member Joyce Morin.

    Morin said the yard of George and Yvonne Dobson, at 1040 Lyndon Drive, really stands out.  

  • Sweet 16

    Every teenage girl has her own unique style when is comes to tunes, food, colors and decorations.

    For Andrew Jackson High School sophomore Tori Roberts, that includes country and contemporary Christian music, Caesar salads, green and polka dots.

    With those kinds of tastes, you would think that Tori’s Sweet 16 birthday party at 6 p.m. Saturday at First Baptist Church in Kershaw might include some of those elements.

    After all, a 16th birthday is special and only comes around once.

  •
    Wake up to benefits of a nutritious...

    When it comes to giving the body the energy it needs, setting the stage for metabolic function and getting the intestinal tract on track, breakfast is still plain good for you.

    Yet, fewer than half of Americans (about 44 percent) eat breakfast each day, according to the International Food Information Council.

    The reasoning is simple; a morning meal breaks an eight to 10-hour fast and replenishes the body’s supply of blood glucose, which is needed to keep a body going throughout the day.

  •
    A noise worth living with

    There’s a reason why people lock their doors at night, said Lancaster Fire Department Chief Chris Nunnery.

    “Everyone likes to feel safe in their homes,” Nunnery said.

    But many of these same home-owners don’t check  smoke alarms to make sure they are working properly as an added safety measure.

    And to Nunnery, the principal is the same.

  •
    Ivan Parker, Janet Paschal coming...

    Two of Christian music’s favorite voices are coming to Lancaster this weekend.

    Ivan “The Voice” Parker will perform at 7 p.m. tonight at Second Baptist Church as part of the 2010 GlennMark Concert Series.

    Christian recording artist Janet Paschal will sing at 10:30 a.m. Sunday during the morning worship service at Springdell Baptist Church.

    Regularly featured on Bill Gaither’s Homecoming Video and Concert Series, and a member of the Gaither Trio, Parker was the lead singer of Gold City quartet for more than 10 years.

  •
    Kershaw rallies around KARE

    During the summer of 2010, there was a host of blessed individuals, churches and organizations that shared bread, skills and time to benefit people served by Kershaw Area Resource Exchange (KARE).

    “Their contributions have made a tremendous difference in how the non-profit serves its clients in the Kershaw area,” said KARE volunteer and treasurer Martha Ussery.

    A portion of a $110,00 grant from the J. Marion Sims Foundation, along with other financial resources, was used to help pay for a new computer system and networking upgrades.

  •
    Study examine brain's wiring

    It’s estimated the average human brain weighs between 2.25 and 3 pounds.

    The body’s lightweight nerve center of thinking and process has been researched, dissected, cataloged and studied for hundreds of years in an effort to figure out how its amazing parts talk to each other.

    To this day, no one is quite sure how that happens, but now, thanks to a ground-breaking study and report co-authored by Lancaster native Dr. Richard H. Thompson, there is a new way to trace those communication routes.

  •
    September is National Rice Month

    The average American eats 25 pounds of rice per year.

    A healthy, versatile and economical staple around the world, rice made its first appearance in the new world in the late 1680s, according to the USA Rice Federation.

    Rice lore has it that a storm-battered ship sailed into Charles Town (Charleston).

    To pay the colonist for repairing his ship, the captain gave the small quantity of “Golde Seed Rice,” which was named for its color, to a Lowcountry planter.

  •
    There can be only one

    Happy Lee Ferree was wearing two smiles at Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw on Wednesday.

    One, painted on his helmet, is a testament to the name given him by his parents, Patty, and the late Dennis Ferree. 

    “They named me that because they never thought they could have a child,” the Grass Valley, Calif., native said.

    The second smile, worn inside his helmet, is a testament to why the 24-year-old Snap-On Tools Pro Truck Series driver was in Kershaw this week to start with.

  •
    Sara Evans still grateful for...

    For Missouri’s Sara Evans, every little piece of the puzzle doesn’t always fit.

    But it’s a puzzle that she’s putting back together.

    Sidelined by a bitter divorce in 2006 after 13 years of marriage, the traditional singer whose heartfelt songs hit close to home will perform inside the Bundy Auditorium at the University of South Carolina at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

    Since arriving on Nashville’s Music Row in the early 1990s, the soulful Evans has put together a string of hits that is hard to match.

  •
    Cheftestant Lisa LaFranca won'...

    Each weekday morning, a group of men meet inside the Humana Cafeteria on Main Street to discuss the ills of the world, the weather, college football, crime and politics between sips of hot coffee.

    “This is one of the places I get my marching orders from,” said Lancaster Mayor Joe Shaw, who is a “first-shift regular,” along with Charlie Bundy, Larry Cauthen, former Sheriff Wilford Faile and Donald Hunter.

    They arrive some time between 7:30 and 8 a.m. and leave just before 9 a.m. when the “second shift” reports in.

  •
    A quiet place

    Back in the woods off John Everall Road, nestled beneath a stand of hardwood trees beside a meadow of fresh cut hay is a very special place.

    You can’t see it from the road. For that matter, you can’t even see it from Nancy Westmoreland’s back yard.

    But if you follow the pasture pathway that her dad, Bill Westmoreland, keeps mowed to get there, you’ll find it once you know where to look.

    The seven rings of patterned, jagged quartz rock in the edge of the woods didn’t appear like a magical crop circle. This is no publicity stunt.

  • Hammond monument dedication is...

    The discovery of a family cemetery has led to the placing of a monument at another cemetery.

    On Sunday, the Hammond family will officially add a marker at the Rich Hill Baptist Church cemetery, 1557 E. Doc Garris Road, Heath Springs.

    The dedication service starts just after Sunday morning worship.

    Several Hammond descendants are buried at Rich Hill Baptist Church and Hammond family reunions are held there.

    The marker includes the names of American Revolution soldiers Raleigh Hammond and his son, Capt. Samuel Hammond.

  • Evelyn Springs to host Autism...

    When Evelyn Springs announced in August that the Autism Speaks fundraiser, Lancaster Cooks 2010 – Look Who’s Cooking, had been postponed, she vowed not to sit on her laurels.

    The feisty, take-no-for-an-answer-grandmother is proving to be good to her word.

    Springs – who continues to fight autism – the disease that is effects the daily life of her 8-year-old grandson, Mailk, is now casting her bread upon the waters with a fishing net.

  • Autism fundraiser postponed

    Evelyn Springs continues to fight to find a cure for the autism that has robbed her grandson, Malik, 8, of a normal childhood.

    But for now, that fight has been put on hold.

    No, Springs isn’t a quitter, but the annual fundraiser she hosts for Autism Speaks has been postponed.

    Although letters and invitations for Lancaster Cooks 2010 – Look Who’s Cooking have been mailed out, the plans have been temporarily shelved.

    The popular fundraiser was scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Sept. 28 at the Fairway Room.

  • Their own words

    Three authors who share a common thread that weaves through Lancaster County have recently published books.

    The Rev. Jesse Adams became an author quite unexpectedly.

    Harriett Hodges Diller became an accomplished author years ago and continues to write.

    Malcolm Jones has made a very successful living reviewing books and is now writing his own.

    Here are their stories.

    Adams a reluctant writer

    The Rev. Jessie Adams never imagined he would one day be an author. 

    “I don’t even like to write,” he said.

  • Tailgating Time

    One-handed grabs don’t just apply to the action on the football field. They also apply to the food in the parking lot, before and after the game.

    It’s time to get out the awning, folding table, chairs, coolers, grill and the cornhole game.

    Tailgating – the football season social hour – is finally here.

    It’s hard to beat a day with family and friends at a college or pro football stadium to celebrate a love of the game and to root on your favorite team.

  •
    Camp Meeting Time

    Ninety-year-old Sarah Crockett hasn’t lost her zeal for life.

    The great-great-grandmother hasn’t lost her zeal for the camp meeting at Mount Carmel AME Zion Church, either.

    The wagons and buggies Crockett recalls seeing when she came to camp meeting for the first time in 1932, as a 12 year old, are gone. They’ve been replaced by motor homes.

    “Back then, very few people had cars,” she said.