North Charleston Farmers Market every Thursday at Park Circle

The North Charleston Farmers Market opens every Thursday until mid-October at the Felix C. Davis Community Center in Park Circle.

The City of North Charleston’s annual Farmers Market includes a number of local farmers and growers selling local produce. Vendors will be on hand offering arts and crafts and other handcrafted goods. 

Each week the City’s Cultural Arts Department features a performance or artist to showcase.

Charleston Marathon donates $80,000 to Youth Endowment of the Arts

The Charleston Marathon Board of Directors donated $80,000 to Youth Endowment of the Arts (YEA) at its annual ‘Thank You’ reception for sponsors and volunteers on Wednesday April 17, 2013 at 7:00pm. 

In 2012, YEA received $60,000 in proceeds from the race and $40,000 in 2011. This funding has helped support numerous fine arts projects throughout Charleston County Schools. 

The 3rd annual Charleston Marathon was held on January 19, 2013 and hosted nearly 5,000 participants in its full marathon, half marathon, 5K, youth marathon program and bike tour. 

CCSD programs are an integral part of the race with school groups and clubs obtaining points on their grant applications by volunteering and performing along the race route. Runners were handed water by student volunteers, entertained by student singers, dancers, drum lines and greeted by creative student sculptures at packet pick-up. The race organizers will also present 2013 Spirit Awards to three schools, as well as an award for the 2013 sculpture contest at Wednesday’s event. 

Plans for the 4th annual Charleston Marathon, presented by Harris Teeter, are underway and registration for the 2014 event will open by the end of April at www.CharlestonMarathon.com. Grant applications for interested school programs are available now at www.YEAendowment.org, the deadline to apply is May 29, 2013. 

Youth Endowment for the Arts’ mission is to provide equitable, quality cultural arts experiences to Charleston area children. Through grants and curriculum building, YEA strives to use the fine arts to help open additional avenues to learning. YEA was founded in 2000 by North Charleston Mayor R. Keith Summey and his wife, Judge Deborah Summey. Both will be present at Wednesday’s event.

Entries Sought for 2013 North Charleston Arts Festival Judged Fine Art & Photography Competitions & Exhibitions

Fine artists and professional and amateur photographers ages 18 and up are invited to participate in the annual North Charleston Arts Festival Judged Fine Art and Judged Photography Competitions and Exhibitions. Entries will be on display throughout the festival, May 3-11, at the Charleston Area Convention Center Complex, located at 5001 Coliseum Drive in North Charleston. Cash prizes are awarded for winning entries. Complete entry instructions are available for download here. Entries for photography will be accepted at the Convention Center on Wednesday and Thursday, May 1 and 2, from noon to 7:00pm. Entries for fine art will be accepted on Wednesday and Thursday, May 1 and 2, from noon to 7:00pm, as well as Friday, May 3, from 9:00am to noon. Entry fees are $5 and $10, respectively.

Fine artists may submit work in five categories: Acrylic, Oil, Drawing/Pastel, Watercolor, and Mixed Media. Entries will compete for cash prizes totaling up to $4425. Awards are at the sole discretion of the juror, Sara C. Arnold. Arnold is the Curator of Collections at the Gibbes Museum of Art in downtown Charleston. In this role she is responsible for the study, care, and interpretation of the museum’s permanent art collection. During her nine year tenure at the Gibbes, Arnold has curated numerous exhibitions and written articles for American Art Review and Antiques and Fine Art magazines. She is also the co-editor of The Life and Art of Alfred Hutty: Woodstock to Charleston, published by the University of South Carolina Press in 2012. She holds a BA in Anthropology from the University of Alabama and a master’s degree in Historic Preservation and Museum Studies from Georgia State University.

Photographers may submit work in the Professional/Advanced division or Amateur division under the categories of Color or Monochrome. Entries will compete for cash prizes totalling up to $1450 and are judged using the Photographic Society of America Print Guidelines. Scoring is done by three competent judges in the field of photography who will score entries using the 3-9 range of scores. Each judge will evaluate each entry as a whole, considering the areas of Impact, Composition, and Technique. However, there is no specific weighting or allotment of points for each category. This system is used efficiently and effectively by many councils, at international exhibitions, and by camera clubs. It allows an adequate qualitative separation of entries while lessening the potential for a large number of the higher scoring entries having identical scores. In the event of a tie-breaker, judges will choose the winning entry.

Awards for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in each division and category, as well as Honorable Mentions for both competitions will be announced at an artist reception on Friday, May 3, from 6:00-7:00pm at the Charleston Area Convention Center. The reception is free and open to the public. Exhibition viewing times are Saturday, May 4, 10:00am–4:00pm; Sunday, May 5, 2:00–5:00pm; Monday through Friday, May 6-10, 9:00am–5:00pm; and Saturday, May 11, 9:00am–Noon.

The North Charleston Arts Festival, scheduled May 3-11, is one of the most comprehensive arts festivals in the state, providing thousands of residents & visitors with a fabulous array of nearly 100 performances, exhibitions, and activities. The Main Event, held May 4 and 5 at the North Charleston Performing Arts Center and Charleston Area Convention Center, offers free admission and parking to over 40 performances on four stages, exhibitions, a gem and mineral show, an antique show, children’s activities, art and crafts booths, and a food courtyard. The Arts Festival continues with over 65 free or moderately priced ticketed events throughout the week at various locations and concludes with fireworks over the Cooper River at the Grand Finale at North Charleston Riverfront Park.

For more information about the North Charleston Arts Festival, or to download entry instructions for the Judged Fine Art and Photography Competitions and Exhibitions, visit www.NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com. For more information about other exhibition opportunities offered by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, visit http://bit.ly/culturalarts or call 843-740-5854.

Year-round, regional swimming facility opening in North Charleston

The Danny Jones swim facility is now fully enclosed and heated for year-round access. In addition, the benefits of the improvements will be passed along to the North Charleston community, providing an endless swimming season.

The improvements to the Danny Jones Complex are the culmination of a regional effort of individuals in the local swim community, led by Dr. Marco Cavazzoni through the Logan Rutledge Children's Foundation. Last year, the group approached the City of North Charleston to address the Lowcountry's lack of a swim facility to accommodate year-round, indoor training for competitive swimmers, education in water safety, swim lessons, and senior aquatic activities. The group's Lowcountry Aquatic Project Swimming (LAPS) Program seeks to provide lifelong aquatics opportunities for Lowcountry residents - with a special emphasis on teaching children in underprivileged Lowcountry areas to swim, in order to prevent accidental drownings and promoting youth wellness to fight childhood obesity and diabetes.

The group raised $350,000 in private funds and in-kind donations from community members, businesses, and institutions for the swim facility project. In addition to the private fundraising, the Town of Mount Pleasant and the Charleston County Parks and Recreation Commission each committed $100,000, totaling $200,000.

The City of North Charleston conducted the $1,800,000 improvements to the facility. The City’s Parks and Recreation Department will manage daily operations.

Schedule of pool activities and hours of operation

Large C-17 formation to take off from Joint Base Charleston on Wednesday

A multi-ship C-17 formation is scheduled to take off Wednesday morning, April 10, to conduct a variety of training missions.

Up to 21 C-17s will take off in the morning and will depart on a training route that will include airdrops, aerial refueling and low level tactical training.

The exercise has been coordinated with the Charleston County Aviation Authority and will not delay regularly scheduled flights at Charleston International Airport.

This large formation exercise (LFE) is a total-force effort with aircrews consisting of active-duty Airmen from the 437th Airlift Wing and Reservists from the 315th Airlift Wing. The last LFE was conducted in 2010. This exercise is not in response to real-world events.

Wednesday’s event will complete over 600 training requirements and will maintain mission readiness. LFEs are an efficient method of training C-17 Globemaster III aircrew, maintenance and support Airmen on a wide variety of requirements in a short period of time.

These skills are needed at all times to ensure the Joint Base Charleston team can move large amounts of forces, cargo or passengers when called upon or when ordered to evacuate due to an incoming hurricane.

"The skills we test today are the same skills we would use to provide our country’s response to a crisis or a conflict anywhere in the world," said Col. Trevor Nitz, 437th Operations Group commander. "Despite current challenges, Airmen are obligated to maintain mission readiness and stand ready to deliver our country’s resolve."

Officers Receive Top Honors for DUI Enforcement

On Wednesday, April 3rd, seven members of the North Charleston Police Department’s Traffic Enforcement Unit received top honors for DUI arrests during the South Carolina Department of Public Safety’s annual Law Enforcement DUI Challenge Ceremonies held in Columbia. The officers were recognized under the DUI Hero category for excelling in the area of DUI arrests in 2012.

Award recipients:

DUI Gold Heroes (50 or more DUI Arrests)

Officer Jonathan Lawrence

Officer Anthony King

DUI Silver Heroes (25 – 49 DUI Arrests)

Officer Thomas E. Bennett, Jr.

DUI Bronze Heroes (10 – 24 DUI Arrests)

Officer Theodore J. Gorman

Officer Bradford P. Molina

Officer Bryan Sadler

Officer Bryan M. Young

Charleston County Hosts 2013 Earth Day Festival on April 20 at Riverfront Park

Charleston County’s Environmental Management Department invites citizens to join in celebrating Earth Day during the 2013 Earth Day Festival on Saturday, April 20. The free event will be held from 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. at Riverfront Park on the former Naval Base in North Charleston.

The 14th Annual Earth Day Festival is a celebration of Charleston County’s environmental community. The festival provides hands-on educational opportunities for all ages, and highlights the County’s environmental programs.

“Our annual Earth Day Festival provides an ideal opportunity for Lowcountry residents to learn how they can make a difference in our community at home, work and play,” said Carolyn Carusos, Charleston County Environmental Management Department’s Recycling Programs Manager. “Riverfront Park offers a beautiful waterfront setting to enjoy the diverse, fun and family-oriented activities.”

Charleston County’s Earth Day Festival attracts as many as 8,000 people each year. All participants are asked to commit to reducing waste at the event. Resource Recovery Centers will be strategically located throughout the park to collect recyclable materials and organic waste generated during the festival.

Charleston County’s Annual Earth Day Art Contest was held again this year, and students in grades kindergarten through sixth grade submitted drawings for the theme: “One Earth, One Future.” The winning artwork will be featured at the event and will be printed on the back of all festival T-shirts.

April 20 Earth Day Festival Schedule of Events:
11 a.m.: Event kickoff with Military Magnet Academy’s Marching Band
11:15 a.m.:
     Opening remarks by attending Charleston County Council members
     Awards and recognition of the Annual Earth Day Art Contest winners
     Recognition of festival volunteers

11:30 a.m.: Live performance by local step team Gentlemen of Duty & Distinction Service Brotherhood
11:45 p.m.: Live musical performance by members of the Blue Dogs, a band from Charleston
12:45 p.m.: Birds of prey demonstration by Stephen Schabel with The Avian Conservation Center
1:15 p.m.: Mad Science demonstration
1:30 p.m.: Live musical performance by Professor Bottleneck & Harmonica Frank, a German acoustic duo specializing in blues, jazz and swing with an environmental twist
2:00 p.m.: Goodwill Fashion Show
2:15 p.m.: Zumba with Prisca Denton
2:30 p.m.: Live musical performance by The Bluestone Ramblers, a South Carolina bluegrass band
3:00 p.m.: Live reptile demonstration by Kiawah Island Nature Center
3:30 p.m.: Storytelling by Hawk Hurst

Other Highlights of the 2013 Earth Day Festival: 

Over 60 environmental activities and educational displays on alternative energy, conservation, local and organic agriculture, animals and habitat preservation, litter, water and air quality, seedlings, recycling and composting
FREE shredding services (located in the parking lot)
Collection of electronic waste, such as old TVs and computers, for recycling (located in the parking lot). Bring old/unwanted electronic items to be recycled and avoid these items being disposed of in the landfill.
Goodwill donation center (located in the parking lot)
Composting Awareness Center, a focal point tent emphasizing “Are you in the Loop?” where attendees can learn about the composting cycle. Guests will receive home composting information, commercial food waste information and free compost samples.
Hands-on fun with Mad Science play stations
Water buffalo by Charleston Water Systems
Nature walks with a local naturalist
Pet Helpers will be on site providing information on animal rescue and adoptable animals
Local food vendors and food trucks offering classic festival fare plus some vegetarian options
Returning Trash-to-Treasure guest, The Yo Art Project, to assist with craft-making using recycled materials
Charleston County’s Environmental Management Department staff will:
     Provide reusable bag giveaways for the first 500 attendees
     Feature demonstrations showing the new single stream recycling truck
     Host a recycling tent with information, giveaways and prizes

Plus a whole day of fun activities, prize drawings, contests and interactive live performances

Charleston County’s Environmental Management Department thanks their contributors:

City of North Charleston
S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control

For more information on recycling or the 2013 Earth Day Festival, visit recycle.charlestoncounty.org or call (843) 720-7111.