Carly Anthony
Purpose Driven Passion
December 2025 Issue
by Lesley Kyle
Photography by
Lindsay Pettinicchi Photography, LLC
At the age of 17, Carly Anthony has quite a success story to tell.
Like many students her age, this Heritage Academy Senior leads an active lifestyle and loves the beach. Carly has played tennis since age 6 and plays competitively. And among her many admirable qualities is her passion for and great success in raising large sums of money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital located in Memphis, Tennessee.
Carly learned about St. Jude and its mission from her parents, who are long-time supporters of the children’s hospital. Founded by Danny Thomas in 1960, St. Jude ensures no child is denied treatment based on race, religion, or a family’s ability to pay. Carly was excited to get involved in the St. Jude Leadership Society introduced by Heritage Academy’s Principal, Amanda O’Nan. The cohort, the first of its kind in South Carolina, teaches leadership skills to a group of 30 greater Hilton Head and Beaufort County area high school students through its speakers, activities, and monthly meetings. Carly joined the Society as a freshman and met and listened to St. Jude families tell their stories.
Neither Carly nor her family have a personal connection to St. Jude, but those shared families’ stories reinforced her commitment to the cause. Among the cohort’s laudable activities was the recent Flex Fore St. Jude Gala and Golf Scramble, which raised more than $620K for the Hospital. Approximately $80K of those funds came from Carly’s cohort. Thirteen cohort students met their personal goals of raising at least $3K for St. Jude. Their reward is a trip to Memphis to participate in the two-day Next Gen Experience. Carly attended with 11 fellow students last year and will join 12 of her peers next summer. The students will participate in meetings with staff, tour the hospital, and connect with other program members from around the country.
“It’s one thing to hear and see videos of what they do, but it’s amazing to see what they do in person,” said Carly. “It’s how I knew I wanted to work with them.” Carly has been so inspired by her connection to St. Jude that she plans to pursue a career with them in the future. “It changed the path of my life career-wise,” said Carly. “I found a love for fundraising and the community.”
Carly’s love for the mission goes beyond her cohort’s activities. With an entrepreneurial spirit, Carly – then a high school freshman - paired her love of photography and handwritten notes to launch Carly Cards (@carlycardshhi on Instagram). She chose six from hundreds of photos she snapped around Hilton Head and created and sold sets of notecards at local markets and through her Etsy store. All profits from the sale of the cards go to St. Jude’s. In her first year, Carly Cards sold over 1,000 packs of notecards and raised $21K.
“It was really a neat experience,” said proud mom, Margaret Anthony. “Carly had a goal of selling 100, and we had to keep going back to the printer for more cards.” Carly writes notes using her cards daily.
While participating in last year’s Next Gen Experience program, enterprising Carly noted St. Jude was hosting a race. Carly decided to see if she could establish a 5K in Hilton Head. “There wasn’t one for St. Jude in South Carolina, so I’ll just make one!” she said. Carly created an event logo, signage, social media posts, distributed flyers to local businesses and sold sponsorships. After nine months of planning, and with time and talent contributions from her supportive family, the “HHI Run/Walk for the Cure 5K Benefitting St. Jude” was born. The race took place on September 27, 2025, hosting 160 runners from six states. The event raised $14K, all for St. Jude.
Carly has submitted her college applications and is excited to see what her future holds.
“Fundraising was a full-time job in addition to school, college applications, club activities, and tennis, so the first semester was stressful,” said Margaret. “But it has all paid off. Carly is faithful, passionate, loving, determined, smart girl and just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside,” Margaret proudly added. “It’s been such a wonderful experience to witness her confidence grow and see her living out her passion.”
Up Close:
Hometown: Hilton Head Island
Fun Fact: Carly is short for Carlisle.
Inspiration: Her family are her biggest cheerleaders!
Superpower: Her drive—she puts 100% effort into everything she does.
All-State Athlete: Carly plays Varsity tennis for HHHS—she was undefeated in region play this season and 6th place in individual State tournament.