Ty Reichel

Ty Reichel is a hometown girl. She's from Beaufort,
her folks are from Beaufort, all four of her kids were
born in Beaufort. In fact, they were born at Beaufort
Memorial Hospital-the same place where Ty was
born and where her husband, Marc, is now a physician.
Certain things run along family lines, and Ty is proud to carry
on those traditions.

"Beaufort is home for me," she said. "It's a great place to
raise my children. It's very inviting and embracing, so Marc has
made it his home as well. We have lots of friends here."

Ty had what she describes as a "solid" childhood in Beaufort,
and she still gets sentimental when she thinks about it. Her best
friend from back then is still her best friend now; the two see
each other almost every day. Ty feels blessed to have grown up
with grandparents who were actively involved in her life, and
she has seen to it that her kids get the same experience. In a day
and age when overworked adults put their aging parents into
retirement centers, Ty has brought her mother into her home
so that she can be a grandma everyday.

That's just one of the "old-fashioned" and, sad to say,
outmoded facets of family life that Ty dearly holds onto. She
also forgoes working in order to be at home with her children;
she takes them to school everyday; picks them up and brings
them home for a snack; helps with homework; ferries them to
various extra-curricular activities; tucks them in every night
after reading a bedtime story; and last, but not least, sees to
it that every evening the family shares a meal, over which
everyone recounts the high and low points of their day.

"This is just how our family life has evolved," said Ty. "Marc
and I hope that we are instilling in them a love of home, and
that they feel proud to have their friends come over. When
they are teenagers, hopefully they won't be out gallivanting
around as much, and they'll want to make us proud by making
the right choices."

As far as her own activities are concerned, Ty places a
high value on the time she spends with her "inner circle of
girlfriends," many of whom share the "commonality of being
a mom." She teaches aerobics, volunteers at her kids' schools,
serves on the board of the Beaufort Performing Arts, and is
active in her church. She also will be chairing the upcoming
Valentine Ball, which benefits Beaufort Memorial's Emergency
Room. "Sometimes, when you think of a hospital, you think of
a very sterile environment," said Ty. "But my experience there
has been different. The doctors and nurses have a wonderful
bedside manner, and I think it's excellent care."

Beyond that, there are very personal reasons which drive
Ty to give back to her community-helping those in her
sphere of influence and hoping the ripples will extend out
to touch others.

"Each organization that I participate in, I have chosen
carefully," said Ty. "My involvement with the hospital is a result
of my love for my husband; my involvement in my kids' schools
is a reflection of my love for them. I choose things that are near
and dear to my heart, and I feel like if I do something, work hard
and put my heart and soul into it, I help to make a difference."

Up Close

Hometown: Beaufort
Hobbies: arts & crafts, sewing, reading, travel
Next destination: Holland
Guilty pleasures: shopping and getting her nails done
Words to live by: an old saying of her grandfather's-"I
hope that when I die they say, she loved life and lived it,
and lived life and loved it."
About the Valentine Ball: The 21st Annual Valentine Ball
will be held on February 6, 2010. For more information call
522-5774 or log onto www.valentineball.org.