Great Love. . . the closing words Author Pat Conroy always used in signing off with his friends, 
either on the telephone, or in handwritten letters. The Great Love continues with a donation from his former students to the Pat Conroy Literary Center to continue Pat’s work with students, teachers, writers and readers.

The Beaufort High Class of 1969, which I proudly belong to, had its 50^th reunion last October during the Shrimp Festival. The weather was perfect, the turnout was great, and due to meticulous budgeting and generous donors, we ended up with a surplus.

On Saturday, May 16, 2020, from 10am to 4pm, the All Saints Episcopal Church on Hilton Head Island will be presenting its eagerly awaited 33rd Annual Garden Tour. An event not to be missed, the Garden Tour will feature seven stunning gardens throughout Hilton Head and Bluffton, as well as lunch and a stop at a boutique.

The famous Garden Tour was brought about in the earliest years of the church’s existence, with a commitment to create togetherness and joy, bringing the congregation together on a common project. After two incredible years of success, it was decided to expand the organization of this growing project in order to benefit charities in the local community. Since then, the All Saints Garden Tour has donated more than $500,000 to organizations in need, focusing on non-profit groups that work to combat homelessness, hunger, aging and illiteracy. The 2020 grant recipients are The Hunger Coalition of the Lowcountry, The Antioch Educational Center, St. Stephens United Methodist Church Outreach Foodbank, Family Promise, Crossroads Community Support Services and Safe Harbour. 

A new decade is the perfect transition time to look back and see what has worked for you in the past and what changes can be made in the next few years. Then make your own list of do’s and don’ts. Here are a few suggestions to get you started:

According to a survey conducted by Offers.com, the top two New Year’s resolutions in the U.S. for 2019 came in almost tied, with exercise more/lose weight at 38 percent and save money at 37 percent. So, how did that work out for you? Is your financial picture better now than it was 12 months ago? Are you more fit and lean?

The reason I love New Year’s is it feels like a clean slate—a fresh start. Whether you did great in 2019 or blew it altogether, I have good news. Today’s a new day—a new year—and a chance to start over or to do even better. We’ve been granted another opportunity. As for that saving money part, I have a great formula that’s been working for me and thousands of people I’ve led out of debt and into a lifestyle where they consistently live below their means.

Sleep is the new black. It’s trending up, and if you haven’t woken up to how essential it is—for your physical and mental well-being—that’s probably because you’re not getting enough of it.
And what is enough? Aim for 8 hours or more a night. WHAT? It was easier before, when humans just naturally rose with the sun and bedded down with the moon, but now we’re living in an electrified, digitized, brain-fried 24/7 world. And for many reasons, it’s getting in the way of our deepest, most restful sleep.

It’s up to you—your awareness, your actions—to change that dynamic. At least sleep on it.
Because the science is clear: 5, 6, 7 hours isn’t enough. Your body and your brain need time to rest, to restore, to nurture, or else, over time, they break down in unpleasant ways.

Everything about walking is good for your well-being—unless you're doing it with a bag of Oreos. It builds strength, reduces your risk of heart disease, juices up your joints, calms your mind and helps you and your cocker spaniel live longer, happier lives.

Some scoff at walking, dismissing it as exercise lite, not cool, maybe even a waste of your recreational time. These people should be taken with a gram of pink Himalayan salt.

If you know HGTV, then you certainly know the buzz around the Lowcountry: The home for HGTV’s Dream Home Giveaway 2020 is in our very own backyard! We had an opportunity to peruse the newly built and fully decked out home inside Windmill Harbour on Hilton Head to get the inside information from interior designer Brian Patrick Flynn himself! This is Brian’s fifth year designing the HGTV Dream Home. In addition, he is the interior designer for HGTV’s annual Urban Oasis project, and has a full service production company of his own, FlynnsideOut Productions.

Q: What is the style and look of the home? Where did it come from?
Brian: The HGTV dream home is geared to be someone’s forever home. The one thing I did want to stick with throughout is the idea of coastal, so blue and white are a natural. It just makes sense here. But I wanted to experiment with color, so as you make your way from downstairs to upstairs, you’ll see really intense coastal colors. The green is not your average green; it’s much more tropical, like what you’ll find in Florida, or in Charleston. The aqua you see reminds you more of Miami Beach and Key West. The idea was to play with all coastal styles and create a much more transitional look.

Snap. Snap. Cold snap ... and we’re reaching for the coat closet. If you didn’t receive a new coat for Christmas, you may want to snap your fingers and magically transform the chill chasers in your closet. With a new fashion cold front blasting its way into the season, it’s time to warm up to some new outerwear trends and heat up your wardrobe.

Snuggle up to Teddy. One of the biggest trends for the cold weather is the teddy coat. This fuzzy faux fur coat is named after—yes, you guessed it—that childhood favorite, the teddy bear. Comfort is the name of this coat, which comes in all kinds of retro ‘70s styles, from short, cropped pixie styles to full-length maxis.

168 Women. 1 hour.
That’s all it takes to make tremendous impact.

When you hear the phrase “tremendous impact,” what comes to mind? Making an impact means bettering our community and usually involves a hefty amount of dedicated time and effort. Being busy people living fast-paced lives, we are often challenged to add philanthropy to our already overflowing schedules.

What if there was a way to make a tremendous impact, without having to make a tremendous commitment of time and money? For Jackie Ryan and Ann Tucker, founders of 100+ Women Who Care on Hilton Head Island, the answer lies in simplicity.

Most of us have probably never thought through our odds of survival if we were to drop from sudden cardiac arrest. Even professional responders have delved surprisingly little into the various factors around this typically fatal event. But Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue is different. They have thought it through, extensively, and they’ve trained accordingly. The result is that they are saving more people each year than will ever get caught in burning buildings.

Should you suffer cardiac arrest on Hilton Head,
your hope of survival is better than almost
anywhere else in the world.

The best ideas are born out of need. This is how Janet Weingarten launched and became the first Chair of Backpack Buddies of Hilton Head, which has changed thousands of young lives. “Ten years ago I attended a community forum sponsored by the Social Action Committee on “Hidden Hunger In the Lowcountry.”  As a new resident of Hilton Head, I was shocked to learn that at that time 49 percent of children attending the Hilton Head elementary schools participated in the federal free breakfast and lunch program. I decided I wanted to help alleviate childhood hunger where I lived,” says Weingarten. The Hunger Coalition of the Lowcountry was born, an interfaith effort with support from First Presbyterian Church, Congregation Beth Yam, St. Andrew By the Sea United Methodist and St. Francis By the Sea Catholic Church congregants. Since then, Christ Lutheran and Hilton Head Island Community Church members have joined the effort. Janet is now past Chair, executive board member and grant director. Joe Kerr is the present Chairman of the Board, and Debi Dunlap and Jeannette Davis serve as the co-chairs of this non-profit organization.

You don’t have to be an adult to make a difference. We asked local Beaufort County children how they make a difference and help others, or who has made a difference in their lives. Here’s what they had to say just in time to warm your heart and remind you of the miracle of the season.

“I help my mommy with the garbage and laundry. My favorite part is when I stand on my tippy toes, and I get to put all the clothes into the washer.”
 — Giovanni, Kindergarten

In case you haven’t heard, honeycomb is the in thing this holiday season! Honeycomb is the most raw form of honey—the last living beings to touch the honey inside the comb were the bees who made it. The wax cells of honeycomb are not only edible, but also beneficial because they contain natural vitamin A, as well as healthy roughage. Beautiful to look at and delicious to eat, whole honeycomb is a can’t-go-wrong addition to any party and a perfect gift choice for any foodies on your Christmas shopping list.

However, if you want to leave your foodie friends buzzing way into the New Year, be sure to include whole honeycomb on your homemade charcuterie platters and cheese boards. Raw honeycomb, when placed on cheese or fruit, is deliciously impressive to both the palate and the eyes. The addition of whole honeycomb kicks up your basic charcuterie to supercuterie status.

It’s the holiday season. Still!

No one feels like doing work these last few weeks of the year, that’s for sure. The winter solstice helps shift us on a cellular level, and we realize the time between now and the dawn of 2020 is all about kicking back, spiking the eggnog and writing checks to charities you believe in.

So here are five end-of-year gifts, from me to I-believe-in-you. I offer them as steppingstones on your own personal path to well-being, however meandering it may have been this past year.

The only drawback? For these gifts to spark joy and provoke positive change, you have to do all the work.

Don't come unraveled. Instead, enjoy the big chills of the season ahead in a big sweater. Save the coats to wear when the temperatures dip below freezing. Keep your fashion wits about you indoors and out with these cozy knit hits for fall and winter.

The Fair Isle sweater. It's THE sweater of the year. This classic is named after an island in the north of Scotland, where the softest heathered yarns were produced and used to make sweaters with yokes and cuffs in brightly colored patterns. The latest Fair Isle sweaters are updated in new colors and sophisticated designs. Take these sweaters with you on your next ski trip, or make them island-chic paired with short skirts and tall boots.

My heart was pounding, and the smoke alarm was screaming, and I was in full-on panic mode. Flames were reaching toward the adjacent wood cabinets. It happened so fast! I didn’t have time to run to the pantry to search for baking soda.

I had a rip-roaring fire on my hands, and I was in slow motion thinking about how sad it would be to be homeless for Christmas.

I’d turned my back for a few seconds to find a utensil. When I returned, small flames were shooting from the burner. My quick thinking told me to smother the grease fire, so I grabbed a pot lid to do that. But the lid wasn’t airtight, and soon the flames were double the size—and spreading.
That’s when I locked eyeballs with the fire extinguisher that had been sitting on the counter for so long it blended into the decor.

Dear Readers: I've been talking a lot about young people and financial education lately, but there's one thing I haven't discussed recently that I think is an important part of everyone's financial lives: giving. Now, with Thanksgiving just ahead and Giving Tuesday coming right after, I want to share some ideas on how to introduce your kids to the importance of philanthropy and get the whole family involved in giving this season.

To me, saving and giving go hand in hand. As you teach your kids to manage their money and save a certain percentage for their future goals, it's a natural extension to also encourage them to earmark some of their money for a charitable cause. And what better time than the holidays to focus on how to share our own good fortune?

When you think “vacation,” do you think “summer”? Maybe it’s time to think “fall” instead!
Fall is a wonderful time to travel, especially if you have young children. The weather is cooler, the foliage is lovely, and attractions are less crowded because families with older kids aren’t likely to take their kids out of school to travel so early in the school year. The holidays also beckons travel for those who have families spread far and wide.

But parenting is hard enough at home! How can you take this show on the road without losing your mind? Traveling with toddlers, especially, can really be a trip. Here are some feeding tips that Mommy M.D.s—doctors who are also mothers—use to travel with their children.

Dirt roads are a part of our lives no matter where we call home.

They are our common ground. Whether they exist as a result of neglect, or a choice by someone to remain off the beaten path, dirt roads depict a state of peace and serenity.

I spent a few of my early years living on a dirt road. I remember the dust taking a long time to settle after an infrequent car passed. Everything seemed to move at a slower pace in Baygall, one of the traditional Gullah communities on the north end of Hilton Head Island. In fact, the road where I spent my preschool years, living with my cousin Mary, remains unpaved.

With just one switch of a handbag, you can change your whole fashion outlook on life this fall. A new handbag is one of the best attitude adjustments you can make for yourself and your wardrobe. Here are some of the big switches for the season ahead:

Handbags are probably one of the first new purchases many of us make every season. Since we carry them daily, they are our best accessory friends. This fall, crossbody bags are still utilitarian favorites, in all shapes and sizes. Check out the new saddlebag designs. Let’s face it, these bags are a lifesaver, leaving hands free.

I wish I could make you cut back on sugar, breathe away your stress or eat only grass-fed beef. But wishes are like dishes: You usually have to do them yourself. What I can do is introduce you to “power-ups”: moment-by-moment strategies to spark joy and boost your well-being this holiday season.

1) DANCE TO ENHANCE
The Setup: A stressful workday has ended. You’re exhausted. You’d planned to lift weights at the gym, but it takes all your strength just to stumble home and collapse on the couch. Where’s your energy? Where’s the remote? Where’s the wine?

The Power-Up: Start the music. As soon as you get home, crank up Lady Gaga or a playlist of your favorite tunes and—without thinking, without excuses—start dancing around the house. You don’t need a partner, shoes or even clothes.

Halloween is one of the most successful and widely celebrated holidays in the United States, coming second only to Christmas.  Many of us have grown accustomed to the traditions that come with Halloween, complete with Trick-or-treating, costumes, parties and jack-o’-lanterns. But where did these customs come from? In many cultures, there is a day for honoring the dead. It is said that on this day, the “veil” is thinner and spirits walk among us. This day, although often landing on different dates in other cultures, goes by many names: Samhain, All Saints Day, All Hallows Eve, Dia de los Muertos (Mexico’s Day of the Dead—a 3-day holiday) and, of course, Halloween.

I think we’ve been looking at physical activity all wrong. We often link it with losing weight, but to be honest, it takes a lot of moving to lose a pound or two. As I’ve learned, the value of physical activity is that it makes you feel better, makes you move better, gives you a sense of joy.

The bottom line? Including some sort of daily physical activity in your life keeps you healthy. That’s really why we should be doing it. Knowing that may be more of a motivator than watching the scale.
Most of us have that backward. We work out to lose weight and then quit when we don’t. But maybe the key is to turn our thinking around: We work out to be healthy, and every day we do, we’re healthier.

A recent study found that increased activity in middle age and beyond may decrease the risk for death from all causes—cardiovascular disease and cancer—according to a study published recently in The BMJ.

Art is something that makes history. Historically, Hilton Head Island’s main attractions have cast a shadow on the astounding artistic talent that is hidden throughout the Lowcountry. Thanks to Bobbie Fertig, a local artist and founder of the new maker’s space, BoArt, the shadow is getting smaller. When creating BoArt, also known as Bo, Bobbie’s thought process wasn’t to open another art gallery and show off her own work, but to create a place where many artists could have a chance to showcase their work and shine, too. However, the end product exceeded the vision.

Bo became a collaborative community space where local residents can come and make art, build projects and learn new skills. “It’s meant to be a fresh oasis for people, where people and their art can fit in,” said Mira Scott, a local artist and Bobbie’s right hand.

Bo isn’t just for people to come and make art, but to showcase their art, as well.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in women in the
United States. Everyone dreads possibly someday hearing the words:
“You have cancer.” There are some things that you can’t control regarding getting breast cancer, but luckily there are things you CAN control.
Women can make choices every day to decrease their breast cancer risk.
So, what are they?

Diet: What we eat matters not just for diabetes and heart disease but also for breast cancer. It’s not rocket science, but it isn’t always easy, or as much fun. Nonetheless, eating a diet of real food and cutting back on meat (especially red meat) can decrease breast cancer risk. Real food means food that comes from the ground or on a plant, not chemicals. If it comes in a box, it’s most likely processed, which isn’t healthy.

Fall is fashion’s favorite time of year. Designers roll out the runways with updates on the classics and totally new inspirations that will give you a wardrobe ready for the season ahead. Check out these 10 must-have items to add right now:

A Big Blouse 
The blouse is back, and it is big ... in volume, that is. Drama is the name of the blouse game, with billowy sleeves, big bows and standout collars. Romantic is the look of this fashion trend.
A plaid jacket   Designers are mad for plaid this fall, and the plaid jacket is one of the season’s key pieces. Top off pants and skirts with a roomy jacket in menswear plaids or checks. Then, for a new twist, cinch it with a skinny or wide leather belt.

Autumn is one of my favorite times of year, and it’s not just the oversized taffy apples. I’m talking crispy cool days that call for turtlenecks and yoga tights, a seasonal shift to fading colors and falling leaves, and great sales on outdoor furniture.

“Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree,” writes Emily Bronte.

“This is the season of the harvest,” writes Elson M. Haas, “the fruition of all the growth of spring and summer.”

Some say life is only as good as the people you surround yourself with. For Cassandra King Conroy and Bernie Schein, life has been great…interesting, intriguing, exciting and loving. One a wife, and the other the ornery best friend, these two became intermingled because of the love that surrounded them from one legendary man—Pat Conroy.

I arrived at Cassandra’s home in Beaufort, SC,  to talk to her about her new book, Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy, which hits the news stands on October 29.

Cassandra, an award-winning, bestselling novelist, was married to Pat Conroy for the last 18 years of his life. They met at a literary festival in the mid ‘90s in Alabama, where Cassandra is from, and he never let her go. “We met in LA,” she laughed, “lower Alabama!” We both cracked up with laughter and settled in for what became a comfortable two hours of reminiscing, swapping stories and talking about Pat.

Kelley Luikey is a tall, athletic woman, with beautiful long hair. She opens the door to her private paradise in Port Royal with chickens clucking, a dog barking hello, a husband on the way out to do errands, all to the sound of a nearby powerboat in the Port Royal sound.

Kelley is an award winning nature photographer who will be honored next month as “Artist of the Year” for the Port Royal Sound Foundation. Her photos of birds, all shapes and sizes, and nature are in galleries in Bluffton, Beaufort and St. Helena Island. It all started back at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, where she graduated in 1994. There she discovered photography, back when negatives were developed in darkrooms.

After marriage and two babies, Kelley discovered digital photography in 2014 with a basic, entry-level Canon model. She was hooked by digital ease, and the ability to take hundreds of pictures easily. The editing capabilities came later.

Dear Readers: If you’re like most people, you’ve made a few hare-brained money decisions in your time. That’s just being human. However, if you’re striving to get yourself on track, I suggest that you review these ten smart money management tips. This Halloween, treat yourself to a more secure financial future!

Stick to your budget, no matter how large or small: Living beyond your means is dangerous no matter how much money you make. So even if you’re lucky enough to earn a big paycheck, it’s important to create—and stick to—a realistic budget. Use an online budget tool and make a list of your essential expenses and another list of your nice-to-haves. If your income won’t cover both, start crossing off the extras you can live without. And don’t be tempted to pull out the credit cards to cover any excess. Keeping on top of debt is an important part of smart budgeting. While you’re thinking about debt control, remember to stay on top of any student loans!