[00:00:00] Speaker A: .
Hello and welcome to First Friday with Georgetown County. It is officially summer and we've got a couple of exciting things to talk about today. We're going to speak with Jason Walters, our recreation manager, about all of the really great programs we have going on this summer. There's something for everybody if you're, you're looking for something for you or your child to do. And we're also going to speak with, with Stephen Candle a little later. He is going to talk about the time capsule that we're getting ready to open on July 4th.
[00:00:38] Speaker A: He was around 50 years ago when we encapsulated the capsule. So he's going to talk with us just a little about what that looked like and about the excitement around opening it up after all these years.
So, Jason, talk with us about Parks and Recreation and all of the, the great things that we have going on this summer. I know we just started swim lessons over in Andrews and I think next week or later this summer we're going to Chopee.
Our mobile swimming pool is back, right?
[00:01:09] Speaker C: Yes, it is. We're partnering with the YMCA again this year and we currently have about 150 people registered for this summer so far.
[00:01:18] Speaker A: That's great.
[00:01:18] Speaker C: We still have a lot of slots left if anyone's interested.
[00:01:21] Speaker A: Okay, so when is it too late to sign up?
[00:01:23] Speaker C: So the Friday before each week's session. You can register up until that Friday and it's free to participate.
And if you have difficulty registering, you can always call or swing by any of our rec centers and we'll be happy to get you on the roster.
[00:01:38] Speaker A: So we still have, if you're watching this on Friday, the rest of the day today to register for the second session in Andrews and then, you know, a week out for the ones in Choppy.
[00:01:46] Speaker C: Yep.
[00:01:47] Speaker A: Okay. So check our website, gtcounty sc.gov for more information about that.
This was, we started this last year, right, the mobile swim lessons. And I feel like it was a really big success.
[00:02:00] Speaker C: I do, too. And we're definitely hitting a demographic that doesn't always get access to these sort of programs, like instructed swimming lessons like we're offering now. So it's good to see the kids always love it. And a lot of them want to sign up for more than one. That's why I say you can't sign up Learn to Swim Twice. But I think they just want to play in the pool more than anything.
[00:02:19] Speaker A: I don't blame them. I want to play in the pool, too, but.
[00:02:22] Speaker C: And we recently added a new session that's New for this year's for three and four year olds.
[00:02:27] Speaker A: That's great.
[00:02:29] Speaker C: You know those little top sort of kids, they can come and join now too. Those will be afternoon sessions for this week. Would have been the first week for that. We're also offering one session in Choppy on week three. So one week after this week.
[00:02:43] Speaker A: That's wonderful. So previously the age range was I think 5 to 15. So now we have 3 and 4 year olds too.
All right, so if you did not know that your, your preschooler was eligible, get them signed up for a lesson now. That's wonderful.
It is a really fun experience for them. I remember watching last year and there were so many smiles and splashing and they, they just had a really good time.
[00:03:07] Speaker C: Absolutely.
[00:03:07] Speaker A: But also learned a valuable life saving skill. I think that everybody in this area with so much water around us should know how to swim.
[00:03:14] Speaker C: Yep. That's why we started. It was kind of. We've had some unfortunate events regarding water incidents and stuff. So kind of good to see our community partners come together and be able to provide this hopefully for several summers to come as well.
We have that going on. We're also starting volleyball. We started that this week as well. We have about a little over 100 people participating in that.
[00:03:34] Speaker A: And what's the age range on that one?
[00:03:36] Speaker C: That is 10 to 16.
Most of them have been kind of in the 10 to 13 age group, which is good because we're trying to, you know, bring that program to our school district as well, trying to build those programs up. So if they're starting with us, maybe they'll continue, you know, into the school programs.
[00:03:51] Speaker A: Yeah, that'd be great. So this is indoor volleyball.
[00:03:54] Speaker C: This indoor volleyball. It's in evenings from about 6 to 8, depending on the age group of the child.
And I was also free to participate. And it's going to be a league format this year instead of the camp that we did last year. So hopefully there's a little more competition and people get a little more from it than just, you know, your camp. So.
[00:04:14] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah.
[00:04:15] Speaker C: But we have that going on. And then we also have some goat stuff tomorrow.
[00:04:20] Speaker A: Georgetown Outdoor Adventure Trails, if you have not already been initiated. It's a great program.
[00:04:24] Speaker C: Yep. Tomorrow will be National Trail Day. So we'll be out at Rocky Point hosting a paddle on Peters Creek as well as a hike throughout the Rocky Point Community Forest.
[00:04:36] Speaker A: Oh, fun.
[00:04:37] Speaker C: It's not too late to register for that either. If you want to just shoot an email over to goatherdtcountysc.gov or just call the recreation center and we'll get you put on the list to join us as well.
[00:04:49] Speaker A: And our program leader for that, TL Staub, he is just the absolute best. He really loves this stuff and you can tell it. And if you are not, you know, somebody who has done a lot of this stuff before, you haven't done the, the hiking or the paddling, don't be intimidated. He will get you involved and you'll be an expert in in no time.
[00:05:09] Speaker C: We have everything you need to from kayaks to hiking poles, anything like that you would need. So just come as you are and we'll be happy to get you involved.
[00:05:18] Speaker A: And I hear that soon you can also get your, your pup involved in and go. Is that right?
[00:05:24] Speaker C: Yep. So for our kind of on your own self paced challenges, we do the iron goat and fit goat challenges we're now doing adding a dog category to it as well. So you can track your miles for your dog or pet as well. And we'll have prizes for them.
[00:05:41] Speaker A: Do they get like little bandanas to match my goat T shirt?
[00:05:44] Speaker C: We'll have similar things like that, bandanas, water bowls, you know, dog gear. I guess best way to put it.
[00:05:52] Speaker A: Everything is more fun with the dog, right?
[00:05:54] Speaker C: Yes, absolutely. We definitely love our four legged friends. So.
And also we recently opened our new dog park in Stables park as well. So that's right that out. Go check that out. So lovely. We have a big dog and little dog sections of the park. So it's an off leash area finally. So you can let them run around and go crazy there. So.
[00:06:14] Speaker A: And that is the first county owned dog park in the county.
Some people tried to call me on that. You know, they pointed out that that East Bay already has a dog park
[00:06:23] Speaker B: but that is city owned.
[00:06:24] Speaker A: So this is the county's first and we're very proud of it.
[00:06:27] Speaker C: Hopefully we get more to come, so.
[00:06:28] Speaker A: Hopefully, yeah, that would be great. I think we're talking about one up
[00:06:31] Speaker C: in Merls Inlet right at Wachisaw Park. That's part of that design up there.
And you know, just trying to actually give them dedicated spots to where, you know, sometimes at our parks they kind of take over or don't have a place. And now we're trying to just, you know, give them their own safe space.
[00:06:47] Speaker A: We want everybody to feel included in our parks and recreation facilities.
[00:06:51] Speaker C: Absolutely.
[00:06:51] Speaker A: So you mentioned also maybe introducing some wrestling this year.
[00:06:55] Speaker C: Yeah. So we're working with some folks from Waccama High School, some of the coaches there. They're interested in starting a club sport, if you will, for recreation ages kids, so like 5 to 12 to introduce wrestling to them because they've had some success at their varsity level program, but they're not having a lot of kids come in that have any experience at all with wrestling. So they're interested in starting something over the summer here probably in July, just some camps and stuff. And then hopefully they can turn it into some sort of a league per se. There aren't many other recreation departments that offer wrestling around here, but we can do through, you know, Team USA wrestling programs or something like that just to get them involved, get them train, get those fundamentals down for wrestling. So if they wanted to continue, you know, they'll have those building blocks they need to start that sport.
[00:07:46] Speaker D: So.
[00:07:47] Speaker A: Okay, wonderful. So what else do we have going on and coming up, Jason, where to start?
[00:07:53] Speaker C: So we'll start with more outdoor recreation stuff. We have other than Trail Day. We have a paddle for Georgetown harbor coming up.
[00:08:04] Speaker A: Oh, that sounds fun.
[00:08:05] Speaker C: Later this month. I don't have the specific date, but it'll be probably in the last two weeks of it. And then in July we're trying something new with a full moon paddle, which that'll be July 26th.
[00:08:20] Speaker A: Sign me up for that. When I've tried to go in the last two and they've both been rained out, I'm cursed.
[00:08:24] Speaker C: But that's. We're still hoping to get it done. It sounds like a great idea. We'll have the glow sticks and lights and all that. Just trying to make it a fun experience for everyone. So we think that'll go over well too. And then just various paddles throughout, which you can find all that information on our Facebook page for the goat herd as well. And we're also doing some July camps for the kids too, trying to get them prepared for fall and winter sports. So we'll be doing a basketball camp and a tackle football camp and a flag football camp as well in July.
And those are all free to participate. We'll have some help from our friends at the school district as well. They'll have their coaches come over, kind of show them what they're looking for, how we can integrate it into our programs as well and just should have a good time.
[00:09:08] Speaker A: Yeah, fantastic.
So how about. Are you guys doing a laser light show again this summer?
[00:09:14] Speaker C: So no. That you're talking about for Wave that Flag event?
[00:09:17] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah.
[00:09:18] Speaker C: So that has been moved to Labor Day. There's just a lot going on. Fourth of July already and we have you know numerous things to do. There's never, you know, any downtime for the week of the fourth of July. We have numerous events going on on the county. Other folks are doing firework and laser shows around us as well. So we wanted to find our own niche and we went to Labor Day instead. So we'll be hosting the Wave that Flag event on Labor Day this Sunday and we will have our laser show then as well.
[00:09:45] Speaker A: All right, fantastic. So a great way to end our summer then.
[00:09:49] Speaker C: Yep. So that should wrap it up fairly nicely.
[00:09:51] Speaker A: Okay. Anything else you want to mention?
[00:09:54] Speaker C: Not that I can think off top of my head.
[00:09:56] Speaker A: Well, thank you for that perfect seg into talking about the Fourth of July time capsule. I appreciate that.
[00:10:01] Speaker D: No problem.
[00:10:02] Speaker A: So if you want to learn more about Georgetown county parks and recreation programs, check them out@GTC parks.org you can also check out their Facebook pages and the Goat Herd Facebook page for the Georgetown Outdoor Adventure Trails programs. Jason, thank you so much. I really appreciate it.
I am so happy today to introduce you to Steve Candle. He was the original chairman of the Time Capsule committee back in the 1976. Is that right?
[00:10:30] Speaker D: Co chair.
[00:10:30] Speaker A: Co chair. Okay.
[00:10:31] Speaker D: Jim. Rolling was the other.
[00:10:33] Speaker A: Okay, wonderful. So Steve gave me a call a few years ago to let me know that there was a time capsule in the courthouse that was going to need to be opened up in a few years and time has passed. We are just about a month away from opening that time capsule now, and we are very excited about it. Steve is going to join us on the day and I want to hear what you remember about creating that time capsule 50 years ago.
[00:11:01] Speaker D: We had a committee, I think of about 12 or 15 people from Georgetown, and we met probably a year in advance and just mapped out what kinds of things we wanted to include in that time capsule.
And so the committee decided of the articles that would go in there in that capsule. I do remember that we had a photography club in Georgetown at that particular time. So we used their talents to go all over the county. Each of us had our own specific regions to photograph.
And so some of those photographs are in that time capsule.
I'm remembering that there was a movie put in there and I'm not sure how wide that opening is, but some people are suggesting it was a 16 millimeter movie. And I'm not sure how we were able to put that in that time caps.
[00:12:04] Speaker A: That sounds right.
I read an old Georgetown Times article and it listed some of the things that were in there. I think you guys also had some drawings from third graders At, I want to say, Maryville Elementary. But, yeah, they did say that there's a 16 millimeter reel in there and we don't have anything to play it on, so we're gonna have to Sen. That often, have it digitized.
[00:12:23] Speaker D: Okay.
We worked very good together, all of us in the team.
I think I'm one of maybe three members of that committee that are still alive.
And if you remember, when I said, when I can talk to you, first of all, I said, well, I hope I'm living by then. So.
[00:12:44] Speaker A: And you're still around. I'm so glad to see I'm still
[00:12:46] Speaker D: here 50 years later.
But we worked very well together. And we worked about a year, and we had many of the citizens in Georgetown county and politicians and government officials involved in our planning, and it. It was a wonderful celebration in that particular time, 1976. And so we decided to purchase a capsule and put articles in that capsule that we will look at this year, July 4th.
And different people had different ideas and approaches to doing that. So it'll be interesting to see what's in that.
[00:13:26] Speaker A: That's what I wanted to ask you about. I mean, how do you go about determining what's important enough to go in the time capsule? How did you decide, you know, what would be. What people would want to look at 50 years from now? What would be representative of that time? And 50 years later, do you feel like you made the right choices?
[00:13:43] Speaker D: That's yet to be seen.
Well, different people had ideas and. And we listened to everybody. And so we. We had a smaller committee, which I was a member of, to decide what goes in that capsule. And it's representative of almost every part of our society at that particular time, Government as well as citizens and also business people. And what we were doing at the particular time that we thought would be of interest. 50 now, because you have a real comparison between what Georgetown was then and what it is now. And it's grown a lot, so much in 50 years.
[00:14:25] Speaker A: Yeah. And I'm sure that, you know, we're doing the new time capsule in 50 years from now, we won't recognize it.
So you did photos. We're doing some drone footage to go in.
[00:14:35] Speaker D: Wonderful.
[00:14:36] Speaker A: Yeah. So we didn't have, obviously, 50 years
[00:14:39] Speaker D: ago, and we didn't have cell phones or anything like that.
[00:14:41] Speaker A: Yeah, we talked about putting a cell phone in the new time capsule, but we're afraid that that lithium battery will load. So we would love some suggestions, if you have any, on what should go in the next time capsule.
[00:14:51] Speaker D: It'll Be interesting what takes place in the next 50 years. It really will be. So that's a. That's a big consideration I think we need to make.
[00:15:00] Speaker A: So you mentioned that you think there's two other people who were on the original committee still around?
[00:15:05] Speaker D: I think. Well, Connie Bull was on that committee and I believe Jim Fitch. Okay. On that committee.
And beyond that, I can't remember.
The co chair passed away in 2016. Jim Rolling was with the radio station at that particular time.
And we just had a great group of people to work together and good ideas and suggestions.
And it took us, I think, about a year to put together the plan. And so when I came to you, I said, what is the plan for July 4, 2026?
[00:15:41] Speaker A: And I said, there's a time capsule. I didn't know I'd walked by that plaque so many times.
It is for those of you who have or have not seen it. It is in the hallway outside the treasurer's office. It's a big plaque like this. And I'd always just assumed it was a historical marker. I'd never really stopped to read it. But there's a time capsule back there. So that was the first that I had heard of it. And that's when we first started kind of making plans for it. So I am so glad you called us, or we'd be sitting there on July 3rd going, oh, so well.
[00:16:09] Speaker D: I had files in my file cabinet of all of the original documents.
[00:16:15] Speaker A: And you also have the. The combination for the safe back there. You're carrying it around in your wallet, I think you say. So you've held on to that for 50 years.
[00:16:23] Speaker D: That's right.
[00:16:23] Speaker A: I don't even know where I put my keys this morning.
[00:16:28] Speaker D: But anyhow, I turned those documents over to the museum. Most all of them. They're documented. I signed every sheet of paper. It's in the museum now for the public to see if they ever display those records. But we kept really, really good records of all of our meetings, everybody that was in attendance and what the meeting was about and so on. And it's a historical document. It's a collection of historical documents for a year's work.
And so I saw it as valuable. And they were in my filing cabinet. And I said, what am I going to do with all these, all of these documents? So came to my mind, go see somebody at the county office. I came to you first and then went to the museum and turned those documents over to them. There's photographs in there of people that were participating and all of everything. That we did the decisions we made and how they were made.
[00:17:23] Speaker A: And I've looked at some of them in our newsletter article. I think we included a picture of the photographers who were in there, and I recognized a couple of faces.
[00:17:33] Speaker D: Yes.
Merlin Moore is one of those photographers. And I think he's. I think he's still living and I think he is a member of First Baptist Church.
[00:17:43] Speaker A: I saw Paige Sawyer in there. He works for the county now. He's our Veterans affairs officer. And he's helping us with the new time capsule as well. So he's worked on two of them.
[00:17:51] Speaker D: Wonderful.
[00:17:52] Speaker A: Which he's pretty excited about.
[00:17:53] Speaker D: Yes.
[00:17:54] Speaker A: Quite an accomplishment to work on two time capsules that far apart.
[00:17:57] Speaker D: Yes.
And Paige and I, at that time, at one particular time, were the only two professional photographers in Georgetown. And I think his primary photography was portrait and weddings. And I did some aerial photography as well.
[00:18:13] Speaker A: Oh, I bet that was interesting for the time because like you said, no drones.
[00:18:16] Speaker D: No, that's. That's right. And so we worked together for quite a while. And Paige is good, good person.
[00:18:23] Speaker A: And photography was a different game back then. I mean, you're talking dark rooms.
[00:18:26] Speaker D: That's right.
[00:18:27] Speaker A: Photo fixer and developer and all this stuff. And now it's. Could you have ever imagined you'd have a cell phone that takes pictures in your pocket?
[00:18:35] Speaker D: What you can do in a second or two took me hours to do in the dark room. Yeah. That's amazing. Amazing technology.
[00:18:43] Speaker A: So none of this stuff did we imagine in 1976. And who can imagine what they'll have when we do this again in 2076?
[00:18:50] Speaker D: Right.
[00:18:51] Speaker A: So it's just fascinating to think about.
[00:18:53] Speaker D: Yes.
[00:18:54] Speaker A: But I can't wait to see what is in that time capsule and what you guys thought was important.
And I. I hope that we can find the. The technology to. To play some of it. I think I did read that there's also a lot of radio recordings in that time capsule. And you mentioned Mr. Rolando.
[00:19:10] Speaker D: That's right. He was the voice of the. Of the county.
Jim. And his wife.
Yes.
[00:19:20] Speaker A: Well, I am very excited. I think you're going to join us on July 4th when we open it up. And I know that I spoke with Ms. Bull this morning. She's going to be there on the 4th as well. So I would invite anybody else in the county who would like to come join us. If you don't have anything, we're going to open it at 9:30am on July 4 and the county council chambers, and then Julie Warren, who is our archivist at the library.
She is going to put it all together into a display that will be at the libraries and I think we're going to try and move it to each of our five library branches. And she's actually going to do a presentation on July 20 at the library to show everybody what was in the capsule for people who couldn't make it to the opening. And we hope you'll join us for that too and maybe even say a few words.
[00:20:05] Speaker D: Thank you. Thank you very much.
[00:20:07] Speaker A: Anything else you can think of to tell us about the timecast?
[00:20:09] Speaker D: I hope I haven't left anybody's name out that's still living.
[00:20:12] Speaker A: Well, I mean, it's been 50 years. I think you can be forgiven.
[00:20:17] Speaker D: No, thank you for the opportunity today.
[00:20:19] Speaker A: Absolutely. Well, we are really excited about it. We hope that we will see you at the time capsule opening on July 4th. And Steve, thank you so much for sharing your story with us and for your hard work on the time capsule.
[00:20:30] Speaker D: My pleasure, my pleasure. Thank you.
[00:20:35] Speaker B: That's all for this month's First Friday with Georgetown County. Thank you so much for joining us. As always, I'd like to bring you a list of important events to note coming up this month.
Primary elections will be held on Tuesday, June 9. There are several local and statewide offices on the ballot this year. For more information or to view sample ballots, please visit gtcountysc.gov Vote There are several public meetings to be aware of this month. The Planning Commission will meet on Thursday, June 18 at 5:30pm in council chambers.
The following week, County Council will meet on Tuesday, June 23 at 5:30pm Also in council chambers. If you can't make it to County Council or Planning Commission meetings, be sure to watch our
[email protected] gtcountysc District 3 Council Member Bishop Ernie Cooper will hold a community meeting at the Southern Georgetown Library on Wednesday, June 17 at 6pm to discuss issues and concerns in the community.
All are welcome to attend, meet Bishop Cooper, ask questions and share feedback on community needs.
The Board of Elections and Voter Registration will meet on Thursday, June 11 at 10am at the office of Elections and Voter Registration on Hazard Street. A canvas of election Results from the June 9 primary will occur at 10am and will be followed by the Board's regularly scheduled meeting.
In case you missed it, a life size bronze sculpture titled Whispers of My Ancestor, which depicts Harriet Tubman whispering into the ear of a young James A. Boley, her grandnephew, was unveiled at the Georgetown Library on May 28. The sculpture is situated directly in front of the children's area and is touch friendly so kids can explore and draw inspiration from these influential historical figures.
Speaking of the library, as usual, there are tons of great events happening this month at your local library branch.
Check out the library's calendar on our website for a full list of events.
Lastly, as a reminder, county offices, the Landfill and recycling centers will be closed on Friday, June 19 and observance events of Juneteenth and Friday, July 3 in observance of Independence Day. For more events and information, please Visit our website gtcountysc.gov Join us next month for another First Friday with Georgetown County.
