Self Regional volunteer keeping patients smiling

January 10, 2005

By ST. CLAIRE DONAGHY
Index-Journal staff writers

As she delivers flowers to patients, or stops in to see if they need any books or magazines from the hospital’s library, auxiliary volunteer Linda Rowe is greeted with an enthusiastic “Hey Linda!” everywhere she goes.
Rowe began volunteering at Self Regional Medical Center about two and half years ago, after she began recovering from a traumatic brain injury sustained from a fall at her previous place of employment.
“I cracked my skull and had bleeding in the brain,” Rowe said. “Doctors initially didn’t expect me to live, but I guess God had a different plan.”
Rowe underwent months of therapy. She had to learn to recognize family members again, and to walk again, and to do many routine things that people take for granted.
Her father, Earle Sumerel, helps look after her, and drives her to Self Regional each day she volunteers. “After the accident, Linda was told she probably wouldn’t work again, but volunteering has given her a whole new life, and a new family of sorts,” Sumerel said. “She makes a big difference at the hospital, and everyone down there knows her by her first name.”
When she first began volunteering, Rowe said she was nervous.
“I told myself, ‘I don’t know if I can do it,” she said. “When I first came here, I was still in a wheelchair, but everyone just looked past my limitations and told me I could do it.”
She says many people, including Janet Bishop, Self Regional’s director of volunteer services, and Sandra Williams, Self’s auxiliary coordinator, took her under their wings and told her to tackle tasks at her own pace.
“I’ve helped folks sign in at the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) desk, and made sure they had blankets and hot coffee,” she said. “I’ve also worked at the front desk in the main lobby, and once I started walking a bit, I began delivering flowers, books and magazines.
“When I go in a patient’s room with flowers, they just brighten up, and I always make a point to see if there’s anything else they need, and pass it along to the nurse’s station. I get so many blessings from volunteering. I don’t know why more people don’t volunteer. I feel like a million dollars and I feel there’s nothing I can’t accomplish. From people here, I have learned so much about faith and compassion in their purest forms.”
Bishop says she’s thankful for all Linda brings to the volunteer program.
“She is outgoing and happy,” Bishop said. “She comes in almost every day and looks forward to her interaction with patients, staff and other volunteers. Everyone loves her and her willingness to be helpful and uplifting.”

Making it count

Greenwood grad Brandon Freeman making
most of chance to play Division I basketball

January 10, 2005

By BRIAN HOWARD
Assistant sports editor

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Coming out of Greenwood High School, former Eagles basketball player Brandon Freeman figured he had the talent to play at any Division I school.
But Freeman, who now starts for the University of Arkansas-Little Rock as a guard, said that his road to collegiate success didn’t happen over night.
“Coming out of Greenwood High School, I was just another kid,” Freeman said.
“I had to work hard at my game, and spent my time in the gym and weight room getting better. I wanted to go to a big school, but didn’t have the grades, so I went to a junior college.”
Before attending Chipola Junior College in Marianna, Fla., Freeman was named South Carolina’s Mr. Basketball as a senior.
The same year was also tabbed All-Lakelands, All-Region and the Class AAAA Player of the Year, leading Greenwood to a 28-2 record and a trip to state finals.
But while he had the game, Freeman didn’t have the grades.
Freeman, who is majoring in health sciences, opted to go to a junior college, where he could get his academics in order and still play basketball.
Freeman continued to rack up accomplishments at the junior college level, leading the Panhandle Conference in scoring as a freshman with 17.7 points a game. He was named All-Panhandle Conference, as well as, being voted Florida Community College Athletic Association All-State.
As a sophomore, Freeman averaged 22.5 points and was named first team all-conference. His biggest game came against Florida Gulf Coast Community College, when he poured in 41 points.
But before his sophomore year, Freeman knew where he wanted to go after leaving Chipola.
“I signed early out of junior college,” Freeman said. “I looked at Georgia State and Arkansas-Little Rock. I like Atlanta, but it’s not for me and I felt like Arkansas-Little Rock was the right place for me and there was more to do there. I wanted to go to a place where I could get playing time.”
Freeman got plenty of playing time as a junior, as he helped Arkansas-Little Rock to the Sun Belt Conference East Division title.
Freeman led the Trojans in scoring, averaging 13.5 points a game during non-conference games and while in the Sun Belt, he averaged 16 a game. He had a season-best 30 points in a win over Arkansas State in the opener of the SBC tournament.
Among those accolades, Freeman appeared in 29 games, making 23 starts. He was second on the team with 30.5 minutes per game and shot .412 (126-of-306) from the field.
Freeman is seventh on UALR’s career 3-point field goal list with 63, and is 10th on the career free-throw percentage list at .826.
The type of play that helped the Trojans win the Sun Belt East Division gave Freeman a chance to be named conference player of the week on Jan. 12, 2004.
But those numbers weren’t good enough for Freeman.
“After last season, I wanted to get back into the gym badly,” Freeman said. “I thought we had a good season. Teams keyed on me late in the season with pressure defense, and every time I stepped on the floor, it seemed like they were in my face.”
Freeman has already won player of the week honors once this season, after scoring 37 points in a win over Southern Arkansas Nov. 20, 2004. He scored 22 of UALR’s first 24 points and was 15-of-23 from the field and made six 3-pointers.
“I just go out and play my game,” Freeman said. “I like getting the recognition, but I owe it to my teammates and coaches.”
Freeman followed that performance by scoring 25 points in the Trojans’ loss to Oklahoma State.
Arkansas-Little Rock is 9-4 overall and 1-0 in the Sun Belt. Of the 13 games played, Freeman has been the leading scoring in seven games.
“Brandon is a very good player,” Trojans coach Steve Shields said. “And above that, he’s a good person, the kind of player every coach would want in his program.”
Freeman’s high school coach Jimmy Reed got a chance to see him play once this season, when UALR visited Georgia Tech.
“I’ve talked with him a few times and got a chance to see him play,” Reed said. “Coach (Clarence) Brownlee and myself went to Georgia Tech and saw him play. We are real proud of him.”

Opinion

Legal battle for 75 acres involves a lot of millions

January 10, 2005

There’s not a lot of acreage left along South Carolina’s “Golden Coast” that could be developed. There is, though, a 75-acre pristine tract that has become a legal football. This property is presently part of the 17,000-acre Hobcaw Barony that is owned by the Belle Baruch Foundation. It is a wildlife preserve.
But, three years ago, Lucille Vanderbilt Pate, former owner of DeBordieu, the exclusive gated community on the Waccamaw Neck and contiguous to Hobcaw Barony, sued the Foundation. She claimed ownership of the 75-acre tract and asked the court to change the property line.

AT THE MOMENT, THE OUTCOME of the dispute has not become final. A judge ruled in favor of the Foundation but Pate’s attorneys may take further action.
For the average South Carolinian, 75 acres may not mean all that much. For the very rich, though, it could mean more riches … more big riches. That 75 acres has been valued at hundreds of millions of dollars.
With the way the coastal area has already grown and the number of people that have flocked to its sunny climes and rambling golf courses, it would seem a shame to take any more land away from the state’s wildlife. Of course, there are those who say there’s plenty of space for a different kind of wildlife along the coast, anyway. There is, to be sure, but that’s another story.

Editorial expression in this feature represents our own views.
Opinions are limited to this page.

Obituaries

Lollage W. DeHart

NEWBERRY — Services for Lollage W. DeHart will be at 3 PM Tuesday at St. Paul Lutheran Church of Pomaria. Burial will follow in Newberry Memorial Gardens. Visitation will be Monday evening from 6:30-8:30 PM at the McSwain-Evans Funeral Home. Memorials may be made to the St. Paul Lutheran Church Building Fund, 2496 S.C. High 773, Pomaria, 29126.
Mrs. DeHart, 84, widow of William DeHart, died January 8, 2005. Born in Pomaria, Mrs. DeHart was a daughter of the late George and Alberta Wicker Wicker. She was a homemaker and a life long member of St. Paul Lutheran Church where she was a member of the Ladies Bible Class.
She is survived by daughters; Nancy (Carroll) Clem and Carolyn (Melvin) Mooney both of Greenwood; grandchildren, Pace Clem of Rock Hill, Valerie Bassett and her husband Kevin of Summerville, and Stuart Hawkins and his wife Angie of Greenville; and a great-granddaughter, Marley Ann Bassett.
www.mcswainevans.com
PAID OBITUARY

Lizzie L. Griffin

TRENTON — Lizzie Lue Gilliam Griffin, 75, of Lloyd Road, died Friday, Jan. 7, 2005 at Edgefield County Hospital.
She was a member of the Pleasant Grove Baptist Church where she served as the chief of Usher Board and the Beautification Club. She retired from Edgefield County Hospital as a nursing assistant for over 25 years.
Survivors include two daughters, Mrs. Benjamin (Atlee) Goodwin and Mrs. Christopher (Loretta) Digsby; six sons, Caleb Griffin, Rev. Eldwin Griffin, George Griffin, Raymond Griffin, Otis Griffin and Jasper Griffin; a brother, Ollie Gilliam; 20 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Services are 1 p.m. Tuesday at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, conducted by the Rev. Eldwin Griffin. Burial is in Mount Calvery Baptist Church Cemetery.
The family is at the home of her son, Rev. Eldwin Griffin, 97 Lloyd Road.
Visitation is 6-7 tonight at G.L. Brightharp & Sons Mortuary.
G.L. Brightharp & Son Mortuary, Edgefield, is in charge.

Wayne McKinney Sr.

Wayne E. McKinney Sr., 62, of 818 Bucklevel Road, husband of Samantha Kerr McKinney, died Sunday, Jan. 9, 2005 at his home.
Services will be announced by Blyth Funeral Home.

Thelma Young Robinson

Thelma Young Robinson, 90, of 312 N. Hospital St., widow of Rev. Theodore Roosevelt Robinson, died Sunday, Jan. 9, 2005 at National Healthcare Center in Clinton.
Born in Greenwood County, she was a daughter of the late Tony Young and Marie Butler Young Payne. She was a nurse’s aide, a member of Old Mount Zion Baptist Church, a member of the Order of Eastern Star and a member of the Daughters of Isis.
Survivors include a son, Tony Roosevelt Robinson of Greenwood and a sister, Lalie Mae Smith of Greenwood.
The family is at the home of her sister, and nephew, Ronnie Smith, 316 Greenbriar Drive, Willows Subdivision.
Services will be announced by Robinson & Son Mortuary Inc.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at robson@emeraldis.com

Leola B. Swingler

Services for Leola Bryant Swingler, of 1421 North Carolina Ave., N.E., Washington, D.C., are 1 p.m. Wednesday at Lower Mount Moriah Baptist Church in McCormick County, conducted by the Rev. Otis Cunningham, presiding by the Rev. Melvin Gordon, assisted by the Revs. Ricky Syndab, Willie N. Norman Jr., Joseph R. Caldwell, James E. Speed Sr., Norris Turner and Michael A. Butler. The body will be placed in the church at 12. Burial is in the church cemetery. Pallbearers are Anthony Bryant, Calvin Bryant Jr., Larry Davis, Howard Parker, Rufus Brunson, Fredrick Calhoun, Melvin Calhoun and Theophlius Wayne Parker. Flower bearers are Tina Branson, Carolyn Dreher, Pearline Copper, Vanessa Goodwin, Shirley Spears and Dorothy Moore. The family is at the home of a son, Gonza Bryant, 1318 Lincoln Ave., Greenwood. Robinson & Son Mortuary Inc. is in charge. Online condolences may be sent to the family at robson@emeraldis.com

Ida M. Rollinson Tucker

MOUNT CARMEL — Ida M. Rollinson Tucker, 76, of Fort Charlotte Road, widow of the late William Richard Tucker, died Sunday, Jan. 9, 2005 at Abbeville Memorial Hospital.
Born in McCormick County, she was a daughter of the late Fannie Lou Jordan Rollinson and Austin Brewer Rollinson. She attended Rockford Elementary School and was a member of the Spring Grove Baptist Church and the Women’s Home Aide Society No. 86.
Survivors include two daughters, Margaret Marie Tucker of Hartford, Conn. and Cosetta Tucker of Mount Carmel; three sons, George Richard Tucker of Detroit, Bernard Tucker of Due West and Alfonso Tucker of Calhoun Falls; five sisters, Sallie Mae Lee of Greenville, Fannie Lou Moore of Washington, Ga., Willie Lou Scott of San Antonio, Carolyn Laney of Pontiac, Mich. and Floree Crowder of Colorado Springs, Colo.; a son, Austin Rollinson Jr. of Iva; 17 grandchildren and 23 great-grandchildren.
The family is at the home.
Services will be announced by Abbeville & White Mortuary.

Stephen J. Zagorski

Stephen J. Zagorski, 41, of 2220 Montague Ave. Ext. No. 164, husband of Veronica Hernandez Zagorski, died Saturday, Jan. 8, 2005 at his home.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., he was a son of the late Victor and Ellen McKiernan Zagorski.
Survivors include his wife of the home; two daughters, Erica and Leah Zagorski, both of Long Island, N.Y.; a stepson, Edward Zagorski of the home; three sisters, Maria Hubbard of Florida, Melissa Zagorski of North Carolina, and Lee Paoella of Pa.; two brothers, Chris Zagorski of Florida and Victor Zagoski of New York.
The family is at the home.
Harley Funeral Home is in charge.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.harleyfuneralhome.com