The Walterboro Civitan Club celebrated a milestone on Thursday evening, October 22nd, and the organization recognized its 70th Anniversary in Colleton County.
The evening was called to order with a prayer, the recitation of the Civitan Creed, and the Pledge of Allegiance.
The event was held at the Colleton County Farmers Market with the attendees enjoying a great meal from Shorty’s Smokin’ Butts. The emcee for the evening was club past president Edward Bryant.
Bryant introduced the guest speaker, Civitan Region One Director Bill Tolleson, who gave a history of the International Civitan Club dating to its inception. Director Tolleson also installed the new officers for 2027.
Donald Davis, past club president, current secretary, and oldest living club member, gave a history of the Walterboro Club and all the locations they have met over the years, starting with the “Twinkling Star Restaurant”.
The event included special guests, Mayor James Broaderick and School Superintendent Tripp Aldridge with their spouses. Also in attendance were a number of the club's past presidents.
The night capped off with the presentation of a number of awards, including Civitan of the Year, given to Club President Tom Whitacre; the Distinguished Service Award to Scott Grooms; and the “Person of the Year”, Amanda Heardon, Executive Director of In His Name-Colleton.
The Person of the Year goes to a community member who has made a substantial impact on Colleton County.
With more than 30,000 members worldwide, Civitan International is a global organization dedicated to serving the local communities of its members. Using the structure of building local clubs, Civitan equips its members to address local needs with local solutions.
Civitan is the only service organization dedicated to serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). This long-standing focus began as a local project in Baltimore in the 1940s when Civitan began funding specialized teachers in schools. In 1956, Civitan membership unanimously adopted service to I/DD as the major project focus of the international organization. Today, Civitan supports the Civitan International Research Center in Birmingham, Alabama, where more than 100 researchers work on diseases that impact the lives of 1 in 6 people worldwide.
