Someone does not have to be from somewhere to make it their home. This week’s Hometown Heroes highlights Barrett Ulm and what he is doing to make his home of Walterboro the best it can be.
Originally from Georgia, Ulm came to Charleston around the time Hugo hit at the age of 13 almost 14. His father came for work, and he stayed in the Lowcountry. Despite moving Barrett considered it at least a little bit exciting due to the somewhat lax driving restrictions, i.e.: almost none, for a 15-year-old in the State of South Carolina. So, bonus. He grew up on the Isle of Palms and attended and graduated from Wando High School.
After high school Ulm went straight into the military. His originally enlisted in the Air Force, but also served in the Marine Corp. Ulm served as a security police officer while in the Air Force and at one point he was stationed in Alaska. His only comment about being stationed in Alaska was, “it’s really cold there”, so apparently the rumors are true about that.
The transition from Air Force to Marine Corp came through a program. Ulm explains that “no matter of the uniform you wear, if you’re needed somewhere different, the branches work together.” While the move from Air Force to Marine Corp seldom occurs, it did for Ulm, and he is very proud to be a part of both of these branches of the military. Barrett did spend time serving overseas. He has been to Bahrain and the Prince Sultan region. His overseas service came during Operation Southern Watch (1992-2003) which took place prior to Operation Iraqi Freedom.
At the end of his four-year enlistment, Ulm decided that was enough. Having seen things that will not ever be forgotten Ulm did not re-enlist and left the military service.
The next step for Barrett when he returned to Charleston after his time in the military was to go to work for his Dad, who is a stucco contractor mostly in the commercial market. After a reminder of what it is to work in the Lowcountry in August with through the roof humidity, Ulm went back to school and got an Associate Degree in International Business from Trident Technical College. While getting his degree he stopped working full time for his dad and worked part time in the restaurant and bartending business. After his degree he went back to work for his Dad and has been doing that work for around 20 years.
Barrett is a family man also. He and his wife Jacinda have been married for three years this April and have been together a total of eight years and he is proud to be a stepfather to two boys. Barrett and Jacinda also have a small menagerie of pets as well. They are currently pet parents to Ginger (Juliana Mini-pig), Sunny (a Miniature Australian Shepherd), Kiki the house cat, Frankie (a Juliana Mini Pig), and a Bombay cat named Butch (Butch was not available for photographs at the time of this interview).
As for how he ended up in Walterboro, it is one of those times when everything seemed to just kind of fall into place. Bethel United Methodist Church needed some repair work done that other contractors were unwilling to take on. Barrett’s company took on the projects and while he was in Walterboro he began looking around and found he liked the area. After bringing his wife here a few times to look, they decided they had enough of the traffic in Charleston and decided to move and get out while the getting was good. They ultimately found their dream home and moved to Walterboro and made it their home. They love the area and their neighbors and felt like it was where they needed to be.
It is no secret that Walterboro is experiencing problems with crime. The unofficial epicenter of the where a lot of the issues occur is in the area of Walterboro where Ulm lives. He knows first-hand of people who are eating and sleeping on floors in order to escape gunfire and vulnerable residents who are living alone who feel particularly unsafe in the face of the gun violence and violence period Walterboro is seeing. There was a point where Ulm and Jacinda discussed moving, but ultimately Jacinda said God laid it upon her heart that they should stay and help with this problem. That, coupled with Barrett’s character that he could not stand by and do nothing in the sight of the unlawfulness that appeared to be taking over made them stay and Ulm decided to do what he could to help. By default, Ulm has become the unofficial and de facto spokesperson for the group of citizens who share his concern for the Walterboro community. He has appeared before the Walterboro City Council on multiple occasions to bring this issue to the city government. However, he does not just talk about the problems. He tries to offer solutions to assist with the issues. With the help of a Public Safety Committee establish by Walterboro City Council, the community can voice their concerns in a more casual setting with members of City Council and the Walterboro Police Department and Walterboro Fire Department also. It would have been easy for the Ulm’s to wash their hands of it all and move, but they chose to stay, and Barrett has put himself out there to speak out against what is happening in the community and to do what he can to end it.
