The Press and Standard has lost a longtime friend and colleague. Rob Novit, former associate editor and photographer has passed away. During his 30-year career at The Press and Standard starting in 1971, Novit made his mark in Walterboro, filling the paper with his byline and photographs of many notable events in Colleton County history, from the first Rice Festival, to the great snow of 1973, multiple elections, football games, band competitions, and other events too numerous to name. His body of work claimed over 100 awards from the South Carolina Press Association. He became the associate editor of The Press and Standard in 1976.
Novit not only worked in Colleton County, but he also volunteered his time to serve as a coach in youth sports, Chairman of the Red Cross Bloodmobile, and was active on the board for Colleton County Disabilities and Special Needs. Novit loved community theatre and was very active on the stage, stepping out from behind the scenes at the newspaper, to perform in front of a live audience at the Hampton Street Auditorium. Novit left The Press and Standard in 2001, and his last story covered was the Walterboro High School, Wando Football Game. He was always on the sidelines with his camera.
Novit became the education reporter for the Aiken Standard in 2001, a position he would hold until 2016. This gave Novit an opportunity to be a full-time education writer, reporting on the 37 schools in and around Aiken County. In his article from the August 31st, 2001, Press and Standard, Novit stated, “This is something I always wanted to do and is an exiting challenge.” Also, in the article Novit said, “I leave behind three decades of amazing memories and literally thousands of stories, some joyful, some bittersweet, some tragic. During that time, I had a front row seat as Colleton County came kicking and screaming into the 20th Century.”
Robs typewriter is now silent, but the body of work will leave a lasting mark in Colleton County history.
