Mobile Home Sales in Blythewood, SC

BLYTHEWOOD, S.C.(WACH) — In 1892, the Bethel Baptist Church was a focal point for black members to congregate in Blythewood. Years later, the church donated 30 acres of land to build a school for the youth. In 1936, Benedict College graduate, Annie E. Hanberry, came to Blythewood.

"(She was a) Strong disciplinarian, great with leadership, and just a wonderful person," said Theodore Manning, a student of Mrs. Hanberry.

Hanberry was forced out of the Columbia teaching community, because the fact that she was married, the city didn't allow it.

Hanberry took a teaching job in a two-bedroom school in Blythewood with one other teacher, but was determined to overcome obstacles and she taught her students the same.

"She taught us that we were entitled to what the united states constitution said. That we had life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. (and) She made sure that she knew, that we knew, that it was part of us," Said Rody Egister, former student.

For years, Hanberry taught and fought for equality during segregation. She ensured her students received the same benefits as white schools.

"Whatever she did, that the other schools in the district had, she would make sure she would go to doctor wright and ask for the same equipment, or same things, so it would be equal," said Cecily Baxley Johnson, Hanberry's former secretary.

When Hanberry was named principal of Bethel elementary and high school, she became the first African-American woman to hold that position in South Carolina. She was also the only woman in the Palmetto Education Association, and felt it was her duty to give equal education and sports equipment to her students.

"She stood there in front of us and told us, you guys are going to have the very best equipment available because she cared so much about us," said James Woods, former student.

Hanberry's push for equality poured into discipline, as her standard of education was equaled in respect.

"She enforced it with a strap if things were not the way they were supposed to have been. I think I might have gotten it one time. That was enough for me back then, to get it there and then get it back home," said Manning.

Hanberry worked to ensure Bethel High School was one of the first to be accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SWCS). In 1956, the Bethel School was renamed Annie E Hanberry High School.

After many school re-alignments, the high school eventually became Blythewood High School, and Bethel Elementary School was re-named Bethel-Hanberry Elementary School.

In 1972, Hanberry retired after 50 years of teaching, 35 of them in Richland District Two.

She later became the first recipient of the Alex English Humanitarian Award and was inducted into the Richland District Two Order of the Flame.

"Black History Month, or whatever you want to call it, every day is Black History Month, we make history every day," said Larry Griffin, former student.

BLYTHEWOOD – Blythewood’s counterclaims in an ongoing FOIA lawsuit should be stricken because the town’s allegations do not relate to the S.C. Freedom of Information Act, according to a recent court filing.

Attorneys for MPA Strategies, LLC, which the town previously contracted with to perform marketing services, filed the motion Feb. 7.

MPA sued the town in 2021, asserting violations of FOIA. Blythewood countersued, adding Ashley Hunter, CEO of MPA Strategies, and State and Frink Foundation as counter-defendants, according to court records.

MPA Strategies wants a judge to dismiss Hunter and State and Frink from the litigation, stating it was “inappropriate” to include them.

“The third parties brought into this case are not necessary parties for deciding the FOIA claim,” the motion states. “Therefore, the counterclaims and the addition of third parties are procedurally inappropriate.”

The motion goes on to say that if a judge allows the counterclaims, then the town’s request for a jury trial should be stricken.

MPA Strategies sued the town, asserting non-responsiveness to a FOIA request that sought disclosure of, among other things, certain documents and recordings from Mayor Bryan Franklin related to MPA, Ashley Hunter and State and Frink Foundation, MPA’s nonprofit entity.

The town missed a May 24 deadline to provide the records, which still hadn’t been provided when MPA filed suit on June 28, court records state.

MPA attorneys state in their motion that the original FOIA lawsuit did not request a jury trial, which is why the court should reject the town’s jury trial request.

“This FOIA action was filed explicitly without a jury demand as an action for only equitable relief,” the motion states. “The Defendants, by asserting permissive claims in a non-jury action, waive their right to seek a jury trial.”

Blythewood’s answer and counterclaim asserts eight causes of action against the counter-defendants:

The motion and associated FOIA case are separate from a defamation lawsuit Hunter and MPA Strategies recently filed on Jan. 30.

Named as defendants in the suit are Mayor Franklin; the Town of Blythewood; Tonya Page, editor of the Country Chronicle; and Camden Media Company, which previously owned the Country Chronicle.

None of the parties had filed a response as of press time, according to the Richland County Public Index.

Lexington graduate Dustin Curtis has been named the new head football coach at his alma mater. This will be his fourth head coaching stop.

LEXINGTON, S.C. — Dustin Curtis will return to the Midlands to take over the program at his alma mater.

Curtis has been named the new head football coach at Lexington High School, his hiring was approved Tuesday evening by the Lexington One school board. Curtis will also serve as the school's athletics director.

He is scheduled to be on campus Wednesday for a 2:00 p.m. news conference where he will no doubt be asked about his returning home to Lexington but also his exit from Dorman.

Curtis spent one season in charge of the 5A program in Spartanburg County where he followed the legendary Dave Gutshall.

Before going to Dorman, Curtis spent three seasons as the head coach at A.C. Flora where he won the 2020 4A state championship. That was quite the accomplishment as it represented the Falcons' first state title in football and the first Columbia-based school to win a state title in football since 1970 when Hall of Fame head coach Mooney Player led Lower Richland to a title.

Curtis' first head coaching job was at Westwood where he spent three seasons in charge of the Redhawks program. At the time, Curtis was more than ready for that challenge after nearly a decade as an assistant at Spring Valley and A.C. Flora.

Now, Curtis returns to Lexington where he replaces Perry Woolbright who left to take over the program at Clover High School.

“Aside from his impressive coaching record, Coach Curtis has a personal connection and commitment to Lexington High School, and he understands and shares the pride our community takes in our school. He was the perfect fit for our school culture and our athletic program. We are excited to welcome him and his family home," Lexington principal Ryan Pool said in a statement.

Curtis was a member of Lexington's 2000 football team which finished runner-up in the state to Dorman. In that contest, Lexington led 24-0 with eight minutes remaining in the third quarter, only to see the Cavaliers reel off 31 unanswered points to claim the state title.

Curtis' hire means there is still one 5A opening after Blythewood parted ways with head coach Jason Seidel on Tuesday.

BLYTHEWOOD – Sandy Level Baptist Church member and attorney Jamie Walters appeared before the Town’s Board of Architectural Review (BAR) for the third time last week to request a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) that would allow the church to replace the existing aging vinyl siding and windows with similar vinyl siding and windows on both the historic sanctuary and the newer classroom addition.

The almost 170 year old sanctuary of the church has a historical designation in the town, and the BAR had twice previously deferred the request as they tried to convince Walters to bring the sanctuary back to its original state by painting it instead of replacing the vinyl siding which was not original to the sanctuary.

Walters argued that if the sanctuary is painted, it would have to be repainted about ever six or seven years, something he says the church cannot afford.

On Monday night after almost three hours of back and forth discussion between Walters and the board, with an expert opinion from former head of Preservation South Carolina, Mike Bedenbaugh, the board granted a complex COA approval under the financial hardship section of the Town’s historic preservation ordinance.

While the BAR voted to allow the church to replace the windows and siding with materials that do not meet the historic ordinance’s standards, board members worked with Walters to come up with specifications whereby the building would retain, as nearly as possible, its historical look.

“We’re happy to be able to move forward and get this project behind us in a way that will help preserve the building and that we can afford,” Walters said.

“Our responsibility is to enforce the ordinance,” BAR member Jim McLean said. “We tried to meet the church half way, but we wanted to maintain the church’s historical value. Sandy Level and the town hall are the original buildings in Blythewood and were built in the same year, 1865, probably by the same builder. They are of extreme significance to the town as well as to the county and even the state.”

McLean said Sandy Level predates Abraham Lincoln and is almost exactly as it was when it was built.

“It’s an essential part of the town’s history,” he said.

“The struggle in approving this particular COA was the conflict between the board trying to preserve the historical features of the church versus the congregation’s desire to protect themselves from a financial burden,” McLean said. “Unfortunately, I also believe the church had cost numbers that were not accurate…but in the end that became a difficult argument.

“The building is almost 170 years old,” he said. “It’s a historical gem that we want to protect.”

The board voted unanimously to approve the COA with special conditions.

Tennessee is hoping to have two of their top wing players back for this Tuesday’s penultimate regular season game against Arkansas in Knoxville.

During an availability with the media on Monday afternoon, head coach Rick Barnes said that the team will make a decision on both Tyreke Key and Julian Phillips before the game.

“I think they’ll be game-time decisions,” Barnes said.

Tyreke Key was a surprising scratch during Saturday’s game against South Carolina. Just a handful of minutes before tip-off, word came down that Key would be missing the game due to an ankle injury. Barnes provided a little more context on the injury Monday.

“You know what, he’s had some issues from the past,” Barnes said. “Tyreke is a very tough-minded person. He’s a guy that if he’s hurt, he pretty much keeps it to himself. And he would tell you he has no idea what made it swell up on him the way it did when he walked in here on Saturday. But he is doing everything. And obviously, Chad (Newman) and Garrett (Medenwald) are doing everything they can from their part.”

More from RTI: Everything Rick Barnes Said Before Tennessee Faces Arkansas

Key is averaging 8.1 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in the 27 games that he has played during the 2022-2023 basketball season. The 6-foot-2 senior from Celina, TN has three double-digit scoring games in SEC play this season, dropping 10 points on the road at LSU, 14 points in a buzzer-beating loss at Vanderbilt, and 23 in a buzzer-beating loss to Missouri at home just a few days later.

Julian Phillips, on the other hand, is also working his way back from injury. Phillips suffered a hip flexor injury during the first half of the Vols’ game against Missouri on Feb. 11 in Knoxville. The talented freshman has missed the last four games for Tennessee because of that injury.

Phillips, a 6-foot-8 freshman from Blythewood, South Carolina, is averaging 9.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game in 25 games played this season.

The good news on the injury front, though, is that Tennessee veteran guard/forward Josiah-Jordan James made his return to the court on Saturday night against the Gamecocks. James also missed four games due to injury after he sprained his ankle against Vanderbilt in an early February game in the mid-state. James returned on Saturday night and finished the game as Tennessee’s leading scorer with 18 points.

While James has had a little bit of an up-and-down season at times, largely due to the injuries that he has battled, Tennessee’s reliance on Josiah-Jordan James was easy to see in his absence. James has such a big impact on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball that it was critical to get him back on the court as soon as possible.

Tennessee will reevaluate Julian Phillips and Tyreke Key before Tuesday night’s game against Arkansas in Knoxville. That game will tip-off at 9:00 p.m. ET from Thompson-Boling Arena. ESPN2 will have the broadcast.