Mobile Home Sales in Sumter, SC

SUMTER, S.C. — A producer is trying to tell history through hair by exploring the significance of a beauty shop in Sumter. It started in the 50’s with the goal of empowering Black women.

"This is your grandmother's story. Just tell it. And that changed everything," Dia Clyburn says about the advice she got from a friend. "Because it is. This is her story and I'm really, really glad to tell it."

This opportunity to share about her grandmother's legacy came when Michaela Angela Davis wanted to produce a documentary about her grandmother, Almeta Dizzley Clyburn.

"At Clyburn's you can, you can feel Almeta in the space. There's still old hot combs and beautiful old chairs and so it still has this feeling of history but there's young women and they're still getting their hair pressed," Davis explains. "And it still holds that same community anchor, you know, beauty shops, churches, there are certain places that just really create community and particularly for women, and particularly for Black women, beauty shops are still safe places."

In 1950, Almeta opened a beauty salon.

"She would bring young ladies from the rural areas, — Bishopville, Camden, you know, Kershaw County — have them live with her for a little while she puts them through beauty school, and then she would encourage them to open their own salons, back where they live," Clyburn tells me. "So she allowed her legacy to continue to to grow."

She would also create hair products designed for Black girls and women and give them out to people in her community while fostering a safe space in her salon.

"Beauty shops are places where women, Black women particularly, raised money for the civil rights movement, raised money for colleges, developed skill sets, safe places in the community, and they are still that," Davis says. "Clyburn's is probably the most vibrant example of that."

This weekend, Davis is premiering a short documentary about the shop's legacy.

"It is a precious little gem of not only the story of Sumter, but the story of how women build spaces that build community that create leaders," Davis details.

Loretta Way has been working at the shop for 52 years, starting alongside Almeta. She says the founder would have been proud to see her granddaughter continuing that legacy.

"She talked to me about a lot of things that she wanted to see happen, and those things are happening now. It's happening now because people are knowing what she was trying to accomplish," Way smiles. "And it makes me feel good because I was a part of it."

That documentary will be premiered at Morris College on Saturday at 11 a.m. Then at the Sumter Resource Center on Sunday. Along with AARP, Davis will host the screening of "Something about Sumter: Almeta's Story."

"This is Women's History Month but let's be clear, women keep families together, keep communities together, keep the country together," Davis laughs about the larger message behind the short documentary. "And so this is just a real celebration and an illumination of that."

And while that history is being highlighted, Dia Clyburn says she's working everyday to keep her grandmother's legacy alive.

"We try our best to encourage the young ladies who come in here, young or old. You know, we're we love our college students," Clyburn shares. "We encourage everyone to you know, learn a trade and to go to college and to you know, just be superior at who you are, you know, as a young Black woman."

Part of Almeta's purpose, Way says, is giving back to the community. It's a trait the beauty shop still tries to continue.

"[Almeta] taught us to reach out to other people in that same manner. You see someone that needs something that may not be able to afford it," Way says. "So she instilled in us to reach out and help someone else. And you know, make them feel good about themselves."

Liberty STEAM Charter School is requesting to purchase FJ DeLaine, a Wedgefield elementary school that closed in 2018.

SUMTER, S.C. — A charter school is looking to expand in Sumter County, but some residents aren’t happy about the existing building it wants to use.

"I started school here in 1954," Sumter resident Roland Robinson remembers. "First grade."

Robinson attended F.J. DeLaine for elementary school. He says it’s been a staple in the Wedgefield community for decades, but that might change soon.

Liberty STEAM Charter school hopes to buy the property to serve more students and parents like Robin Thames and Chelsea Bowley, whose kids attend the current campus.

"It seems like their big vision is eventually to have campuses all over Sumter since there's not transportation for a charter school and that way they can service more kids in more localized areas," Thames explains.

"I know there’s tons of parents that are interested in Liberty and there’s a waitlist a mile long and I know that they would be all for Liberty growing and their children having the same opportunity my children do," Bowley adds. "Expanding in Sumter I think would be a great opportunity not only for the children in Sumter and the educational needs that are here, but also just for in the future just for Sumter in general, like for the growth of Sumter."

Liberty sent a proposal to the Sumter School District saying it wants to purchase the property located on Cane Savannah Road off Broad Street. County Councilman Carlton Washington believes this is not the right fit.

"There's a very rich and deep history associated with people in this community and specifically Black children who could not get a quality education," Washington explains.

It was originally a Rosenwald school, which aimed to provide education to Black children during segregation. It’s a history that Wedgefield residents, like local pastor Dorothy Maple, want to keep alive by keeping the building for the community.

"This is the heart and the hub of Wedgefield. Right here. It’s been here. It’s been built by people that are still living here," Maple shares. "And there's so much of a need right here in this community that is not being fulfilled."

Instead of giving the property to Liberty, they’d like a portion of it to be turned into a community center. President of the Sumter County branch of the NAACP Elizabeth Kilgore says while a charter school offers educational benefits, she would prefer that education be directed to kids in this community.

"With a public charter school, the students here may or may not be served," Kilgore believes. "But with Sumter School District, they will be served."

"It’s a part of our community," Robinson continues. "It's a legacy for us in this community, that the school remain here and if it takes it away I know the building won’t move, but the name will change."

According to Thames, that might not be the case. She says her children began attending Liberty when its first campus opened in a different old school building.

"When they first started, they didn’t have a name for the school and one of the ways they encompassed the old school that was there is they had us vote and they pulled in the old school...and they encompassed it into the new name of Liberty STEAM Charter," Thames explains. "And then on top of that they have had people that attended that elementary school way back in the day come and speak to the kids to kind of put a face to the children that ran down those hallways so many years ago."

Regardless, it goes beyond a name change, Washington says.

Another main point is a lack of transparency between the charter school and Sumter School District, according to Washington.

"[Community members] feel disrespected. It appears that there have been legislative maneuvers…about how to acquire the property without having one conversation with the community directly, without having one conversation with the other elected officials that represent this community," Washington tells me.

The charter school and Sumter School Board are unable to comment because lawyers are involved.

In documents obtained by News 19 between the legal representatives for the district and Liberty, the charter school has requested to purchase the building under a proviso that would make it eligible for sale if a school building is unused.

The district responded saying the building is still in use as a training center and storage location for the sheriff’s department and the school district. It also says it’s in the district’s capital improvement plans for future use.

The district says it’s continuing to evaluate its options regarding what that future usage will look like.

"We've discovered the school board itself has the authority to sell the school if it chooses to, but not by force of any proviso or any other state law that would require the school district to sell the school," Washington explains. "There's just so many other purposes that the school could be used for it could be used. As an IT hub. It can be used as a transportation hub. It could be used for food service, it could be used for adult ed. Just a number of things that it could be used for, in addition to sharing a portion of the property with the community."

SUMTER, S.C. — Writing a book is no easy feat, but for one third-grader in Sumter, it was a way to share his passion for the military with his family and friends.

At just 8 years old, Lane Russell can call himself a published author.

It all started with a trip to the USS Yorktown near Charleston.

"They were like one of my favorite ships so I was like, 'Wow, it was big!" Russell exclaimed. "I just couldn't say a word."

His grandparents surprised him with the trip and took a lot of pictures while they were there.

"My grandma said, 'Hey, you want to make a book?' and I said, 'Yes, please," he explained.

His grandmother Marialaina Davis says she gave him a tape recorder and then transcribed what he said. She said at first, the idea was to make a journal.

"I think just looking at the pictures, the pictures were just so beautiful," Davis shared. "And I said, 'You got to put this in a book.' And then when he got the recorder and went picture by picture, noting everything that he did and everything he remembered, I had to have a book."

"I was amazed!" Russell remembers. "The first time I saw it, it wasn’t really the book. It was just like little papers. So I read it whole and I was like ‘This is actually pretty good."

Now that book is sold on Amazon and is in his school’s library. He’s even getting ready for book signings to show it off.

"I’ve sold my book like a lot of times. People have been like buying it every day," Russell told me. "It feels amazing. I'm just glad that people like it."

And Russell’s grandma, who is calls GaGa, is beaming with pride.

"Yeah, you don't see that much patriotism in a little guy, especially his age, eight years old," she smiled.

Russell says that while he hasn’t seen any money in royalties yet, he plans to donate it all to charity.

The knife was found and confiscated before he had the chance to directly threaten any students or teachers, officials said.

SUMTER, S.C. — Authorities are clarifying earlier details and sharing new ones regarding a Sumter County 7-year-old who is accused of bringing a knife to school with the intent of stabbing other students and teachers.

The Sumter County Sheriff's Office said that they now believe the Cherryvale Elementary School student never directly threatened any student or teacher with the 7-inch knife he brought with him. Instead, authorities say a teacher noticed the knife as he opened his backpack. The sheriff's office added that the teacher then contacted the school resource officer who then confiscated the knife.

It was during an interview with the school resource officer and a principal that the student announced that he intended to stab the teacher and students - particularly a child who had been "picking" on him.

The sheriff's office also detailed the future legal process for the child since he is too young to be charged criminally. The office said a child under the age of 11, also can't be detained by law enforcement without an order from a family court.

"The Sheriff's Office does not impose or enforce discipline of children and questions about any disciplinary actions should be addressed to the Sumter School District," the sheriff's office said in its statement.

The sheriff's office is investigating, however, if there was any negligence in the child getting the knife in the first place. In this case, the child's parents could face charges.

The incident will also be referred to the S.C. Department of Social Services after the sheriff's office investigation ends.

“We will do everything within our power to protect our children from harm," Sheriff Anthony Dennis said in a statement. "At the same time, we support school and DSS officials as they work to balance discipline and compassion with all children."

So far in the investigation, the sheriff's office has said it hasn't received any information about "warning signs" regarding the child that were noticed by faculty or staff that would have prompted action.

GREENVILLE - South Carolina certainly has front-line, championship talent with All-American Aliyah Boston and top scorer Zia Cooke. And they're backed by a bench that's second-to-none in the women's game.

"It's not just the starting five that can make things happen," Cooke said.

The Gamecocks' reserves lead the nation in bench points at 36.6 per game. Kamilla Cardoso, the 6-foot-7 SEC sixth woman of the year, is third on the team in scoring with an average of 9.7 points without starting once.

Laeticia Amihere, part of the heralded recruiting class four years ago with starters Boston, Cooke and Brea Beal, is fourth in scoring at 7.3 points in 16.3 minutes per game - also without a start.

Reserve point guard Raven Johnson leads with 116 assists and 37 steals in limited action.

"It's always like, 'Oh, we're coming off the bench,'" Gamecocks sophomore Bree Hall said. "No, that's not how we think. We go out there, and we think, 'Let's go out there and go hard and bring whatever we can to the table.'"

The Gamecocks (34-0) continue their chase of an undefeated season and second straight national championship at the Greenville 1 Regional, about 90 minutes from campus. South Carolina, which has won 40 straight games, takes on fourth-seeded UCLA (27-9) on Saturday.

Second-seeded Maryland (27-6) faces No. 3 seed Notre Dame (27-5) in the other regional semifinal contest. The winners play Monday night for a trip to the Final Four in Dallas.

Much of this four-team pod relies on its benches.

UCLA is 37th nationally with its reserves scoring 23.5 points per game. Maryland is 46th in the country at 22.9 points from its bench players, and Notre Dame is 112th at 19.5 points from backups.

UCLA coach Cori Close said championship programs are built on the loyalty and sacrifice of talented players accepting a lesser role.

"Credit to the commitment of those kids that would be starting and getting lots of minutes on a lot of other rosters," she said.

The Gamecocks roster features nine McDonald's All-Americans, six who come off the bench. The talent-rich team leads the nation with 30.6-point margin of victory this season.

Boston has averaged 25 minutes a game this season, fewer than the past two seasons. Having skilled backups has given her more rest time and left her fresher for finishes, if necessary.

"They come in and they dominate, which is really good," she said.

HANDLING ADVERSITY

Notre Dame is moving forward despite losing do-it-all guard Olivia Miles to a season-ending knee injury during the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament this month. Her injury followed a similar one by another Fighting Irish starter Dara Mabrey in January, costing the team its starting backcourt.

Still, the Irish are back in the Sweet 16 and looking for more, even without those two players, who combined to average 24 points and 10 rebounds.

Irish coach Niele Ivey asked her players for 10% more when Mabrey was hurt, then upped that another 10 percent after Miles went out. Her players, she said, complied and didn't give up on a special season.

"Everyone stepped up and it's kind of become our identity - our resilience and toughness," Ivey said.

RE-MATCH REGION

No one needs an introduction at the Greenville 1 Regional.

Both semifinals are rematches of games from earlier this season. Maryland and Notre Dame played on Dec. 1, the Terrapins pulling out a 74-72 victory in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

UCLA threw a scare into South Carolina, holding at 10-point lead before the Gamecocks rallied to win 73-64 on Nov. 29.

Having scouted your Sweet 16 opponent before is helpful, Ivey said, as long as you don't rely on the past too heavily because teams evolve throughout the season.

"March catches everyone by surprise," Maryland guard Shyanne Sellers said. "Now, you're trying to figure out how to scout people again. I think it's good we've played them. We've got a good feel for who they are and what they can do as players."