Commercial Roof Repair in Cottageville, SC

Cottageville residents have seen change in their community in the last few years, and now the Greater Cottageville Chamber of Commerce is ready to encourage more improvements.

Frank Santorella, a resident of Cottageville, said he is proud of the small town and wants to showcase its beauty, friendly people, and excellent location.

“We want to create a chamber of commerce here. We already have a 501-3C non-profit status, Maryann Blake is serving as our attorney, and we are ready to roll,” said Santorella. “We have ‘Friends of the Park’ which is comprised of people who helped develop the park into what it is now.” He says there are also plans at the park to install a memorial with engraved bricks to honor veterans. This will be accomplished by applying for grants and accepting donations.

Santorella, who plans to initiate the chamber, will serve as a temporary director. He says he already has seven merchants who are interested in joining.

“We want to make Cottageville a destination. Red Brick Pizza and Beer Garden is the anchor store for starting the chamber,” said Santorella. “It’s a one-of-a-kind business in the entire region. Once the chamber officially opens, we want to pick a member of the chamber and promote that business each week, and once a month promote everyone. There will be a rotation, and this will be good for everybody.”

He went on to say that the brick-and-mortar stores are the life of Cottageville, not the transient businesses. He feels that transient businesses will not want to invest their funds in the chamber, but the stationary businesses are here to stay.

“I think the people of Cottageville will be positively affected by the chamber and will accept it with open arms. Hopefully, this will bring even more businesses our way. Our only option now is to travel to Summerville or Walterboro to purchase some items. That’s between 15 to 20 miles away. Cottageville has a lot of people in the rural areas, and though our local gas stations try hard to serve the needs of the community, it would be nice to have boutique shops here. We already have a new vape store that has a coffee bar. So we are starting off well,” said Santorella.

He is hoping to have the new chamber up and running by the end of the first quarter of 2022.

“There will be a fee for stores to become part of the chamber,” said Santorella, who gathered ideas and patterned the Cottageville chamber after the City of Walteboro’s. “I received ideas on how to structure the fees. They won’t be impressive because social media provides a lot of free advertising. We will have a website and newsletter for the community. We will be out there,” he added.

Anyone interested in joining the new chamber can write to: Greater Cottageville Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 464, Cottageville, SC, 29435. Businesses can also contact Santorella on Facebook at Friends of the Park or call The Vape Stop at 843-701-4262.

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WALTERBORO, S.C. (WCSC) - Some Colleton County elementary schoolers will have to be at the bus stop as early as 6 a.m. starting this school year, and parents are not happy.

The district just announced its new bell schedule within a month of the first day of school, and it is already receiving backlash, especially on Facebook.

The schools affected by the new bell schedule are listed below:

7:00 a.m. - 1:45 p.m.

- Bells Elementary School

- Cottageville Elementary School

- Hendersonville Elementary School

8:00 a.m. - 2:45 p.m.

- Northside Elementary School

- Forest Hills Elementary School

- Black Street Early Childhood Center

8:45 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

- Colleton County Middle School

9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

- Colleton County High School

Most parents say they do not want their elementary schoolers starting so early and their high schoolers ending so late.

Kevin Canaday, a father of three kids in Colleton County School District, says this is causing issues for parents who rely on childcare services after school. He says it is creating 11–12-hour days for elementary schoolers.

“Elementary schools K-4, K-5, first graders, who are getting their foundations of education and having them start this early in the day, so they’re getting out of school if I remember correctly is 1:45,” Canaday said. “So, by the time they get home, there’s really not going to be anyone there to help them with homework or anything like that because they’re getting home so early.”

William Bowman Jr., the chairperson for Colleton County Schools, says this change came from a shortage of bus drivers. He says the district should have 65 drivers, but they are short 15 for this school year.

He says Dr. Vallerie Cave, Colleton County Schools’ Superintendent, did not want bus drivers to be making triple or quadruple routes to fill in for the missing drivers. He says if they did this, it would result in kids not arriving at school until 10 or 11:00 in the morning.

“We’re seeing a lot of growth in all of our core subject areas across all of our grade levels,” Bowman Jr. said. “So, we want to continue with that academic progress, and a big part of that continuation is making sure that our students receive the proper instruction. And if students are getting to school at 10 or 11:00 in the morning, they’re missing a huge part of instruction.”

Bowman says he encourages everyone to apply to be a bus driver for Colleton County School District.

There will also be a school board meeting on Tuesday, July 26 at 6 p.m., where the board will explain more of why they made these changes.

The South Carolina Department of Education recently launched the “Step Up SC” campaign, which highlights open bus driver and technician positions across the state.

Copyright 2022 WCSC. All rights reserved.

By Heather Ruppe

This fall, students in all of Colleton County’s public schools will walk into classrooms with a buddy who helps to look out for them. This buddy, or mentor, is also known as a School Resource Officer (SRO).

SRO’s are law enforcement officers employed with the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office. Each officer who chooses to become an SRO does receives special and additional training through the S.C. Criminal Justice Academy. This training allows them to work with children and to be leaders in local schools.

After completing this additional training, each SRO in Colleton County is then assigned to a certain school. There, these officers work with their schools’ administration, helping teachers and school leaders to influence students in a positive way.

“These officers ensure the safety and well-being of our students and staff within our schools,” said Colleton County Sheriff Buddy Hill. “They play a critical role in our community’s safety and in the education of our students. We look forward to all that our officers will do this year to help our students and our communities thrive.”

School Resource Officers are trained by the sheriff’s office and are funded jointly, through the efforts of the sheriff’s office and the Colleton County School District.

This year, each school in Colleton County will have assigned SRO’s. Colleton County High School has two of these officers. This is because of the number of students who attend the school.

Colleton County School District Superintendent Dr. Vallerie Cave said she sets safety as a priority. “Through the support of the SRO partnership our students and families can be assured we put safety and well-being first. We appreciate the support of the Sheriff’s Department and look forward to a great school year,” she said.

These School Resource Officer assignments are:

Colleton County High School: Deputy Robin “Caroline” Chaplin and Deputy L. Cummings

Colleton County Middle School: Deputy Kyle Breland and Deputy Daniel Lopez

Hendersonville Elementary School: Cpl. Stencil White

Bells Elementary School: Cpl. Jimmy Wiggins

Cottageville Elementary School: Deputy Heidi Coleman

Northside Elementary School: Sgt. Shannon Thomason

Forest Hills Elementary School: Lt. Ricky Valentine

Black Street Elementary School: Cpl. Chad Cummings

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...PRECIPITATION REPORTS...Location                     Amount                          Wadmalaw Island 4.1 NE       9.84 in                         Kiawah Island 1.0 SW         9.17 in                         Johns Island 3.3 WNW         8.78 in                         Isle Of Palms 0.1 E          8.72 in                         Hollywood 4.3 SE             8.51 in                         Mount Pleasant 7.5 NE        8.18 in                         Summerville                  7.88 in                         Mount Pleasant 8.2 NE        7.79 in                         Wadmalaw Island 2.3 SSW      7.63 in                         Mount Pleasant 0.4 E         7.49 in                         1 SE Edisto Island           7.34 in                         WADMALAW ISLAND              6.98 in                         Charleston 4.1 NW            6.98 in                         Charleston                   6.93 in                         Edisto Island 3.6 E          6.79 in                         Charleston 5.0 WNW           6.77 in                         Charleston 2.5 NNW           6.68 in                         Charleston 1.6 SSW           6.53 in                         Charleston 4.0 NW            6.44 in                         North Charleston 4.0 SSE     6.39 in                         Mount Pleasant 7.0 NE        6.22 in                         Charleston 6.1 WNW           6.20 in                         Charleston 4.0 NW            6.14 in                         Mount Pleasant               6.12 in                         Edisto Island 3.6 E          6.12 in                         Mount Pleasant 2.7 S         6.08 in                         1 E Johns Island             6.08 in                         Coffee Bluff                 6.04 in                         Johns Island 1.8 NE          5.97 in                         Savannah 5.9 SSW             5.95 in                         Charleston 3.8 NW            5.94 in                         Mount Pleasant               5.88 in                         Mount Pleasant 1.4 ENE       5.73 in                         Charleston 0.3 ESE           5.71 in                         Charleston 6.4 WNW           5.64 in                         Mount Pleasant 4.1 NE        5.60 in                         Kiawah Island 3.5 W          5.54 in                         Summerville 5.5 NNW          5.50 in                         Charleston                   5.49 in                         Mount Pleasant               5.44 in                         Mount Pleasant 6.4 NE        5.38 in                         Charleston 2.9 W             5.37 in                         Kiawah Island 1.5 NE         5.32 in                         Charleston 4.6 SSE           5.30 in                         Charleston 2.9 NNE           5.07 in                         Mount Pleasant 1.0 WSW       5.03 in                         Grover 4.4 SE                5.02 in                         Charleston                   4.99 in                         Meggett 1.8 W                4.96 in                         NWS Charleston SC            4.84 in                         Edisto Beach 5.4 NNW         4.79 in                         Mount Pleasant 8.1 NE        4.79 in                         Ridgeville 1.3 SSW           4.77 in                         Savannah 1.7 W               4.74 in                         Savannah 3.9 SSW             4.64 in                         Charleston 3.0 N             4.64 in                         Hollywood 2.3 W              4.61 in                         Charleston 5.4 SSE           4.59 in                         Daniel Island 1.0 SE         4.57 in                         Summerville                  4.56 in                         Mount Pleasant 1.7 N         4.44 in                         Mount Pleasant 1.7 NNW       4.35 in                         Snowden                      4.16 in                         Mount Pleasant               4.14 in                         Savannah 3.1 ENE             4.14 in                         Bennetts Point               4.12 in                         Charleston 6.8 NE            4.11 in                         Edisto Island 4.5 NNW        4.09 in                         North Charleston 3.1 ESE     4.09 in                         Beaufort 4.5 NE              4.03 in                         Ravenel                      4.02 in                         Hollywood 5.8 WSW            4.02 in                         Summerville 1.7 SSE          3.99 in                         Ridgeville 3.2 WSW           3.97 in                         North Charleston 3.1 E       3.88 in                         North Charleston 2.6 NW      3.82 in                         Hanahan 1.7 SE               3.81 in                         Daniel Island                3.75 in                         Seabrook Island 0.2 S        3.75 in                         Charleston Intl Airport      3.74 in                         Edisto Island 3.2 NNE        3.68 in                         Charleston 1.7 SE            3.65 in                         Mcclellanville 0.2 ESE       3.64 in                         Summerville 2.6 E            3.62 in                         North Charleston 3.5 ESE     3.56 in                         North Charleston 2.9 WNW     3.52 in                         Beaufort 3.5 N               3.50 in                         McClellanville 0.5 ESE       3.48 in                         SANTEE COAST MCCLELLANVILLE  3.48 in                         Seabrook Island              3.47 in                         Summerville 2.8 W            3.47 in                         Ravenel 2.0 WNW              3.44 in                         Beaufort 5.7 NE              3.40 in                         Summerville 5.0 NNE          3.39 in                         North Charleston 4.4 W       3.38 in                         Montgomery                   3.33 in                         Hanahan 1.1 N                3.32 in                         Edisto Beach 5.1 NNW         3.30 in                         Charleston                   3.29 in                         Charleston 5.2 ESE           3.26 in                         Burnside                     3.25 in                         Summerville                  3.21 in                         Summerville 5.3 SE           3.21 in                         Huger 7.7 S                  3.16 in                         Smoaks 0.1 ESE               3.12 in                         2 NNE Daniel Island          3.11 in                         Summerville 2.1 WSW          3.10 in                         Savannah 2.3 SSW             3.09 in                         Huger 3 ENE                  3.09 in                         St Helena Island 2.8 NE      3.09 in                         Riceboro 11.8 SE             3.08 in                         Blitchton 4 WSW              3.05 in                         Mount Pleasant 2.6 SW        3.05 in                         Mount Pleasant 2.1 SSE       3.04 in                         Huger 7.7S - Bridges at Seve 3.03 in                         Edisto Beach 2.7 N           2.99 in                         Savannah 7.9 SSE             2.98 in                         Summerville 5.7 SSE          2.97 in                         Beaufort MCAS                2.97 in                         Charleston 2.9 W             2.96 in                         Savannah 4.5 SSW             2.95 in                         Rincon 5.3 NNE               2.94 in                         Summerville 1.9 N            2.92 in                         Summerville 3.4 S            2.90 in                         Summerville 0.4 SE           2.90 in                         North Charleston 3.5 N       2.88 in                         Savannah 6.3 WNW             2.85 in                         Edisto Island 1.6 N          2.83 in                         Savannah 9.6 E               2.80 in                         Mount Pleasant 1.3 WSW       2.79 in                         Walterboro 1 SW              2.76 in                         Garden City 1.2 NNE          2.72 in                         Blitchton 4 WSW              2.70 in                         Summerville 4.8 WSW          2.69 in                         Charleston                   2.66 in                         Mount Pleasant 6.1 NNE       2.64 in                         Valona                       2.58 in                         Townsend 5.5 SE              2.56 in                         Summerville 5.8 NE           2.52 in                         Charleston 9.1 NE            2.49 in                         Wadmalaw Island 3.6 ENE      2.48 in                         Charleston                   2.47 in                         Savannah 10.4 E              2.44 in                         Hilton Head Island           2.42 in                         Savannah                     2.42 in                         Fripp Island 0.5 WSW         2.40 in                         Goose Creek 4.6 WNW          2.38 in                         Goose Creek 3.5 NW           2.37 in                         Hunter Army Air Field        2.35 in                         Midville 6.6 ESE             2.30 in                         1 NE Lawton                  2.30 in                         Moncks Corner 4 N            2.30 in                         Summerville 3.3 NE           2.30 in                         Walterboro 7.4 NNE           2.26 in                         Okatie 7.6 NE                2.25 in                         Beaufort 4.2 WSW             2.25 in                         Summerville 1.9 SSW          2.24 in                         Walterboro 3.0 NNW           2.21 in                         Summerville 3.2 WNW          2.18 in                         Hilton Head Island 4.7 NW    2.17 in                         Beaufort 3.6 SW              2.16 in                         Charleston                   2.12 in                         Bluffton 7.0 W               2.11 in                         Glennville 3 NW              2.10 in                         Green Pond 4.6 W             2.07 in                         Mount Pleasant 2.7 S         2.06 in                         Charleston 5.0 WNW           2.06 in                         Cottageville 5.8 WSW         2.04 in                         Summerville 2.0 SW           2.04 in                         Edisto Beach 5.4 NNW         2.03 in                         Burnside                     2.02 in                         Bonneau                      2.01 in                         Bluffton 2.9 ENE             2.01 in                         Newington 0.5 SSE            1.99 in                         Mount Pleasant 8.5 NE        1.97 in                         Rincon 4 SE                  1.96 in                         Summerville 0.2 N            1.96 in                         Parris Island 1.7 N          1.92 in                         Beaufort 1.6 SSW             1.92 in                         Cottageville 3.1 NNW         1.89 in                         Springfield 2.4 E            1.82 in                         Hilton Head Island 5.1 NW    1.80 in                         Moncks Corner 5.1 SSW        1.79 in                         Ravenel 2.0 WNW              1.79 in                         Lepageville                  1.79 in                         Mount Pleasant 1.9 ESE       1.77 in                         Hilton Head                  1.76 in                         Port Wentworth 6 N           1.76 in                         Hilton Head Island 4.7 ENE   1.76 in                         Ellabell 5.0 NNW             1.74 in                         Beaufort 6.5 NNW             1.74 in                         Saint Helena 7.0 E           1.73 in                         Walterboro 3.0 NNW           1.73 in                         Moncks Corner 8.9 S          1.72 in                         Parris Island 1.7 N          1.71 in                         Hilton Head Island 4.0 N     1.70 in                         Summerville 0.1 W            1.70 in                         Oliver 1 SW                  1.69 in                         Midway 12.7 ESE              1.66 in                         Beaufort 3.0 E               1.66 in                         Savannah 8.2 SSE             1.64 in                         Allendale 1.7 SE             1.62 in                         Allendale 1.7 SE             1.62 in                         Marlow 0.0 S                 1.60 in                         Hampton 0.8 SW               1.54 in                         Goose Creek 3.5 NW           1.53 in                         Summerville 4 W              1.51 in                         Kiawah Island 3.1 WSW        1.50 in                         Newington 0.5 SSE            1.49 in                         Charleston 6.6 NW            1.48 in                         Ridgeville 5.7 SSW           1.47 in                         SANTEE COAST MCCLELLANVILLE  1.46 in                         1 E Hilton Head Island       1.45 in                         Pineville 0.3 SSE            1.44 in                         Bluffton 0.7 NNW             1.43 in                         11 SE Raccoon Bluff          1.42 in                         Charleston 5.6 SE            1.42 in                         Folly Beach 4.5 N            1.41 in                         1 ESE Canaan                 1.41 in                         Port Wentworth 1 NE          1.40 in                         Summerville 1.4 SSW          1.40 in                         Millen Airport               1.39 in                         Charleston 5.4 SSE           1.39 in                         Richmond Hill 7.0 ESE        1.38 in                         Mount Pleasant 1.9 N         1.38 in                         Eden                         1.33 in                         Okatie 7.2 ENE               1.33 in                         Burtons Ferry                1.31 in                         Reidsville                   1.31 in                         Hampton 0.3 WSW              1.30 in                         Moncks Corner 0.9 WSW        1.28 in                         Goose Creek                  1.26 in                         Moncks Corner 1.2 NW         1.26 in                         Savannah Intl Airport        1.26 in                         Hampton                      1.25 in                         Summerville                  1.24 in                         Charleston                   1.24 in                         Summerville                  1.22 in                         Kiawah Island 3.1 WSW        1.22 in                         Bluffton                     1.21 in                         Charleston 5.6 SE            1.15 in                         Limehouse                    1.13 in                         Moncks Corner 0.8 ESE        1.13 in                         Midway 3.8 NE                1.12 in                         Guyton 11.1 SE               1.09 in                         Sylvania 0.8 W               1.09 in                         Ludowici                     1.08 in                         Limehouse 4 SW               1.08 in                         MONCKS CORNER                1.08 in                         Hampton 0.2 SW               1.07 in                         Hilton Head Island           1.06 in                         Claxton 0.5 WSW              1.06 in                         Richmond Hill 9 WNW          1.05 in                         Fort Stewart                 1.04 in                         Elba Island                  1.03 in                         Bluffton 1.7 S               1.01 in                         Moncks Corner 1.2 NW         1.00 in                         &&Observations are collected from a variety of sources with varyingequipment and exposures. We thank all volunteer weather observers for their dedication. Not all data listed are considered official.$$

COLLETON COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) - Bond was denied for a Colleton County man accused of making bombs at his home near Cottageville.

Deputies arrested Shuwn Doyle Tuesday night and reported locating explosive devices at his home.

Colleton County deputies arrested Doyle at his home on Carlisle Lane. He was taken into custody after the Charleston County Sheriff’s bomb squad found three handmade explosive devices.

In bond court, an investigator called them “sparkle bombs.”

“Sixteen of those sparkles is the equivalent of a quarter stick of dynamite if you can imagine what a stick of dynamite is,” said Sgt. Ed Marcurella with the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office

An arrest warrant states the investigation began when deputies responded to a home on Carlisle Lane for a verbal dispute. While dispatchers were talking to the caller on the phone the caller reported that there was a bomb on the table inside the home.

An arrest warrant states the caller told emergency operators she believed that there were at least six similar devices inside the home. Authorities said when law enforcement arrived on scene the caller handed them a bag containing two explosive devices.

A search warrant was then executed on the home where investigators say a third explosive device was found by the Charleston Bomb Squad.

Doyle’s family members say he was not making bombs.

“All of this came out of proportion with the bomb situation," said Kimberly Goins, Doyle’s aunt. "It was sparkles that he just wrapped up in electric tape and it went out of control.”

The family says it was a phone call made by Doyle’s younger sister to the sheriff’s office that got the attention of deputies.

“Him and his mother were having an argument and she got scared because she thought there was going to be fighting," Goins said."And she went in the room and called 911 and told them there was a bomb in the house.”

Family members were surprised to see such a show of force.

“My sister comes in and said ‘What are you doing? You see all those lights?’ When I come out I was like wow, and then when the bomb truck come out I was like this is crazy. All taxpayer money for nothing.”said Julie Muckelvaney, Doyle’s aunt.

Investigators say the taped together fireworks are the same as bombs and could seriously hurt or kill someone.

Still Doyle’s family is standing by him.

Doyle is currently on probation for third degree burglary.

If he’s convicted on the three new charges, he could face up to fifteen years in prison.

Copyright 2019 WCSC. All rights reserved.