We might lose everything: Bad timing at COVID-19 start may cost Surfside family their home
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Horry County Coronavirus Diaries
The coronavirus has upended life for everyone. Here is a look at the toll the virus’ impacts have had on our neighbors in Horry County. A nurse, a waitress, a pastor, a retiree and a family grappling with job loss all tell their stories.
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March 2020 was supposed to be a happy time for the Koullias household. The family’s patriarch, Nick, started a job at a new restaurant. The kids, David and Costa, enjoyed the classroom and Costa prepared to move to middle school. The family matriarch had just had foot surgery and was hobbled, but that would soon end.
Bad luck, bad timing and coronavirus changed that outlook.
“We might lose our house,” Melissa Koullias said in May. “It looks like we might lose everything we worked so hard to gain — only because of the pandemic.”
In March, though, it was a happy time for the family. Nick started working at a friend’s Surfside Beach restaurant on March 8. At that time, COVID-19 was something that was somewhere else. But, the virus spread, and days later Gov. Henry McMaster barred restaurants from serving customers inside their doors. Take-out wasn’t an option for the new diner and it had to close its door.
The family’s two children were typical boys. Costa, 10, was ruling the coop as a fifth-grader at Lakewood Elementary. He looked forward to his first overnight field trip. David, 7, spent time harassing his brother — the main job of a little brother — playing Minecraft and enjoying the second grade.
Melissa had foot surgery but was still able to work on cakes in her at-home bakery.
The state closed schools and workplaces, and the family adjusted to life at home. Mainly, Nick and Melissa became teachers despite no formal training. They were now responsible for holding school and making sure their elementary school students, both with ADHD, got their work done.
Nick waited to hear if he would receive unemployment, giving the family a steady paycheck. But, there was concern. He hadn’t been at his new job long and quit his old one. The family was on OK financial footing in March, but Melissa worried that a prolonged event would increase their financial strain.
For two months, Melissa Koullias detailed those fears and how the family adjusted to everyone at home. There were times of tears, but also some good that came from being stuck inside. Today, the financial strain is pushing them to the breaking point. They’ve cut out things like Mother’s Day flowers.
The threat of losing their house is real.
“I don’t know what to do. Literally, we’ve cried,” Melissa Koullias said. “We tried to hide our tears for the kids and make it look like hey it’s going to be OK. In all fairness, it’s not.
“I’ve never been one to lie to my children and this is one point I think I need to. They need to know this was home. This is home. But what do we do?”
March 26- It was coronavirus, in the library
Our story: Myrtle Beach and Horry County are shutting down to help slow the spread. Hotels and short-term rentals are turning away customers as the number of positive cases in the county sits at 21.
Melissa Koullias’ story: School is now virtual and Costa and David focus on their tablets. The two kids are old enough to tell mom what would be happening in school at a particular time — “we’d be in special (education) now” — which helps the family maintain a structure to the day.
The switch to virtual classes wasn’t seamless. Only Costa was old enough to bring his tablet home from school, which meant the family had to spend $250 “money I didn’t really have,” Koullias says so David could have one. The family had to buy things like printer paper and ink so they could have physical copies of the assignments to keep their progress organized.
Koullias keeps a watchful eye as the boys get distracted from time to time, but says she gets them to finish their work. She also says she wants to make sure they have enough time for play. David and Costa are boys after all.
The family has busted out the board games, especially Clue, from the shelves by the television and holds game nights.
“For the first time in a long time, we’re playing board games,” Koullias says.
The family can hold game night because Nick is out of work, though that means there isn’t a steady paycheck. No income could soon become a big problem, though right now they are hoping for unemployment payments.
“We’re scared of losing everything we have,” she says.
March 27 - Building a bond
Our story: More closures mean more people are staying home and away from local attractions. South Carolina state parks are the latest to announce the gates are locked.
Melissa Koullias’ story: A card game of Kids vs. Adults led to laughter aplenty during last night’s game night. David and Costa beat Melissa and Nick, and now the parents are paying the price for their poor performance.
“They kind of got to hold it over us for a day,” Koullias annoyingly admits.
There has been a benefit to the entire family being at home, Koullias said. The boys can now spend time with Dad, who would typically be at work during the day. The boys helped clean the backyard and build some things in the garage.
“It’s nice seeing them bond with Daddy,” the prideful matriarch boasts.
March 30 - More school work
Our story: Horry County finds itself increasingly cut off from the world after Spirit Airlines announces it’s suspending flights to and from the Myrtle Beach International Airport. The number of positive COVID-19 cases in the county is now over 30.
Melissa Koullias’ story: Koullias says the stress level is increasing a bit today. Teachers upped the number of assignments that need to be completed in the day going from four to seven.
“It’s taking up more time,” Koullias says.
It is also taking up resources as they have to print more to keep track of what is completed and what still needs to be done.
“We’re doing,” her voice filled with frustration, “We’re doing … just trying to get them accomplished.
Despite the increase in work, Koullias found another benefit to the virtual school. Becoming a teacher overnight allows her to see the boys’ educational progress. It’s no longer seeing a report card every few months, but now she can see how the boys are learning each day.
April 7 - Not all roses and sunshine
Our story: It’s Day 1 of “work or home” for South Carolina as the state is a step-short of a full lockdown. Most businesses are closed and people are confined to their houses for the most part.
Melissa Koullias’ story: “Work or home” isn’t a big shift at the Koullias household, it’s how they’ve lived for the past few weeks.
Trying to have a bit of fun, the parents pranked the kids a week earlier on April Fool’s Day. Melissa and Nick told the boys they were going back to school. In another year, going to school would seem cruel to a 7- and 10-year-old. In 2020, it was a cruel joke.
The boys’ excitement waned as the two realized it was April 1 and legs were being pulled. That meant it was time to go back to tablets in the living room.
A week later, David struggled with not being in his classroom.
“I don’t like mom as the teacher,” Koullias recalls her son exclaiming during one breakdown.
Mom and Dad are trying their best to help with the schoolwork and are using household items to assist. They planted a garden with Nick, which then became a teaching moment about plants.
“It’s just a matter of me figuring out what works best for us,” Koullias says.
It was then Koullias says each moment at home is board games and laughs. There are difficult days trying to wrangle the boys and get everyone to learn.
“Not every day is perfect, not every day is roses and sunshine,” Koullias says with the understatement of the pandemic.
The new month also brought the stress of paying bills. Koullias says the family was doing OK before the outbreak, but with no paychecks they lost their stable footing. The clan had to play catch-up on the water bill, and their internet service provider threatened to cut service without payment.
Some companies offered to delay payments until the outbreak is over, Koullias says, but they will be required to pay the full amount owed when that date comes. The family doesn’t have the money today, let alone having the full amount.
“That’s the aggravating part of all this,” mom says.
April 17 - First time out in weeks
Our story: The Myrtle Beach area reaches double-digit deaths from COVID-19 as its total case count sits at 167. The economic toll of the closures is also starting to be measured as Horry County government and Coastal Carolina University brace for significantly less revenue.
Melissa Koullias’ story: A simple trip to Target bought heaps of joy for Koullias and the kids. It’s the first time they’ve been anywhere in weeks and the execution breaks up the monotony of being stuck inside.
“We want to get out,” Koullias says with Costa and David yelling in the background of the phone conversation.
While it was lighthearted at that second, the past week hasn’t been easy for the family. Their brother-in-law died in Greece and travel restrictions means nobody can visit.
Nick’s mom, who lives next door to the Koullias family, couldn’t go to the funeral. David would have a breakdown days later when he learned he wasn’t going to have a party for his mid-May birthday.
Koullias also had to give up reading social media. Post after post bashed the people sitting at home and collecting unemployment, an implication they are lazy.
Nick hasn’t been accepted for unemployment and the only money coming in is from Koullias’ at-home bakery or Nick doing a side job. Their financial future is murky at the best moments, and downright scary in the others.
“This isn’t fun for us either,” Koullias says.
April 23 - Schools out
Our story: Horry County Schools announces there will be no in-person instruction for the rest of the year and district officials are deciding how they will handle high school graduations.
Melissa Koullias’ story: No more school hits Koullias harder than either of the children, she says, “just hearing it was like, ‘You know, dang, there’s no going back.’”
She quickly turns her thoughts to her oldest son, Costa. While many are focused on high school seniors, she is disappointed her fifth-grader won’t get to experience the royalty treatment at Lakewood Elementary.
That was part of the reason the Koullias’ picked their home. The Koullias clan moved a dozen times in the last decade and this was supposed to be permanent. The Deerfield Plantation house was their forever home and didn’t require the kids to change school.
The family also lost those in-person visits to Socastee Middle as Costa transitions to sixth grade. Like everything else, those are now virtual visits.
(Costa would later say he’s not worried at all about changing schools.)
Koullias also expressed some concerns about the grades the boys receive. While nobody would be mad if either of their children received 100s, Koullias wonders if her fifth- and second-graders receive the marks for completing the work. Or did David and Costa actually learn the material?
May 8 - Financial distress arrives
Our story: Horry County is opening more businesses and easing restrictions imposed during the pandemic. Restaurants can start in-dining service in days, which marks the first time in weeks customers can go inside.
Melissa Koullias’ story: While many are celebrating getting out of the house, Koullias fears she could be forced out of their house. Another first-of-the-month has passed and they still lack a steady income stream.
Nick spends every morning calling the unemployment office, desperate to find out if he qualifies. The process is always the same, call at 7:58 a.m. Transfer to an advanced specialist by 8:30 a.m. Hold. Hold. Transfer. Hold. Hold. Transfer. Click.
The process usually ends with a disconnection and no answers, only to do it again the next day.
Even if Nick could just get rejected for South Carolina unemployment, it would make it possible for the Koulliases to apply for the $600 in assistance from the federal government. Right now, though, they are in limbo.
The uncertainty is taking its toll on the Koullias clan - though Nick would return to work in mid-May. The kids spend more time alone in their rooms. The parents try to hide their emotions, but it’s not easy with the costs mounting.
The pandemic has left the once-financially stable family needing about $6,000 to reach even. The fear is now their forever home might not be.
“I don’t even want to talk about it because this was our dream home.”
This story was originally published June 3, 2020 at 9:31 AM.
