Grand Strand Newsmakers

South Carolina 911 dispatcher of the year from Georgetown County

Dispatcher Leslie Horton says there are no routine calls at the Georgetown County 911 Emergency Communications Center.

“People don’t call us on a good day,” she said. “It’s the worst moment in their lives.” Managed by the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office, the center on Highmarket Street in Georgetown receives requests for police, fire or emergency medical services and dispatches help from nine organizations: the sheriff’s office, police in Georgetown, Andrews and Pawleys Island and fire and EMS units in Georgetown city and county, Andrews, Midway Fire and Rescue, and Murrells Inlet-Garden City Fire and Rescue.

“It’s a high stress job,” Horton said, “not for the faint of heart.”

For her dedication, Horton has been named the South Carolina Emergency Medical Service Telecommunicator of the Year. She was presented the award at the South Carolina EMS Awards Program in Myrtle Beach March 11.

“Leslie is the voice you want to hear on the radio when a bad calls come in,” said Georgetown County Fire Department Battalion Chief Ryan Allen, who nominated her along with Capt. Jerry Howerton of Murrells Inlet-Garden City Fire and Rescue. “She does not sound rattled and gives good clear concise information when she receives it and is an asset on every call. While she may not be one of the people providing aid in the field, it is the aid she is able to give from the radio that can make a good call into a great one.”

Howerton said Horton is very attentive to problems at Murrells Inlet-Garden City Fire and Rescue. “She’s proven time and again to be a great asset and a great liaison,” he said.

Horton’s husband, Bryan, is a firefighter in Horry County and was formerly with Georgetown County and Garden City-Murrells Inlet fire departments. She would stop by the station and cook for the crew. As she formed relationships with firefighters, Horton began riding with sheriff’s deputies to understand their needs from a dispatcher’s point of view. “I feel like it’s better if you know both sides,” she said.

Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office Director of Communications T.L. Staub said Horton and her coworkers are dedicated to providing communications services to the public and public safety providers. “On a daily basis they handle hundreds of calls for service for fire, medical and law enforcement response,” he said. “The award is well deserved and reflects on Horton’s dedication and professionalism in her job performance. It is always a good feeling when agencies initiate recognition for the service you are providing.”

Dispatchers work 12-hour shifts, alternating days and nights every two weeks. Nights can be exciting on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Horton said, but days are non-stop. One call she’ll never forget was the day last April when the county’s central communications director, Robbie Owens, died of a heart attack at age 48. “It was earth-shattering to us,” she said. “There are other tough calls. Any time you take a suicide they hit close to home. You couldn’t do it without the people in the room with you. There are certain calls that hit each one of us differently. My husband was in a motorcycle wreck Sept. 27. Now motorcycle wrecks make my heart skip a beat.”

Horton, a mother of three and resident of Horry County, said dispatchers are a team, able to anticipate emotional peaks and valleys. “They know when to love on the other person,” she said. “We don’t get closure a lot. We hear some of the things where EMS sees it – and that’s got to be awful – but hearing it is just as bad as seeing it, people taking their last breaths. Many times you never know what happened.”

There are instances where a dispatcher plays a part in saving lives. Three people were rescued from a burning house in Georgetown last week. “That was a good save,” Horton said of her co-workers. “One thing about working here, I appreciate the award and I’m very humbled by it but this room doesn’t work with one dispatcher. It works with everybody. I couldn’t do the job I do without the other dispatchers in the room and the people on the other side of the radio.

“There’s no other job I can imagine wanting to do. I enjoy going home and knowing – even on days when you don’t get that save – that you helped someone. The feeling is tremendous.”

Ribbon Winning Quilts Exhibited at the Horry County Museum

The Horry County Museum recently held its 23 rd Annual Quilt Gala on Feb. 24 and 25 at Ocean Lakes Family Campground. This year’s Gala featured over 200 quilted pieces on display and had a record attendance. Categories included large quilts, medium bed and wall quilts, small wall quilts, wearables, and the challenge quilt entries. Each year the challenge quilt category is based on preset restrictions such as colors, fabric, and themes. The challenge this year was themed “Beatlemania”. Quilters were required to choose an iconic Beatles song or album title for their inspiration and create a wall hanging that depicted that title.

Vendors were available for visitor’s sewing and quilting needs, including patterns, fabric, thread, baskets, clothing, wall hangings, aprons, and much more.

The featured quilter this year was Sandra Jacobs. Sandra displayed several of her quilts and gave talks on her experiences and various techniques that she has learned.

The public was invited to vote on their favorite entries. Ribbons were given in each category for third, second and first place. The Best of Show quilt received the most votes overall.

The first place ribbon winners and the ribbon winners in the challenge category will have their items displayed at the Horry County Museum throughout the month of March. All ribbon winners can be seen on the Horry County Museum’s website at www.horrycountymuseum.org.

2017 Winners

Large Quilt — First Place: Gilma Caslin With Love and Friendship; Second Place: Christine Orlando Christine’s Farmers Wife; Third Place: Diane Evatt I’m Really Funkia

Medium Bed Quilt — First Place Jerre Reese Fantasy Fowl; Second Place Mary Harrigan Fishy; Third Place Dick & Marge Bedell Happy Camper

Medium Wall Quilt — First Place Tina Roth Dragonfly Dance; Second Place Jerre Reese Cynthia’s Garden; Third Place Ann Perry Tropical Sunset

Small Wall Quilt — First Place Judy Lilly Enchanted Forest; Second Place Mary Harriman Phantom Cone Flower; Third Place Linda Williams The Flight of the Hummingbird

Wearables — First Place Valerie Thomas Salvage Threads; Second Place Barbara Bergman Winter Warmth; Third Place Janet Whittaker Quilted Jacket

Challenge Quilt— First Place Sandi Schadt The Beatles; Second Place Patricia Sprecher While My Guitar Gently Weeps; Third Place Kathy Stuart Here Comes the Sun

Best of Show — Tina Roth Dragonfly Dance

Carolina Forest Rotary gets new members, says farewell to departing member

The March 22 meeting of the Rotary Club of Carolina Forest Sunrise marked the addition of a new Rotary member and the departure of another.

It was long-time Rotary member Dr. Bob Squatriglia's last meeting before moving to Fort Mill, S.C. He is, however, keeping his membership with the Carolina Forest Sunrise club and will remain an active Rotary member near his new home.

The newest chapter member is Calvin Holmes.

Breakfast meetings of The Rotary Club of Carolina Forest Sunrise are held every Wednesday from 7 to 8 a.m. at Beef O'Brady's in the Carolina Forest shopping center where Krogers is located. Guests are always welcomed.

For more information visit CarolinaForestRotary.org or call (843) 903-1223.

Students to Represent HGTC at 2017 Phi Theta Kappa All-State Academic Team

Horry Georgetown Technical College (HGTC) has selected Ariana Fratto and Heather Jones to represent the college on the 2017 Phi Theta Kappa All-State Academic Team on April 27, in Columbia. The annual awards ceremony will take place at 10:00 a.m. at the South Carolina State Museum.

“We are proud to send Ariana and Heather to represent HGTC at All-State,” said Dr. Melissa Batten, associate vice president for student affairs. “These students were chosen to represent HGTC because of their academic performance and their service to both the college and their local community.”

Heather Jones is an administrative office technology student and full-time employee at HGTC. She says her most significant academic endeavor since attending HGTC was her Honors in Action research project about music therapy and its effects on cancer patients.

Ariana Fratto is a radiology student at HGTC and is also a part-time tutor for the program. She says her most significant academic endeavor since attending HGTC has been her clinical rotations at local hospitals.

Kimberly Medina of Myrtle Beach named UofSC Outstanding Woman of the Year

Kimberly Medina, a University of South Carolina senior from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina who has spent her college years working to improve the lives of Hispanics, was named the university’s Outstanding Woman of the Year 2017.

University officials honored Medina and four finalists during a ceremony Wednesday (March 29). The award is given annually to an undergraduate who demonstrates exemplary academic achievement, service and leadership and who has had a positive impact on the university and to other women.

“I want to thank my parents. This is a testament to the sacrifices they have made along the way,” Medina said. “If any young woman identifies with me, I want her to know that your background doesn’t limit what you’re capable of. On the contrary, it’s what fuels you to succeed in life -- not only for yourself but for your community as well.”

Last fall Medina served as a legal intern with Mil Mujeres Legal Services (translated as 1,000 women), a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., that provides legal services and community education to low-income Hispanic immigrants. Medina, a political science and international studies major in the South Carolina Honors College, was in the nation’s capital as a South Carolina Washington Semester intern. With Mil Mujeres she worked with women who suffered domestic violence at the hands of either a legal permanent resident or a spouse who was a U.S. citizen.

“I see the value of living beyond the shadows. Having legal status opens many doors,” Medina said. “With it comes the opportunity to drive and work legally and most importantly, the opportunity to live without the fear and threat of deportation. For many women gaining legal status is what propels them to leave abusive relationships, seek helps and more forward with their lives.

As a student at Carolina she has served as a leader with the Multicultural Assistance Peer Program, a campus program that helps first-year multicultural students with the transition to college life. She also is a member of Amigos del Buen Samritano, an organization where students serve as interpreters for Hispanic Immigrants at the Good Samaritan Clinic, a free health and dental clinic in Columbia.

“The power of language is immeasurable. When you are an immigrant in a nation whose language you do not know, it is easy to feel like you have lost the ability to speak or to be understood,” said Medina who is native in Spanish and is fluent in Portuguese. “In my time as a volunteer at the Good Samaritan Clinic I’d like to think that I have contributed to an environment where immigrant women feel like they are worthy of quality medical attention no matter their immigrant status or English-speaking ability.”

Medina is a member of Phi Alpha Delta law fraternity, Sigma Iota Rho honor society for International relations and Pi Sigma Alpha national political science honor society. With a GPA of 3.89, she has been named to the president’s list for five semesters and has earned the university’s Outstanding Achievement and Student Triumph Award and the Excellence in Undergraduate Studies Award.

Medina was selected as Outstanding Woman of the Year from a field of 30 candidates. The selection process includes the review of resumes and essays and interviews with the five finalists.

This year’s finalists included Cynthia Beavin, a senior from Louisville, Kentucky, who created her own major for sexual and reproductive health and rights in developing countries; Kelly Gross, a senior from Fort Worth, Texas, majoring in public health; Kaitlin McClamrock, a junior from Columbia, South Carolina, majoring in political science and European studies; and Clarie Randall, a senior from Greenville, South Carolina, majoring in biology and psychology.

The Outstanding Woman of the Year award is sponsored by the Department of Student Life.

This story was originally published April 6, 2017 at 11:27 AM with the headline "Grand Strand Newsmakers."