October 2020 Issue

Eating Healthy on Hilton Head Island

My husband and I have been going to Hilton Head Island on a frequent basis since we got married in 2006. As a popular tourist spot, the island has many different and varied restaurants. We have tried many of them over the years. Because I have a number of food allergies and sensitivities, I have learned where to get healthy food that can accommodate my needs. I encourage Bella readers to try any of these the next time they take a trip to Hilton Head. Cooler’s Grocery Store My first recommendation is actually not on Hilton Head. Cooler’s Store and Exxon station is on Highway 462 near Ridgeland. We stop

Beyond the Barricade | SRS Ties That Shaped Our Community | October 2020

Although she was only three years old, Barbara Smoak clearly remembers attending a party for her maternal grandfather’s retirement from Dupont in 1960. As a reminder of her family’s legacy at the Savannah River Site (SRS), she keeps a copy of the letter Leslie Albert Doty wrote to his employees in the Power Department at SRS. He said, “My final appeal is: accept your personal safety, and that of every human being, as the noblest of all duty.” His expectation for safety was one he made clear to his entire family, and it has been a continuing part of the legacy of three generations of this family’s service to SRS.

July Cabinet of Curiosities | Can You Can? | Aiken Bella Magazine

Creativity in Moments of Momentous Change – Time and Time Again

Never was more emphasis on creativity in the history of our country than during the Great Depression. Newspapers, magazines, radio commercials, and the like were filled with suggestions of how to apply creativity to your everyday life. You’ve most likely heard of sackcloth dresses or feed sack dresses, of which the author’s grandmother wore and sewed many. No fruit? Let’s make a water pie! No stockings? Let’s paint a seam down the backs of our legs! A Silver Lining Among the Chaos The beginning of the Great Depression can be traced to the stock market crash in October of 1929. Over the next decade, unemployment skyrocketed, banks failed, and charity

Household Dangers for our Children

Too many children are ill, be it is from neurological issues, metabolic issues, cancer, respiratory problems, and/or psychological and social issues. Top scientists believe that environmental toxins are causing widespread brain injury and loss of function across a generation of children. As a society, we seem to be failing our children. Just look at the explosion of special education classes and clinics in schools across the nation. We do not connect poor health with the products that we are using on a daily basis because we are not experiencing the acute aspects of poisoning. We see no warnings, and most health care providers do not know about them. Neurodevelopmental disabilities,

Creative Clowns

Volunteers for the hospital look for a new way to bring cheer We are part of an integrative team to promote healing. We do it through magic moments, laughter, and free hugs. Bumper T Caring Clowns understand the healing power of humor. This nonprofit organization is active in five states, including South Carolina. Members train volunteers to be “smileologists” to make a difference for those who are in the hospital. I am Dr. Sing A Song, also known as Kim Cordell. A few of my clown friends are Dr. Geezer (aka Bob Mason), Dr. Silly Goose (aka Judy Volkman), and Dr. Quackenbush (aka Bruce Chodosh). We chose names that reflect

Football Fallout from a Female Fan

After months of wondering whether it will happen, we finally know — no football for us this season. Okay, no, not really. We do not know. What we do know is that TODAY, right this minute, we won’t be leaving our home this coming Saturday before sunrise (yes, traffic is that bad on gameday — in fact, we should start driving now to get to next year’s season opener), driving two hours, only to sit on a cooler (why do they call them coolers when it’s so blasted hot) for who knows how long for a 5 pm kickoff that would have been pushed back to 7 were it not

The August Bella Book Club Review | The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo | Aiken Bella Magazine

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek

The September Bella Book Club Review by Nichole Miller The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson Cussy Carter is not your average 19-year-old. She is a Kentucky blue-skinned girl, and may be the last of her kind. Called Bluet by most folk, she loves her job as a librarian with the United States Pack Horse Project, which provides book delivery to the rural parts of Kentucky. Her father, a coal miner, has been working in the mines for years and knows that his lung disease is getting worse. Understanding that he doesn’t have long to live, he tries to arrange a fit marriage for Cussy to ensure

Celebrating The Bruises

I have a friend who is wonderfully strange and tender, beautiful and wise. My friend’s name is Mar. “We are wonderfully resilient after all, you and I. From kicked shins to punched hearts. So I suspect that we should be prouder of our bruises.” Not long ago, Mar shared on social media a photo of bare legs. More to the point, they were bare legs covered in bruises. They were Mar’s own legs, battered and bruised from moving into a new home. And they reminded my friend of the good old roller derby days when bruises and bumps were a daily occurrence and much more massive than those showing in

Meet Robert Atkins

Artwork © Robert Atkins, used with permission. Sometimes we are unaware of the things that drive us to persevere and rise above our surroundings. When I sat down with Robert Atkins, a local artist, he began by telling me about his pieces of art and what he does. As he talked on, I began to realize that the real story of his art lies not in his masterpieces themselves but in what was behind the scenes. It wasn’t until late into our interview that I brought his attention to the fact that his art seemed to be the one thing in his life that was always there, pushing him along,