BY SCOTT HARPER [email protected]
Just like almost everywhereelse across America, the Lorisbusiness community is feel-ing the economic hurt causedby the COVID-19 coronaviruspandemic.Some businesses are trying
find ways to adapt to the situ-ation while others havereduced hours or are havingemployees work from home.The Loris Chamber of
Commerce has been lookingfor ways to try to help thebusinesses. ChamberPresident John Sediak saidsome Loris restaurants arefairing a little better than oth-ers -- at least for now.Sediak is the owner of The
Grind restaurant and said hisbusiness did pretty good lastweek after the no-dine-in lawtook effect but he is con-cerned things will get worse ifthe self-distancing rules donot end soon.On Sunday, President
Donald Trump ordered theself-distancing rules toremain in place through April30.“Everybody is on edge in
town. We (The Grind) havethe advantage of having adrive-through which openedup some availability for us tocontinue serving,” Sediaksaid. “I think this week is real-ly going to be a test because Ithink there was an initialthought that maybe it will begone sooner than later and Ithink the reality that it couldbe a couple of months of slogfor everybody is starting toset in.”Sediak said most of the
restaurants and other busi-nesses are trying to stay openas long as possible but astime goes on people mayhave less money to spend tohelp keep the businessesafloat.“For the first couple of
weeks this was going on I had
tremendous support from thecommunity coming out tohelp our restaurant and otherbusinesses. What concernsme going forward, becausethis has taken a bite out ofeverybody, it becomes moreand more difficult for thepeople who had that mentali-
ty to continue to do that,” hesaid.Sediak said most of the
business owners he has spo-ken to in recent days told himthey are trying to stay open aslong as possible to help the
CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK
Wednesday
APRIL 1, 2020
VOL 25, No. 26
843-756-1447
Waccamaw Publishers, Inc.2510 Main St., Conway, SC 29526
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| OUTSIDE | | HAPPENINGS |
Address Service Requested
Cherry Hill presentsBeautiful Maine tour forseven days, six nights(Sunday – Saturday) June14-20. Includes motorcoachtransportation, six nightlodging including four con-secutive nights in Maine, 10meals: six breakfasts andfour dinners, guided tour ofPortland, Maine’s largestcity-by-the-sea, guided tourof quaint Kennebunk andKennebunkport, tour of his-toric Victoria Mansion, guid-ed tour of Pineland Farms, apicturesque working farm,
visit to Boothbay RailwayVillage, including a vintagetrain ride, and visit to theSeashore Trolley Museumand countryside trolley ride.Departure: Cherry HillBaptist Church, 2020 DaisyRoad, Loris at 8 a.m. andthen City of Dillon WellnessCenter, 1647 CommerceDrive, Dillon at 9:30 a.m.Cost is $699.* $75 due uponsigning. *Price per person,based on double occupancy.Add $225 for single occu-pancy. Final payment dueApril 7. For more pictures,
video and information visit:www.GroupTrips.com/CherryHill. For more informationand reservations contactAlvin Jackson at 843-902-3366.
Loris First United MethodistChurch, 3507 Broad St., hasa Blessing Box availableeach Friday, 4:30 p.m. – 6:30p.m. This box contains non-perishable food items andindividuals in need areencouraged to come to thebox. It is located inside thechurch.
Dogwood Hill Baptist ChurchFood Pantry, 1040 Mt. ZionRd., Loris, has a food pantrythe third Saturday of eachmonth from 8 a.m. until 10a.m. This institution is anequal opportunity provider.
The Loris Civitan Club meetsat 7 p.m. on the second andfourth Tuesday evenings ofeach month (exceptDecember) at Backyard BBQ,5107 Main St., Loris. Formore information callCharles Webster at 843-756-4300.
The Loris Area Lions Clubmeets the first and thirdTuesday evenings of eachmonth from 7-8 p.m. atDale’s Seafood. For moreinformation call Lion JimMurph at 756-7900.
BY KATHY [email protected]
S.C. Department ofNatural Resources officerssoon won’t have to workout of their vehicles, andHorryites won’t have todrive to Florence or NorthCharleston to get a stickerfor their boats becauseConway is about to have itsDNR office reopened.The Conway office closed
in 2008 when the state hadsome budgeting problemsand DNR was forced to dosome cutting.S.C. Rep. Jeff Johnson, R-
58, said he was able to get$297,501 as a recurringappropriation for a newConway office.State officials took bids
for an office, but didn’t getany that met their require-ments, so the office wasrebid. Now Capt. RobertMcCullough, who overseesthe department’s mediaand outreach, says if allgoes well the office will bein place and ready to dobusiness by the summer.“Everything’s kind of sit-
ting on G, waiting on O…”
he said.The department plans to
have its staff trained andready to start work just assoon as an office site isfinalized. McCullough saidthe office will have fournew staffers and one super-visor, a seasoned DNRemployee, who is ready tostep into his new assign-ment. Johnson said there are a
lot of hunters, fishermenand boaters in HorryCounty, who have neededthe office during its 12-yearabsence.A big problem has been
securing stickers for boats.Boat owners either had tosend to Columbia and waitfor a sticker that could takeas much as a month, ordrive to Florence or NorthCharleston to get one.During the hiatus
between offices, wildlife
agents have been workingout of their cars when theycome to Conway, but nowthey can use the office,Johnson said.Johnson said he’s excited
about the new office andthinks it’s something thatHorry County with its largepopulation needs.“Boating is very popular
along the waterway inletsand rivers,” he said.Matt Varnadore, conces-
sionaire for the ConwayMarina, is also excitedabout the new office.“I think it’s a great thing.
We have, in Horry County,we have a very, very largeboating community,” hesaid.Varnadore also pointed to
the drive or wait to get aboat registration. Peopleeither had to mail theirinformation or Columbiaand then wait as much as a
month to get the neededdocumentation or drive toan office where the neces-sary stickers can be printed,he said.He also likes the idea of
changing the duration of theregistrations from one tothree years.During the years that the
Conway office has beengone, he says he’s heard a lotof grumbling about howlong it takes to get a sticker.“If that’s what’s coming,
that’s awesome. That’shuge,” he said.McCullough says his
agency is just as excitedabout coming back toConway as Conwayites areto see it coming.“It’ll be good to get back in
there,” he said. “We want toget all this done too…Hopefully it’ll all cometogether. I just hate thesetimes. It’s tough,” he said ofdealing with the impact ofthe coronavirus.In regard to the new office,
he said, “Oh, we think it’sgreat. We think it will be agood opportunity to servethe constituency downthere.”
“Boating is very popular along the
waterway, inlets and rivers.”
Jeff JohnsonS.C. Rep. R-58
SCDNR plans to reopen Conway office
Man charged in
shooting that injured
pregnant woman
Woman charged inBaby Boy Horry casereleased on bondFROM STAFF [email protected]
The Florida womanaccused of leaving BabyBoy Horry to die in thewoods 12 years ago wasreleased on a $75,000bond this past week,according to a newsrelease from the 15th
Circuit Solicitor's Office.Jennifer Sahr, 32, was
arrested earlier this monthon a charge of homicideby child abuse, which car-ries a sentence of 20 yearsto life in prison.Sahr was a student at
Coastal Carolina
BABY HORRY, A3
The woman whopolice suspect isBaby Boy Horry'smother and ischarged withhomicide bychild abuse inconnection withthe infant'sdeath.
VIRAJ NAIK /
THE LORIS SCENE
COVID-19 hurting Loris businesses;Chamber of Commerce trying to help
FILE PHOTO
‘Cotton Pickin Cute’ is making the best of the situation with the COVID-19 pandemic.
LORIS BUSINESSES, A2
BY VIRAJ [email protected]
A Myrtle Beach areaman faces several chargesin connection with ashooting in Green Sea thatleft a pregnant womanseriously injured.Dustin Anthony Butler,
34, is charged withattempted murder, firstdegree domestic violence,possession of a weaponduring a violent crime andpossession of a firearm bya person convicted of aviolent felony in connec-tion with the Jan. 13shooting, Horry CountyPolice Departmentspokeswoman MikaylaMoskov said in an email.Butler was taken into
custody in North Carolinaby Laurinburg police sev-eral hours after the shoot-ing occurred. He wasextradited to HorryCounty and formallycharged by local authori-ties on Wednesday. Butlerremains jailed at J.Reuben Long DetentionCenter.Evidence uncovered
during the investigationsuggests that Butler shotthe victim in the head. Atthe time of the shooting,Butler was wanted in rela-tion to a domestic vio-lence incident thatoccurred in November2019 involving the samevictim, officials said."HCPD would like to
thank all those who con-
tributed to the investiga-tion and apprehension ofButler in connection withthis case," Moskov's emailsaid. "We would also liketo acknowledge the EMSpersonnel and medicalstaff who worked to savethe victim."Moskov said the victim
was recently released fromthe hospital and is doingwell."Her unborn child was
unaffected by the incidentand the child is expectedto arrive later this year,"Moskov's email states.Anyone suffering from
domestic abuse is encour-aged to contact localauthorities. Victim advo-cate services are availablethrough the HCPD andother local police agen-cies. The NationalDomestic ViolenceHotline can be reached at1-800-799-7233. If youneed help and cannotspeak safely, you can alsovisit thehotline.org or textLOVEIS to 22522.
Butler
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