St. Francis Animal Rescue Centre in Rock Hill needs your help. With the economy down, so are donations. They’ve been victim to a recent break-in which caused their facility damage. They are still burdened by costly repairs and have accumulating back rent.

Most traditional shelters euthanize about 60% of their animals for lack of homes. Animal rescues like St. Francis don’t adopt that policy. They are a no-kill, cage-free place which aims at providing an ethical solution and good homes for stray animals.

In the event they close their doors, found animals will more than likely be euthanized by the state the same day they are captured.

If you’d like to make a tax-deductible donation, please contact their director Charlene G. Rodriguez at 803-554-9930 or donate at PayPal using the email address stfrancisanimalrescue@yahoo.com

If you cannot afford a monetary donation, please contribute in other ways like donating supplies or signing an awareness petition:

Supplies Needed:
Paper towels
Plastic bags
Cat food
Unscented cat litter
Trash compacter bags (cat pan liners)
Garbage bags
Scratching posts
Climbing trees
Pillows
Pet beds

According to a Washington-based consumer advocacy group, Families USA, one in three South Carolina residents has gone without health insurance at some point during 2007 and 2008 (read more from Families USA report: New Report Finds 1.3 Million South Carolinians Were Uninsured at Some Point in 2007-2008.)

Some recently unemployed residents have opted to purchase COBRA, a federal insurance program that has been around since 1986. It allows for a recently terminated employee to receive the same benefits as when they were employed, paying 100% out of pocket. COBRA rates can be a little out of reach for some when income comes to a halt. The Wall Street Journal reports that fewer than 1 in 10 who are eligible for COBRA sign up — possibly because the annual cost of COBRA for a family is around $13,000. When maximum unemployment benefits for a South Carolina worker are just over $1,200 a month, it makes continuing insurance with COBRA a very costly option.

Fortunately, Congress recently passed The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.  This allows unemployed workers to receive a nine-month subsidy to cover 65 percent of the COBRA premium (read more about the subsidy from The Department of Labor.)

Other options, instead of completely going without insurance, include a scaled-down policy. There are many options out there that have a reduced amount of coverage. Catastrophic policies and policies with high-deductibles might be a better band-aid than going completely without coverage. Companies like Golden Rule and United Health Care One have a variety of different plans for different budgets.

To help you shop for other insurance policies, we have a few pages on our site to assist you.

Our Quick Guide to South Carolina Insurance Resources has links to pages like:

South Carolina Department of Insurance,

South Carolina insurance laws,

Consumer services,

and a glossary of insurance terms.

SCIway also features a directory of South Carolina insurance agents and agencies.

This past Tuesday, South Carolina received 59 of the 160 million Federal stimulus dollars slated for green improvements in the Palmetto State. (8 billion dollars is South Carolina’s total stimulus amount; see the breakdown here.)

The money is allocated for building more energy efficient schools and state facilities, weatherizing low-income homes, and training people for “green collar” jobs. You can read more about this in The Post and Courier’s article, SC to weatherize, boost green energy.

If our government is doing it, what else can we do to go more ‘green’? SCIway’s SC Green Building Guide can help you create a smaller ecological footprint for yourself as well as save you money in the long-term.

Some of our guide highlights are:

● Green buildings like The Circular Congregational Church, Charleston’s oldest church, has added a vegetative roof to a new section.

● A SC State and Federal Financial Incentives for Green Buildings section which features links to government sites like the US Department of Energy’s Consumer Guide to Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

● Resources like SC for Green, a compendium of everything green in South Carolina. They link businesses, cities, individuals, and organizations that are green minded.

● Interactive tools like the Household Environmental Calculator, to rate your current footprint and evaluate plans for you to reduce your environmental impact.

Take a moment to familiarize yourself with our SCIway’s SC Green Building Guide and its resources.

If you see something missing from our guide, please contact us at service@sciway.net.

This weekend, The Citadel celebrates its 166th birthday. The college is ushering in its 167th year with its annual Corps Day Weekend – complete with speakers, exhibits, parades, and even a musical narration entitled The Citadel Story. The theme of the weekend is principled leadership. There will be panel discussions and speeches from military experts like Lt. Gen. Robert L. Van Antwerp who is currently overseeing most of our nation’s civil works infrastructure and military construction. The State newspaper reports that US Senator Lindsey Graham will deliver the keynote address on Friday evening.

The Citadel was founded in 1842 and has an undergraduate program of about 2,000 students who make up the South Carolina Corps of Cadets. Any Charlestonian recognizes these cadets as the short-cropped exercisers along Lockwood Drive with their white belts and navy running gear or the young men walking down King Street in full-dress during a weekend study break.

The school gained public interest from Pat Conroy’s novel, The Lords of Discipline, when it was published in 1980. Conroy, a former student, chronicled the story of a “knob” or “plebe” (a first year cadet) and his emotional and physical trials growing up in a very disciplined environment at a “fictional” military college set in Charleston. It was well-known to most as being The Citadel, though not explicitly said in the novel.

The story was made into a film in 1983 and was planned to be shot on location at The Citadel. The military school film Taps was shot in 1981, and was heard to have presented many shooting delays and burdens to the school. When The Citadel got word of this, they declined to allow the shoot to take place. Some have said the school and its alumni felt that the story also showed Citadel life in a negative light, so some feel that the refusal encompassed that sentiment as well.

Regardless of the differing views, The Citadel has been know to produce great results. The school ranks number 3 nationally for percentage of students who graduate in four years, including master’s level programs. Princeton Review also sings The Citadel’s praise by listing The Citadel School of Business one of the nation’s 290 best business programs.

We certainly wish The Citadel continuing success as one of South Carolina’s best colleges.

Find hotels near The Citadel.

Read more about The Citadel’s accomplishments.

View a video about The Citadel.

Learn more about Daniel Library at The Citadel.

Discover more about South Carolina’s elected officials.

The SC Picture Project is the best place to go for beautiful photographs of South Carolina. Over the years we’ve had hundreds of submissions from residents and visitors alike.

Please share your pictures and stories of South Carolina with us at the SC Picture Project.

November is filled with the sights, sounds, and smells of winter’s approach. Thanksgiving marks the start of the holiday season, and celebrations abound in every South Carolina community. Family, food, music, and dance are a few small things that make this time of year special, giving us the perfect opportunity to introduce two more South Carolina symbols – our state Folk Dance and our state Wild Game Bird.

SQUARE DANCE		WILD TURKEY

November & December’s Featured Symbols:

• SC State Folk Dance: Square Dance – Square dancing is fun for the whole family and has long been enjoyed in South Carolina. Originally formed as a combination of dance styles brought to America from across Western Europe, square dance has been adapted to include dozens (if not hundreds) of steps.
• SC State Wild Game Bird: Wild Turkey – Before you dig into that Thanksgiving feast, take a moment to learn about our State Game Bird, the Wild Turkey. These noble creatures are one of only two native fowl to have been domesticated in North America. Each bird can have up to 6,000 feathers, and Benjamin Franklin wished they had been chosen to represent our nation in lieu of that “lazy” and “lousy” Bald Eagle. (And just in case you decide you like the turkey too much to eat him, we’ve included a link to Compassionate Thanksgiving Recipes too!)

If the upcoming festivities have you feeling a little frantic, take heart! SCIway.net has a wealth of resources to help you through this hectic time. Whether it’s preparing your home for family and friends or joining others in the celebration of the season, we can point you in the right direction.

We hope these links will save you time – and most importantly, we hope you have a safe and wonderful winter!

• Shop SCIway - Give gifts from SC artisans, authors, and merchants this year. Shop online for original SC paintings and photographs, palmetto-tree clothing, gourmet gift baskets, and more.
• Christmas Tree Farms - Find out where to cut your own tree this year, plus tree care tips and info on living trees.
• Churches and Temples - Share the spirit and meaning of the season with others.
• Coffee Shops and Tea Rooms - Warm up this winter!
• Community Service Organizations - Learn how you can help the non-profits working in your community … ’tis the season to give!
• Day Spas - Where to go to get away from it all!
• Holiday Lights Festivals - From the Lowcountry to the Upstate, our state’s holiday spirit is shining through!
• Hotels - Where to send the in-laws. Umm … we mean … great guide for friends and family members in town for the holidays!
• Arts, Entertainment, Sightseeing - Wondering what to do with your friends and family once they’ve arrived? Well wonder no more!
• Malls and Shopping Centers - Sooner or later, it has to be done!
• Resources for the Homeless - Almost 7,000 South Carolinians are homeless this winter – Learn how you can lend a helping hand.
• Restaurants - Too many cooks in the kitchen? Find out where to get a good meal.