My Mother’s day in McClellanville was spent watching my little one to give mom a well deserved break.  We wrapped up the day by going to the Town Hall to the “Mothers Who Love Puppies Benefit Concert” to benefit Helping Hand Animal Rescue & Rehab Therapy to hear Kathy Livingston (the one from Nature Adventures Outfitters) sing.  She had a great voice, singing a great mix of kids songs, folk songs, beach songs, and contemporary and all of her record sales go to charity.
Ken Burger had a great article in the Post and Courier about being “Raised by a Hundred Mothers“, a feeling I can definitely relate to having grown up in McClellanville.  I’ve written about the it-takes-a-village mentality before, but Burger puts it best with this line, “Looking back, there were truly super women. They worked full time, sang in the choir, volunteered at the school, taught us to dance, held our families together and somehow found time to raise a village full of children.”
The Post and Courier also reported on one of our own this weekend, St. James Santee Episcople Churches minister, Jennie Olbrych.  I adore Jennie.  She is an amazing woman who is passionate about God’s word and always willing to help members of the community despite not living in McClellanville.  You can spot her in the videos on my most recent Shrimp Festival article as she has been responsible for blessing the fleet the past few years…come rain or shine.
Finally, I’d be remiss to not take a moment to acknowledge the two mom’s that make my everyday life possible.  My Mom, Susan Bates, lives just around the corner from me.  I can literally see her house through the woods (do I get credit for not being a momma’s boy if I told you that I lived away from home for 8 years?).  My mom is a strong, confident, and beautiful woman. My wife and I both have a great relationship with her (and my dad) and eat dinner with them almost every week (Thursday’s are Survivor night at the Bates house).  She’s also been a Godsend the past two years watching our son while we work and even allowing the occasional date night and I’m so happy he has someone like her to take him out in the garden, tromping in the woods, and crabbing.
My wife, Josie is my rock!  We were friends before dating and as a result know each other very well and compliment each others weaknesses.  She is an amazing mother with the perfect amount of discipline and love for our son.  She keeps me grounded but always supports me a rare thing to find.  She works hard and always has a smile on her beautiful face.  I definitely couldn’t do all the things I do without the help from these two great women and I often call upon them to review my articles, so my website wouldn’t be the same without them either.
PS – Charleston Painter, Katherine Muschick, wrote a great article about the McClellanville Arts Council’s Youth Art Show, so please check that out and leave a comment on her site.  Congratulations to the great local artists as well!