Casper and Anna Maria Garrett made a life in Columbia, South Carolina, during the Jim Crow decades, but they sent their five children North in the Great Migration in search of the freedom that South Carolina did not offer. Now, their great-grandson David Nicholson, a former Washington Post book reviewer, tells the family’s multi-generational story of struggle, sacrifice, and achievement in “The Garretts of Columbia: A Black South Carolina Family from Slavery to the Dawn of Integration.”
The Our Story Matters gallery presents Nicholson in conversation with journalist Beryl Dakers on Sunday, February 25, 2 \mathrm { p. m. } , at the Columbia Museum of Art. The book will be available for purchase and signing. The gallery is a partnership of the Center for Civil Rights History and Research, Columbia SC 63 and the Museum of Art.
At the heart of Nicholson’s beautifully written and carefully researched book are his great-grandparents. Papa, as Garrett was known to his family, was a professor at Allen University, a lawyer, and an editor of three newspapers. Dubbed Black South Carolina’s “most respected disliked man,” he was always ready to attack those he believed disloyal to his race.
When he was dismissed from Allen, his wife, Mama, came into her own. She was appointed supervisor of rural colored schools, trained teachers, and oversaw the construction of schoolhouses. At 51, she learned to drive, traveling back roads outside Columbia to supervise classrooms, conduct literacy drives, and instruct rural farm women in home economics.
Though Papa and Mama came of age in the bleak Jim Crow years after Reconstruction, they believed in the possibility of America. They sent three sons to serve in the First World War.
One later wrote a musical with Langston Hughes during the Harlem Renaissance. Another became a dentist. A daughter earned a doctorate in French. The Garretts embraced the hope of America and experienced the melancholy of a family separated by the search for opportunity.
Based on decades of research and thousands of family letters—which include Mama’s tart-tongued observations of friends and neighbors—“The Garretts of Columbia” is family history as American history, rich with pivotal events viewed through the Garretts’s lives.
The Garretts of Columbia book talk and signing will be held Sunday, February 2 5, 2: \mathrm { p. m } . at the Columbia Museum of Art.
Richland One launches Bus Route Notification App
Richland One parents and guardians can now get notifications about their children’s bus route on their phone. Richland One Student Transportation Services rolled out the Traversa Ride 360 mobile app January 22.
Traversa Ride 360 is a secure app provided by the South Carolina Department of Education. The app will allow a parent or guardian to have instant access to their child’s school bus transportation information through a real-time GPS tracker.
Richland One conducted a Traversa Ride 360 pilot with six schools in late-November and December. The schools involved in the pilot were Forest Heights Elementary, Meadowfield Elementary, Heyward Gibbes Middle, Hand Middle, Eau Claire High and Dreher High.
“The app is an extra level of safety and security. It helps give parents a peace of mind when their children are going to school and coming home every day. The app will also improve communication between parents and our transportation department. We encourage our families to download the app and use it,” said Rick Grisham, Richland One’s director of student transportation services.
Through the app, parents will be sent an alert of the estimated time of arrival (ETA) of their child’s bus. The district can also send important and timely push notifications through the app, such as notifying parents of a late bus, the use of a substitute bus or a bus accident. Parents must stay logged in to the app to receive push notifications from Student Transportation Services in real time.
Parents and guardians will access the free app by searching for Traversa Ride 360 in the App Store (Apple iOS) or Google Play for Android. They will need to install the app and register in the app. When
and register in the app.When asked to find a school district, they must search for Richland County School District One.
This service is only available for state school buses/routes. Richland One district programs/buses (such as magnet choice programs, Heyward Career and Technology Center and ESOL programs) do not have this service available at this time.
Richland One parents and guardians who have any questions about the app can contact Rick Grisham, Richland One’s director of student transportation services, at rick.grisham@richlandone.org”>rick.grisham@richlandone.org or 803-231-7002.
Local church seeks musicians
Zion Pilgrim Baptist Church, located at 1609 Zion Avenue in the Arthurtown Community is seeking to expand its Music Ministry. The church is looking for a part-time keyboard player, guitarist and drummer.
If you are interested, please call 803-799- 4168. Reverend Willie J. Davis, Jr.-is the Senior Pastor.
SC Highway Patrol Trooper receives Medal of Valor from SC Sheriffs’ Association
The South Carolina Department of Public Safety proudly announces that Lance Corporal B.A. Frazier of the SC Highway Patrol was presented with the SC Sheriffs’ Association’s prestigious Medal of Valor Award during a recognition ceremony on Thursday, January 25.
Sheriff Kenneth Bamberg of the Bamberg County Sheriff’s Office nominated Lance Corporal Frazier and Sergeant Dwayne Duckson, of the Bamberg County Sheriff’s Office, for the Medal of Valor award due to their courageous actions and ability to remain calm under fire.
“Lance Corporal Frazier exemplifies the Highway Patrol’s core values of selfless service, integrity, and responsibility, even in the moments after he was shot on duty,” said Colonel Christopher Williamson, Commander of the SC Highway Patrol. “His resilience in his recovery and determination to return to duty after this incident reflects the true spirit of a dedicated public servant. We very much appreciate the SC Sheriff’s Association for recognizing Frazier with this honor. And we owe a special thank you to Sergeant Dwayne Duckson for providing critical backup for our trooper when he needed it most.”
In the predawn hours of April 16, 2023, SC Highway Patrol Lance Corporal Frazier noticed a speeding vehicle in Bamberg County and initiated a traffic stop. Minutes later, a deputy with the Bamberg County Sheriff’s Office happened to see the traffic stop and pulled over to provide assistance.
It was upon Frazier’s second approach of the vehicle when the driver drew a firearm and fired at Frazier, hitting him in the face. Lance Corporal Frazier and Sergeant Dwayne Duckson immediately returned fire, striking the vehicle several times as the driver fled the scene.
Despite his injury, Frazier maintained a calm demeanor as he radioed in a distress call. It’s believed his detailed description of the vehicle is the reason why the suspect was apprehended quickly by another Highway Patrol trooper. Sergeant Duckson remained on scene to provide aid to Frazier until medical professionals arrived.
“I’m grateful to God for covering me and sparing me in a time of adversity. I am grateful to the SC Sheriffs’ Association and Sheriff Bamberg for nominating me for such a prestigious award,” says Lance Corporal B.A. Frazier. “I thank the SC Highway Patrol for the blood, sweat, and tears during our training, especially ground defense and survival. I also thank my wife and family for supporting me during my day-to-day recovery.”
Each year the award is presented to South Carolina law enforcement officers whose valorous acts go above and beyond the call of duty.
Birth Announcement
Born alive within the state of New York Certification of Vital Records or with the County of Manhattan New York Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk as Charles Ray Thomas II, who’s spiritual name is Adebisi Ali. This Birth Announcement and its property is held in the Adebisi Ali Living Trust and shall stand as true with any City, Town, Borough, County, State municipality or United States Department of State. We, the undersigned, declare (or certify, verify, or state) under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America that the foregoing is true and correct.
