My son Mac who works as a clerk in the Criminal Records Division at the Richland County Clerk of Court office mentioned to me this week that he would be off Monday for Juneteenth. Since I had never fully researched the meaning, I decided to do so and found out some interesting information on Juneteenth from my friends at Google!

I knew that in 1863 that President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation which declared a formal end of slavery in this country, but with my research I learned that slaves in Galveston, Texas did not learn of this until 1865 that they were indeed free (now the world would know it within seconds with the internet!). The next year the people of Galveston celebrated this as Juneteenth which represents the date of the holiday, combining the words “June” and “nineteenth.” The month and day in 1865 when Major General Gordon Granger led Union Soldiers to Galveston, Texas, to announce this life and earth changing news of the end of the war and the freedom of all enslaved people! Although many states celebrated it as a day of observance for many years, it was not until 2021 that it became a Federal Holiday. It will be celebrated on Monday, June 19th here in Columbia and across the Nation.

There will be a family celebration at Segra Park tomorrow, Saturday June 17th beginning at 1:30pm and free to the public for the 7th Annual Juneteenth Freedom Festival with live music, performances, guest speakers, vendors, and lots more! There are many Juneteenth events scheduled across the community over the weekend and the 2nd Annual parade will be Monday on Main Street in Downtown Columbia at 2:00pm.

The Mike Kelly Law Group stands for equality of all our fellow American people, and we support the recognition of this milestone event in the history of America!

 

My son Patrick Kelly is a nominee for Best Local Actor in the Free Times Best of Columbia 2023. My mother once said, “if you can’t brag about your children, you are worthless.” Since I do not want to be worthless, I am going to brag about Patrick in today’s KellyGram.

My oldest son had a milestone birthday this week. He has taken 40 trips around the sun. He caught the acting bug at Heathwood Hall Episcopal School and while in High School he was an apprentice at Trustus Theatre. The founders of Trustus, Jim and Kay Thigpen probably taught him more about life than I did in those formative years! In my humble opinion Patrick is a worthy candidate for the Best of Columbia in the local actor category! He, like my other son, is a multi-talented young adult. Some of the recent things he has done include the lead role in Mr. Burns at Trustus, directing Death of a Salesman last Fall at Workshop Theatre, and summer theater in Almost, Maine at the Arundel Barn Playhouse in Kennebunkport, Maine, which I thought was one of his best performances. He has had lead roles in many plays including The Rocky Horror Show, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and way back in the day the Trustus production of The Graduate. In addition to acting and directing locally he has done theater in Norfolk, Virginia on several occasions and was on stage in two Off Broadway plays at the iconic La MaMa Theatre in New York City. He has also been a Production Manager, teaches as an Adjunct Professor at University of South Carolina School of Theatre, worked with sound design, taught choreography and has additional skills in non-profit management.

To say I am proud of Patrick is an understatement! Earlier this week he graduated from the 2023 Class of Leadership Columbia (I was in in the Class of 1992 – 31 years before him). Either for acting, writing, or directing, local folks need to check him out at his next performances. Also, feel free to vote for my son for the Best of Columbia 2023 – Local Actor. It would be appreciated!

 

The Mike Kelly Law Group office in Myrtle Beach is at the epicenter of the 2023 Carolina Country Music Fest which will be from June 8th-11th in downtown Myrtle Beach. There will be over 40 of country music’s hottest artists including, headliner, Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert, Brookes and Dunn, Travis Tritt, Tracy Lawrence, and the list goes on and on. This will be 4 days of nonstop fun within walking distance of the office! If you have never been to the Carolina Country Music Fest or are a fan of country music this is the place for you. The downtown Myrtle Beach Business Association appreciate the fact that this festival brings attention to our emerging neighborhood and if you haven’t been you have to give it a shot. There are so many other activities going on in addition to the festival that will make for a great weekend to spend in Myrtle Beach. In fact, our parking lot will be used by the festival for auxiliary parking. We look forward to this exciting weekend here on the grand strand!

 

Kimberly Cropper is a native of Augusta, Georgia where she graduated from Hephzibah High School and received her Criminal Justice degree from Georgia Southern University. She then received her paralegal training from Augusta University. She worked at a law firm in Augusta for two years and then was told about a job opening at the Mike Kelly Law Group where we have been lucky to have her for the last 17+ years. A fun fact is that she never looked for either job.

Kimberly is newly and happily married to her husband Louis Cropper and resides in Northeast Columbia. Her greatest passions in life are her husband, her family and her beloved church, River of Life in Winnsboro, SC. She also loves to write and travel.

Kimberly works as our workers’ compensation paralegal for the Columbia and Winnsboro offices. She does an outstanding job, and we are so very blessed to have her. Thank you for always being so thoughtful in all you do for our firm and our clients! Here is to many more years together, Kimi!

 

I grew up in a modest family in Southern Virginia with neither of my parents having a high school diploma. It was a blessing! God has been better to me in my lifetime than I deserve. I have had the opportunities of traveling far and wide experiencing a lot of life that I never thought I would and yet I am still most blessed to represent people that are injured, hurt on the job, sick or disabled.

It is my faith driven philosophy that this law firm gives back to the community. One of the many projects that the Mike Kelly Law Group supports is the Wounded Warrior Project and for the last three years we have had the privilege of being a sponsor for the Wounded Warrior Charity Golf Tournament out of Aiken and Augusta.

The Wounded Warrior Project began in 2003 as a small grassroots effort providing care and comfort items to wounded service members returning home from conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. This nonprofit organization has greatly expanded to include services for mental health, career counseling, and long-term rehabilitative care. Of these wounded warriors (which MKLG helps with in their disability claims), 75.9% suffer from PTSD, 75.7% suffer from anxiety and 74.3% suffer from depression.

As the saying goes, War is Hell and these people serving their country are heroes! Please consider donating to the Wounded Warrior Project in a location near you.

 

I am very proud of my Partner, Janet E. Rhodes, Esquire for being featured in an article in Super Lawyers magazine. The article provides a fun and quirky outline of Janet’s life as an athlete, singer, and attorney. She truly has had quite a unique journey in life. Please enjoy the article and reach out to Janet for all of your employment law needs.

“Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.” Super Lawyers’ “patented attorney selection process is peer influenced and research driven, selecting the top 5% of attorneys to the Super Lawyers list each year.” Janet has been selected to receive the honor of Super Lawyer each year since 2014. Way to go, Janet! We are lucky to have you!

 

As a good many of my readers know, I serve on the Board of the Brighton Homeowners Association as its President. I am not always sure about the wisdom of volunteering for this as sometimes it is a thankless position, but this past Tuesday was special! I witnessed the replacement and installation of the HVAC units on the roof of our building. This was no ordinary changeout because we had to rent a crane which could extend its jib arm up to 600 feet. Thankfully, we only needed 480 of it, but it was like a drill of military precision! On Monday they assembled the crane on site, Tuesday they did the actual work and then on Wednesday they disassembled it. And believe me, this crane was not cheap! It took at least twenty-five workers working on the ground and on the roof to get the job completed. I am thankful for WO Grubb and Cayce Mechanical Contractors for doing a superlative job. It was both exciting and scary at the same time. It is definitely a sight that I will never forget.

 

Jamie Brown has been with me for 27 years and I have been blessed every day since she said she would take the job! She married her husband John Brown 28 years ago, so John and I are two very lucky people to have Jamie at the center point of our lives taking care of us. Jamie has such a nurturing disposition and quite simply does everything, not only for me, but for the law firm! She is our longest serving employee in the firm having worn many hats over the years. In addition to putting up with me, doing dictation, taking countless new caller intake phone calls, scheduling appointments, including social events, she also works with the litigation team in a scheduling capacity. Jamie’s mother was a former legal secretary for 30 years so to be an amazing legal assistant was literally in her DNA. Outside of her daily duties and responsibilities with the firm, Jamie is also a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and daughter!

We are all incredibly lucky to have Jamie as part of the Mike Kelly Law Group and I am even more blessed to have her as a part of my personal family for many years. Thank you, Jamie, for your dedication in taking care of me, my family, and our firm! You do a stellar job!

 

Situated midway between Columbia and Myrtle Beach (my two homes) is something that puts the truck stops of America to shame – Buc-ee’s. My hat goes off to the person that developed Buc-ee’s; the most wonderful and majestic road stop ever! When people ask me what’s so special about Buc-cee’s, my standard reply is, “you just have to go there, I cannot explain it!” The nearest Buc-ee’s is at Exit 170 on Interstate 95 on the way to the beach. If you want a smoker or gas grill, you can go there. If you want a deer stand, you can go there. If you want the best snacks, you can go there. If you want brisket, pulled pork BBQ, chicken sandwiches, handhelds, then go there. If you want the best homemade beef jerky and fudge, go there. If you want apparel, gifts for the grandkids, in-laws, significant others, or friends, go there. Buc-ee’s is currently situated in Texas, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, Kentucky, and South Carolina. I highly recommend Buc-ee’s to anyone, but if you are an over-the-road trucker, forget it, they do not allow 18-wheelers! Whoever thought of Buc-ee’s in a genius and a billionaire!

 

Having just experienced a wonderful Easter, I sit here reflecting on all the exciting things that occur in South Carolina in the Springtime. First, the weather is beautiful, the lawns are greening up, the golf courses are getting in shape (my favorite), and we are starting to embark on Spring Festivals. There are endless activities to enjoy throughout both my hometowns of Columbia and Myrtle Beach. Last night for example, I attended the Loading the Dock concert at the Township Auditorium featuring The Tams and it was a great outdoor experience. These festivals in Columbia and Myrtle Beach will be continuously operating almost seven days a week so take advantage of them and enjoy life to its fullest as I plan to do! I love living in South Carolina!