Bruce Duvall Gaskins, 71, passed away on Sunday, May 10, 2020, at his home in Loris. Mr. Gaskins was born on Dec. 31, 1948, in Wilmington, N.C., to the late Erusie Gaskins and the late Pauline Cox Gaskins.  He served his country with courage and honor in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. Mr. Gaskins retired as a truck driver and was a member of Pleasant Meadow Baptist Church. In his spare time he loved golfing, fishing, horseback riding and riding his motorcycle. Survivors include his wife, Geraldine Soles Gaskins; his three sons, Richard Erusie Barnett, Darry Gaskins, …

Turn swamp back to wetland to serve higher purpose By Bubby Vereen This is an open letter to the Mayor and City Council members of North Myrtle Beach. Please honorable Mayor and City Council members help us, the concerned citizens of North Myrtle Beach, to help stop the draining and developing of the swamp going into Cherry Grove Beach. It is the last small piece of undeveloped land we have left within the city limits and if something is not done soon it will be just another piece of concrete and steel. We already have too many vacant buildings, too …

Pictured from left to right are Melissa Jones, Administrative Nursing Supervisor; Van Aguilar, RN; and Nancy Barnes, McLeod Health Loris Chief Nursing Officer. McLeod Health Seacoast in Little River and McLeod Health Loris in Loris recently awarded two nurses a Daisy Award for their outstanding service and care. Haleigh Milligan, RN, a staff nurse on the Medical/Surgical floor at McLeod Health Seacoast, and Jose “Van” Aguilar, RN, a staff nurse in the Intensive Care Unit at McLeod Health Loris, were recently announced as the May DAISY Award recipients. Milligan and Aguilar are the first recipients of the DAISY Award at …

By Bill LaMonte Recently, Ron Wilson, director of The Veterans Welcome Home and Resource Center (better known as the Hutton House) located on Highway 57 in Little River, sent a request to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 10804 of North Myrtle Beach. The Resource Center provides assistance to area veterans and their families. They provide such things as food, clothing, job training, job finding, transportation, limited financial help in paying bills, paying household needs like utilities and rent/mortgage and even providing on site temporary living. The request to VFW Post 10804 was a need for groceries to help feed …

By Ruben Lowman In-person graduations will now be held for seniors at high schools throughout the district, as voted on this week by the Horry County School Board. There is flexibility for high school principals in the county to decide the specifics of their graduation ceremonies for the Class of 2020, such as whether to hold it inside or outside, and whether to honor all students at one time or divided into smaller groups. “Tonight, the board voted to have in-person graduation ceremonies for the high schools and the program schools, leaving a lot of planning and logistics to the …

Susie WATSON joining the ranks of retirement tomorrow and everyone wishing her the very best of everything as she adapts to her slower non-working life…Cindy HERMS arriving just in time to get things back up to current status…Jean BOSEMAN receiving special delivery Mother’s Day card last Friday afternoon…A great big thanks to Felix SERRA for adding a lot of blue color to a much needed item…Jean McLAUGHLIN going to be a wonderful mom to her new family addition…Sally FLOYD such a thoughtful person…Jenean TODD always remembering her friend at the beach on holidays and thanks for the beautiful cards and …

By Ruben Lowman and Andrea Maestre Restaurants and bars are allowed to resume indoor seating this week as Gov. Henry McMaster lifted the restrictions he put in place nearly two months ago to combat the spread of the coronavirus. This followed up the governor’s easing of restrictions last week, when he permitted restaurants to open their doors to diners but limited them to outdoor seating only. His previous executive orders had restricted restaurants to only offering delivery, curbside or take-out service. For Sarah Arnold, owner of the Tidewater Grill located across from the Swing Bridge, acclimating to the social distancing …

By Annie Rigby Paul Prince, Horry County Councilman for District 9, presented a $20,000 check to the Loris Historical Society on Tuesday, May 5, at 2 p.m. Prince said for him to make the large donation to the historical society all members of the Horry County Council must approve the funds given to the historical society; the council unanimously approved the designated funds. James Edwards, president of the Loris Historical Society, graciously accepted the check and stated that the funds will be designated to the completion of phase two of the building renovations. He said, “Phase one consisted of the …

By Annie Rigby On Monday, May 11, Gov. Henry McMaster lifted restrictions on close contact services and recreational and athletic activities to open on Monday, May 18. Barber shops, hair salons, nail salons, spas, tattoo services, tanning, massage, gyms, fitness and exercise centers, commercial gyms and public or commercial pools as well as many other businesses will reopen. Commercial gyms will include group exercise facilities such as yoga studios, barre classes and others. “With our increased capacity for testing the people of our state, it is time to responsibly and gradually get these small businesses back up and running,” said …

By Annie Rigby Loris restaurants re ceived the news they had hoped would come. Gov. Henry McMaster announced and outlined the Phase Two of his plan to reopen restaurants for indoor dining. On Monday, May 11, at 12:01 a.m. the executive order was lifted allowing indoor dining. The mom and pop restaurants, Backyard Barbeque, Santino’s and Back Street Café, assured patrons they are following the suggested guidelines and are ready for guests to visit their establishments to indoor dining. The Grind continues serving customers with to-go orders. At this time they do not have an exact date when they will …