Mallory Russell wins $35K for her P-Nutty BBQ Chicken Quesedilla

Remember that delicious P-nutty BBQ Chicken Quesedilla we featured in the Vibe section in our February 2012 issue? If not, click here. Well this delicious dish just made8-year-old Mallorry Russell $35,000 richer with the announcement that she had won a national cooking competition.  The grand prize was a $25,000 college fund and $10,000 for books and school supplies.

Read more: Mallory Russell wins $35K for her P-Nutty BBQ Chicken Quesedilla

House of Payne

When he was just five years old, new Seahawks coach B.J. Payne set a unique career goal — to become a professional wrestler and a football coach.

Read more: House of Payne

State of Bluffton: Mayor Lisa Sulka

In general, what are the biggest challenges facing Bluffton right now?

The biggest challenges facing Bluffton are job creation for our residents and the (health of the) May River.

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State of the Island: Mayor Drew Laughlin

In general, what are the biggest challenges facing Hilton Head Island right now?

The biggest challenge is overcoming the effects of the longest, deepest recession our country has experienced since the Great Depression.  We are not alone in facing this challenge.  However, a healthy real estate market and availability of credit are particularly important to a community like ours, where so many are dependent on the real estate industry for their livelihood.  Real estate sales not only support Realtors; they directly support financial institutions, mortgage brokers, property inspectors, appraisers and lawyers, among others. And, because real estate is such a big part of our economy, few among us are not—at least indirectly—affected.  The economy also impacts our hospitality industry and our ability to attract the private investment we need to maintain a built environment and amenities that will attract visitors and future residents.

Read more: State of the Island: Mayor Drew Laughlin

The Vibe: Beach renourishment

Photographer Dayle Thomas took her camera to the dunes and brought back some great shots of the beach renourishment project. Click here to see more photos on Monthly's Facebook page.

After the bridge and into the future

Web extra: Click the photo to learn more about the artist.

Tom Barnwell doesn’t want this article running in our February issue.

He wants this article running all year long.

At the tail end of our conversation about Gullah culture, the unique challenges it faces and how it can endure in this modern world, the energetic fifth-generation Native Islander emphasized one last point: “There needs to be this kind of dialogue on an ongoing basis. We are all here together now.”

Read more: After the bridge and into the future

The campaign trail runs through Bluffton

Republican frontrunner (as of press time) Newt Gingrich made a campaign stop in Bluffton last month to address a crowd of around 1,000 supporters in a town hall-style meeting in the Promenade, according to the Newt Gingrich campaign website.

The 20-minute speech was followed by a 45-minute question-and-answer period, and was preceded by the unveiling of Gingrich’s Bluffton Victory Office in the Promenade.

Rise of the machines

Hilton Head Island High School robotic teams coach, John Quindlen, was all smiles during a demonstration of the team’s latest creation. While robotics teams from Hilton Head Island Middle School and Hilton Head Island Elementary School looked on, the machine lifted an inflatable cushion as programmed.

The robot utilized a complicated series of gears to amass its considerable lifting power (it can reportedly lift a person, so stay on its good side) from an underpowered motor in the base.

It’s this area of expertise that will get funded by a $500 teacher innovation mini-grant from the Foundation for Educational Excellence. The robotics team is one of many to receive foundation mini-grants. The foundation gave a total of nearly $5,000 to schools across Beaufort County for books, electronics and supplies (read this story on our website, www.hiltonheadmonthly.com for the full list).

The robotics team’s grant was designed to help “develop a test procedure and protocol that will evaluate how various gear ratios improve the efficiency of electronic motors with varying torque capabilities. This will allow the school’s robotics team to optimize available power allowed in this year’s FIRST Robotics Competition.”

Look to future editions of Monthly for details on the robotics
team’s competition, plus the Foundation for Educational Excellence’s Jewels and Jeans fundraiser in March.