Sandy Island, South Carolina

Recently I was on a boat ride with friends on the Waccamaw River, and we rode past Sandy Island. I'd seen a sign on Highway 17 pointing to the island, but I didn't know much about it.

Recently, we went back to the island and had lunch at a quaint little Bed and Breakfast run by Laura Herriott. Laura grew up on the island, attended school there until sixth grade, and is also custodian of the island's only church, New Bethel Baptist Church.





Laura met us at the dock and drove some of our group to her B&B, while the rest of us walked up the hill past a cemetery and the fire station.

We had a delicious lunch of fried chicken, corn bread, green beans, and a delicious rice dish. During lunch, we learned that years ago a group of slaves were allowed to live on the island. Unsupervised! We heard a story about a census taker who got lost on the island and wasn't found until the next day.

The children living on Sandy Island no longer attend the island school like Laura did. Instead, they take a ferry over to the mainland where they ride a school bus.



We've been invited to come back and go to church with Laura, and we even sang a couple of worship songs while we were visited.









Whether you're in the Pawleys Island area or somewhere else, take the path less traveled. You might find yourself delighted.