As we wind down December in Simpsonville I am struck by how this will be a year to remember, along with being a year to forget. It has certainly been challenging. I’m not going to dwell on the forgettable. Masks, social distancing, getting good at Zoom, friends and relatives facing serious illness, and a contentious election cycle. Wow. What a year.
But what about the memorable? We have so many things that are good that we can say started in 2020. Burdette Central really got going downtown. We now have Sidewall Pizza, Kaffeine, and Smoqued, with more to come. On the other side of the tracks, The Warehouse at Vaughns is turning out to be a really nice bookend for Burdette Central. What a fun place. The first section of the Swamp Rabbit Trail has opened and it has been extremely popular. I walk the trail to City Hall as often as I can. It’s just a great beginning for our part of the network. What a great summer it was for the Simpsonville Farmers Market. It’s such a privilege to have access to excellent farm to table produce. We have two new stunning murals that were commissioned and completed in the 100 block of South Main Street. They certainly add some nice color, and judging by the amount of people I see snapping photos, they are already generating memorable moments. There were two big groundbreaking events I was privileged to participate in; Habitat for Humanity at Woodside Park, and the new Bon Secours St. Francis medical campus on Grandview Road. Summit Church opened their new campus on West Curtis Street. And since 2020 has been kind of do-things-opposite year it seems obvious that the Simpsonville Chamber would put on a Reverse Christmas Parade. Or maybe not, since a lot of nearby towns just canceled their parades. Our parade was a lot of fun and really popular. To wrap it all up we had the Second Annual City of Simpsonville Christmas Tree Lighting. That was a special moment and I want to thank all who participated and especially thank Gracen Vaughn, Miss Teen Simpsonville, for helping with the lighting.
I don’t know about you, but I think 2020 has made more good memories than bad. As always, thanks for listening. The Shewmaker family wishes you the merriest of Christmases.
Now back to work…right after the holidays.
