Is it possible to enjoy Halloween without candy? Kingfishers say yes! On Halloween morning, the halls were filled with costumed students, including an eight-foot inflatable dinosaur, various scary characters, Alice in Wonderland, Dopey, and many more. Luckily, temperatures outside dropped, so the kids managed to stay masked and costumed for the whole day, which made it all the more festive—even without candy. Once again, Halloween was sweet day at TGS!

Kingfishers were on hand the afternoon and evening of September 26 at the historic Kaminski House in downtown Georgetown to help set up the major fund-raising event for the South Carolina Environmental Law Project. The annual SCELP “Wild Side” dinner and silent auction took place on the front lawn, under the oaks overlooking the Sampit River.

Mrs. Patrick had volunteered to make centerpieces for all the tables and she also corralled a small but industrious group of TGS students (and Dr. Neubauer) to help with setting-up. Together they festooned the boughs of the trees with paper jelly-fish. They brought out tables and chairs to set up the dining area on the grass. They helped wherever they were needed, including during the dinner itself to bus tables and manage the trash.

We Kingfishers are proud to help out SCELP, whose mission is to provide legal assistance to all who want to protect our natural resources or are threatened by environmental degradation in our state. “These last ten months have been life-altering for us all,” says Amy Armstrong, executive director of SCELP. “We must act together to preserve and safeguard South Carolina’s Wild Side.” Kingfishers are proud to help out SCELP, whose mission is to provide legal assistance to all who want to protect our natural resources or are threatened by environmental degradation in our state. Thank you to TGS volunteers Nico, Isaac, Ethan, Sagel, Alivia, Annika and of course to Mrs. Patrick and Dr. Neubauer.

On Wednesday, May 5, the Personal Finance class took a field to trip to PoBoy’s Restaurant Discount to see what this small business was all about.  We were standing in front of an ugly blue machine made of cast iron near the front of the store.  It was a pot-bellied contraption with an opening at the top.  It was lined with abrasive rock, and we could see that it rotated and used steam from two valves.

“I have a prize for whoever can tell me what this is for,” said Rodney Long, who with Dwayne Christensen owns PoBoy’s Discount.  The kids debated for awhile, then T.J. came up with the correct answer. “Is it a potato peeler?”  he asked.  “Yes,” said Rodney.  “We got this bad boy from the Navy.”  He then gave T. J. the promised prize—a cafeteria serving spoon.

Finding out that there are industrial potato peelers is just one of many surprises that await the visitor to PoBoy’s.  Rodney and Dwayne deal in used restaurant equipment, a service that helps entrepreneurs get started in the restaurant business without laying out a lot of cash for freezers, stoves, and other machinery.  Rodney explained that restaurant equipment is built to last and does not depreciate in value that much, so buying used is often the best idea.  If the restaurant fails (and up to 50% of them do within five years), PoBoy’s will buy the equipment back to resell.  This allows the restaurant to recoup some of its losses.

Among the other weird and wonderful machines we saw were a bun-butterer, a hugely expensive steamer, and stand mixers that can handle a bazillion gallons of batter at one time.  There was even an abstract statue of Bob Marley with twisted metal for dreadlocks from the now-defunct Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach.

If you have a hard-to-buy-for friend or family member with a birthday coming up, check out PoBoy’s for a gift.  The strange selection of stock always has something no one would ever think of!  Thank you, Rodney, for the great tour!

On Monday, April 26, several members of the Astronomy class met Dr. Gates at East Bay Park at 8:30 in the evening.  Dr. Gates had set up the school telescope so they could look at the Moon.  In Astronomy class, the kids have been closely following all celestial events including the landing of the Mars Rover Perseverance and its helicopter Ingenuity.

This particular night was very interesting because there was a Pink Super Moon.  The Pink Super Moon appears 7% larger and 15% brighter because the moon is at its closest point to the Earth and we see it magnified through the Earth’s atmosphere.  It was a very good night for observation.

Bristol, Isadora, William, Evan, and Nathan lined up to take their turns at the telescope eyepiece.  The Moon was amazing clear and bright.  The kids could see craters and shiny patches and shadows.  Dr. Gates and Bristol were able to take some pictures with their phones through the lens.

As the Moon continued to rise, Dr. Gates turned the telescope towards the Big Dipper and focused it on the star at the end of the “handle.”  Through the telescope, the kids could see that this star is really two stars (Mizar and Alcor).  Mizar and Alcor revolve around each other—they are called a binary.

The Astronomy moon watch broke up a little after 9:00, when clouds began to cover Mars and spoil the view.  Thank you, Dr. Gates, for setting up the cool viewing.

With the world on pause, it’s been hard for everyone to do exciting activities and events. However, the pandemic has not stopped us from showing our artistic abilities. TGS art students participated in the Horry-Georgetown County High School 21st Annual Juried Exhibition, keeping up with a tradition Mrs. Patrick started in 2013.  High school students who entered had a chance to have their artwork chosen for the prestigious show.

This year, ninth-grader Sagel Springs got in with an amazing painting entitled “Transition.”  The work began as an art assignment which asked students to create a self-portrait with acrylic paint.  Sagel knew that was the one to be submitted to the art show as soon as it was finished. 

“This piece is about the huge changes I’ve made in daily life to find myself.” Sagel says. “Honestly, this portrait means a lot to me not just as an artist but as a person.”

The exhibition will be on display at the Myrtle Beach Art Museum and online from April 13-May 22.  Artist and educator Yvette L. Cummings will judge all the entries. Cummings received her MFA at the University of Cincinnati’s School of Design, Art, Architecture and Planning. She is currently teaching at Coastal Carolina University.  The date for the awards ceremony has not yet been announced.

“Getting into the exhibition felt good,” Sagel says. “This is the first art show I’ve not been rejected from.”  At TGS, we are proud to have students who can freely express themselves. Congratulations to Sagel and Mrs. Patrick!

                                                                                                By Sage

Kingfishers celebrated William Shakespeare’s 457^th birthday on April 23 by donning Shakespeare Festival tee shirts and eating cupcakes provided by Mrs. Crosby.  We are sad not to have been able to host the American Shakespeare Center this year for the Georgetown Shakespeare Festival.  But students still enjoyed the Bard’s sonnets and Romeo and Juliet this spring in class.  The eighth grade even acted out several scenes involving sword-fighting. Thank you, Mrs. Crosby!

On a warm and sunny March afternoon, Kingfishers welcomed spring by having a Craziest Golf Outfit contest. The event was organized by the Kingfisher Crew (led by Ms. Sandy, Ms. Mahi, and Ms. Sheila) and was designed to publicize our Crazy Legs Golf Tournament among parents and students.  Students wore their most hilarious golf outfits to school and got out of class early for the celebration.

Many people had personalized their outfits in unforgettable ways—Gracin with flowered leggings, Mason with a green skirt, Bryan with a enormous pants, Evan with s Solo cup, Dr. Gates with knickers, Jackson D. with some sort of tam o’shanter.  Middle School really got into dressing up.

Kingfishers burst out of class to the front lawn at 2:30 and saw tables set up with chips and drinks and bubbles for them to enjoy, plus prizes for the winners in the categories of Cheesiest (a package of Velveeta), Hammiest (a canned ham) and Craziest Overall (a large plastic bottle full of coins).  After a short parade of contestants, the winners turned out to be Evan (Cheesiest), Gracin (Hammiest), and Nathan (Craziest).

Not only did the winners get something out of this, but so did the spectators. Families who attended learned more about the golf tournament and signed up as volunteers.  Students got a good snack and a fun contest.  Kingfishers really enjoyed the afternoon antics.

                                                                                                By Emily P.