Wedding & Event Venue Near Marion, SC.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – DMA Sales, LLC, an automotive body parts supplier, today announced plans to expand operations in Marion County. The company’s $5 million investment will create 30 new jobs.

Founded in 2008, DMA Sales, LLC serves original equipment suppliers (OES), big box retailers, and wholesale and e-retail sales channels. The company assists the North American sales and distribution arm for overseas manufacturing facilities and is responsible for sales, marketing, logistics and product development.

Located at Marion County Industrial Park, DMA Sales, LLC has purchased three additional buildings that will accommodate quality testing, receive inbound ocean containers and house excess inventory.

Operations are expected to be online by early September. Individuals interested in joining the DMA Sales, LLC team should email resumes to the company.

QUOTES

“In business, you cannot always control the challenges that are put in your path, but with dedicated employees who are willing to adapt, innovate and ultimately execute, there is very little that can keep you from succeeding. The people of Marion County are great examples of doing this over the years. It is one of the primary drivers in expanding our operations here in Marion County.”-DMA Sales, LLC President & CEO John Treece

“We are proud to see that DMA Sales, LLC is growing their footprint in one of our state’s rural counties. Their continued success is a testament to our state’s booming automotive industry and business climate. Congratulations to DMA Sales, LLC on their expansion in Marion County.” -Gov. Henry McMaster

“Today’s announcement shows that Marion County is a place where businesses can find continued success. We are excited for these additional job opportunities in the community and look forward to a long-lasting partnership with DMA Sales, LLC.”-Secretary of Commerce Harry M. Lightsey III

“With the third expansion over recent years, DMA Sales, LLC has proven to be an advocate of Marion County. We hope that this will send a message to any industries looking to expand in the future: Marion County is not only a place to go, but more importantly a place to grow.”-Marion County Council Chairman John Q. Atkinson

MARION COUNTY, S.C. (WPDE) — This week, a former deputy convicted in the drowning deaths of two women in a Sheriff's Office transport van laid out his case for why he wants a new trial.

In an initial brief, Stephen Flood laid out two reasons why he thinks the trial in Marion County last May was erred and swayed the jury to convict him.

Flood was convicted on both reckless homicide and involuntary manslaughter charges in the drowning deaths of Nicolette Green and Wendy Newton. The other deputy involved in the van driving into Hurricane Florence floodwaters was Joshua Bishop. Last November, Bishop was cleared of all charges as the local solicitor said there was a 'lack of evidence' to take his case to trial.

Flood’s attorneys argue that the court wrongfully allowed the jury to see drone video and pictures of the flooding taken an hour after Flood drove through the floodwaters back in September 2018.

READ MORE: Former Horry Co. deputy's charges dismissed after 2 women drowned in transport van in 2018

Flood’s attorney argued the water level had rapidly increased over time.

"There were no road signs indicating a downward slope in the road, and Appellant [Flood] believed he could not turn around and go backward due to concerns of ending up stuck in a ditch," attorneys wrote. "By the time first responders arrived by boat, the road conditions had rapidly changed where the water had risen to approximately the rood of the van."

What was shown during the trial was drone footage over the area, and that is what Flood's attorney argues was misleading to the jury.

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The State maintained that the video was, "the most relevant piece of evidence in the trial". The court sided with the State finding the evidence critical to the argument that Flood made a judgment call to continue driving into the waters.

"The condition of the flood water at the time Appellant [Flood] made the decision to continue driving and subsequently called for help -- and the probative value of this evidence was substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice because it created a tendency to suggest a decision on an improper basis," attorneys wrote.

Even though Flood was charged on both counts following the trial and sentencing, the involuntary manslaughter charges were dropped because it was determined that a person cannot be punished with two crimes for each death. Despite the charges being dropped, he was still sentenced to 18 years in prison. Flood argues that the jury was directed incorrectly by the court in this matter as well.

The appeal states the trial court reversibly erred by choosing which homicide charge to impose and sentence Flood. It also states that Flood was further prejudiced by the court’s decision to choose reckless homicide, which has a larger sentencing range compared to involuntary manslaughter.

Flood asks that the court of appeals reverse the convictions and sentence in addition to requesting a new trial in Marion County.

Lora Beth Wood went a combined five-of-seven with a run scored and three RBI. photo courtesy of Lenoir-Rhyne Athletics

In a battle of NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago, the Lenoir-Rhyne Softball team swept a key southeast regional matchup with Francis Marion on Wednesday afternoon. The two teams came into the day with a combined 35-5 record but it was the Bears that came away with two big regional wins in Hickory. Lora Beth Wood and Anna Blume homered in game one as the Bears rolled in a 10-2 win, then Kaylan Brown hit her first career homerun in a 6-4 win in the night cap to complete the sweep. Lauren Rakes got the win in the first game and recorded her second save of the season in game two.

In game one, after the Patriots got on the board with a run in top of the third, Wood hit a two-out, three-run homerun to straight away center field to give the Bears the 3-1 lead. Bears tacked on two runs in the fourth inning as Anna Blume led off the inning with a single as the senior continued her hot stretch. Blume came around to score on a Katelyn Rackard ground out then a Talon LaClair RBI single closed out the scoring.

LR continued putting up crooked numbers as the Bears put up a four spot in the fifth highlighted by Blume’s three run homerun. For the seventh time in the Bears eleven home games, LR ended the contest via the mercy rule as Lauren Rakes was hit by the pitch with the bases loaded to give the Bears the 10-2 win.

Rakes (7-1) got the win in the circle allowing just the two runs while striking out four. The top three in the lineup, Rackard, Julia Mardigian and LaClair all had two hits, one run scored and knocked in a RBI.

In game two, Rackard extended her hitting streak to a dozen with a lead-off triple on the first pitch she saw. Mardigian then drove Rackard in with a sac fly to give the Bears a 1-0 lead. It was the 11th time the Bears have scored in the first inning this season. Stepping up to the plate with two on and two out in the bottom of the second, Brown connected on her first career homerun to extend the lead to 4-0.

The game remained 4-0 until the 6th inning as the teams combined for five errors in the inning. Francis Marion scored three times but the Bears added two insurance runs off of two miscues by the Patriots. After back to back hits by Francis Marion in the 7th, Rakes came in relief of Beeler to close the game.

Beeler (9-2) went six plus allowing 4 runs (3 earned) while striking out eight including six in a row. Rackard, Wood and Faith Carrigan each had two hits in the contest.

These two teams played a 13 inning game last year with the Bears squeaking out a 5-3 win in Florence. Rakes threw a career best 10 2/3 innings in relief that day striking out 17 to earn the win.

Bears have move to 12-0 at home this season. Wall saw her 12 game hitting streak come to an end in game one. Wood has reached base in 14 straight games. Wood is hitting .513 during that stretch.

Rakes’ save in game two was her eighth career save which is one away from tying the program record.

Lenoir-Rhyne is 19-3 on the season. Bears will travel to Anderson for a key SAC doubleheader on Saturday. First-pitch is schedule for 2:00 PM from South Carolina.

FLORENCE, S.C. — The number of jobs in the Pee Dee region is growing faster than the national average, a new state analyst says, but not as fast as the state as a whole.

Since 2017, the number of jobs in the region has increased by about 3%, which is 0.7 percentage points higher than the national average but two percentage points lower than the state average, said Ashlyn Chastain.

She is the Pee Dee region’s regional labor force analyst, a role created in February by the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce to provide workforce data and analysis to local governments, employers and others who may need it.

Chastain said the labor market currently favors both employees and employers. An increase in the number of jobs is good for employees because they have more options and good for employers because they can produce more or provide more services, she said.

“Also, with that high demand for having more employees, it’s kind of forcing employers to reflect on maybe some incentivizing programs or competitive wages of sorts, and that in turn benefits the employees,” she said.

The biggest challenge facing the region’s labor market, Chastain said, is the county’s participation rate, or the percent of work-eligible people who are working or actively looking for a job.

The Pee Dee has a 51.4% participation rate, lower than South Carolina’s already low 56.3%, Chastain said.

According to Bryan Grady, the department’s assistant executive director for labor market information, South Carolina has the third-lowest participation rate in the country.

A different story is the unemployment rate, which is the percent of people in the labor force who are actively searching for a job. South Carolina had a low unemployment rate of 3.3% in December, Grady said.

The Pee Dee was close to the state average with a 3.8% unemployment rate, Chastain said.

Another challenge for the region is regrowing the leisure industry after the COVID-19 pandemic, which Grady said has been the slowest to recover.

“That has been a huge deal, particularly in the Myrtle Beach area,” he said.

Many hotels and restaurants had to lay off workers during the pandemic, and many of those workers have found higher-paying jobs since then, he said.

Now, as those businesses are rehiring, they are finding it hard to pay what workers have come to expect, Grady said.

In 2022, the average yearly wage in the Pee Dee was $54,100, which is lower than both the statewide average of $62,300 and the national average of $79,800, Chastain said.

Chastain is available to provide workforce data and research assistance to employers, jobseekers, academic professionals, technical colleges, training providers, local workforce development boards, public officials, the press and similar organizations in the Pee Dee region.

In her case, the Pee Dee region is defined by the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act as covering 13 counties: Chesterfield, Clarendon, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Georgetown, Horry, Kershaw, Lee, Marion, Marlboro, Sumter and Williamsburg.

When Bryant, Arkansas, native Whitney Brown began her studies at Southern Arkansas University, Magnolia, in 2016, she’d never heard of disc golf. In fact, Whitney assumed she’d only compete in volleyball. But Whitney’s collegiate career changed in 2018 when a friend handed her a disc and invited her to play.

Though she was new to the sport, Whitney traveled with the Mulerider club team to Marion, North Carolina, for the College Disc Golf National Championship in 2019. Despite her nerves, she ranked fifth in the Division I Women’s Individual category and Number One in the Division I Women’s Team category with teammate Madi Chitwood.

“I was like, ‘Okay, I’ve got this,’” Whitney said, chuckling as she reflected on her success.

Inspired by her performance and determined to improve, Whitney committed herself to the sport. She worked with her teammates, studied YouTube tutorials, and practiced regularly. By 2021, Whitney won her first national championship.

Fast forward to April 2022, the Mulerider disc golf team returned to Marion’s North Cove Social Club to compete for the national title. After Whitney completed the course, she knew she hadn’t played her best. So, when the officials announced a sudden-death match between the top two competitors, she didn’t respond.

“I didn’t think they were talking about me. But, everyone was like, ‘Whitney, that’s you! Go!’” Whitney said.

Whitney won on the first hole, and the rest is history. She was awarded the Ulibarri Leadership Foundation scholarship, a $4000 prize that paid for a semester of her college tuition. Additionally, Whitney competed in the men’s division and earned a bid to compete at the women’s professional level at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina.

“I was super excited. I love representing SAU and being a part of something bigger than myself,” Whitney said.

Disc golf has presented Whitney with opportunities, introducing her to life-long friends and the prospect of playing professionally. She encouraged Muleriders interested in club sports to “Just try it out!”

Director of Mulerider Activity Center and Intramurals Sarah Adcox said, “We have a great 18-hole course that is open year-round that anyone can play on, but it is tremendous that our SAU disc golf team has access to their own permanent course on campus.”

This wasn’t always the case. When the first men’s and women’s SAU disc golf teams were established in 2017, students were playing with portable baskets. In response to the game’s growing popularity, SAU President Trey Berry and Vice President for Student Affairs Dr. Donna Allen supported the installation of a permanent course. With design input from the team, the course was completed that same year.

“Our course is an amazing draw for prospective students thinking about coming to SAU to play competitive disc golf and joining the SAU disc golf team,” Adcox said.

The team is always looking for new members, has mentors available, and keeps a flexible practice schedule. Visit SAU Club Sports to learn more.