Features

OCEAN ISLE BEACH—Flags at town hall are being flown at half staff as the town mourns the loss of a beloved friend and public servant.

Mayor Pro Tem Charlie “C.D.” Delano Blythe, 74, died on Tuesday, Sept. 4, at Brunswick Novant Medical Center.

Blythe was a long-time public servant for the people of Ocean Isle Beach. He was thought of as a friend and confidant by many who knew him.

Take off your apron and turn off the stove, it’s time to get out of the house and let someone else cook for a change.

The Taste of Home Cooking School, sponsored by The Brunswick Beacon, is set for Saturday, Sept. 15, at the Odell Williamson Auditorium on the campus of Brunswick Community College in Bolivia.

The event begins at 3:30 p.m. for VIP ticket holders with a vendor show. General admission ticket-holders are admitted at 4 p.m. The vendor show concludes at 5:30 p.m., just in time for the cooking show, which starts at 6 p.m.

SUNSET BEACH—Alabama Theatre entertainer Greg Rowles is coming to Sunset Beach on Sept. 8 to present a concert of Christian music.

The church’s annual Country Fair event, this year featuring “Greg Rowles & Friends in Concert,” is at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary of Seaside United Methodist Church, 1300 Seaside Road SW. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 10 and younger.

VARNAMTOWN—At 95, Weston Varnam has finally retired from building boats.

But it wasn’t that long ago the former Varnamtown-area shrimp boat captain was building boats large and small.

“His daddy [Johnnie Varnam] was a boat builder,” Mary Varnam, Varnam’s wife of 65 years, said as the two relaxed in the carport at their home on Stone Chimney Road near Varnamtown.

“My daddy was a boat builder, my uncle was a boat builder,” Varnam said, relaying the skill runs in the family.

The renowned Raleigh Ringers are coming to Sunset Beach to perform in concert Saturday, Aug. 25.

The concert is scheduled for 7 p.m. in the sanctuary of Seaside United Methodist Church, 1300 Seaside Road (N.C. 904).

Tickets are $15 and available through the church office or online at www.seasideumc.org. Tickets will also be available at the door.

CAROLINA SHORES—Brunswick Community College’s new South Brunswick Islands Center is ready for more community events now that county water line installation is complete.

The center, which opened in December, had been restricted to having classes and other BCC-sponsored events until water lines were installed, SBIC director Gaye Varnam Fulford said.

The facility has gotten the go-ahead from the fire marshal and is now fully operational, according to BCC officials.

SUNSET BEACH—It blows, it flows, and can be quite a hair-raising experience.

In the midst of the season, a new hurricane simulator has descended on Ingram Planetarium.

For just $2 a pop, visitors can enter the eye of the storm inside the dome of the simulator set up inside the planetarium’s Paul Dennis Science Hall.

The simulator’s hurricane-force winds are predicted to reach 70-plus-per-hour, described as an “incredible blast of fun.”

The simulated storm lasts about 60 seconds.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road to Odell Williamson Auditorium this weekend for Brunswick Little Theatre’s debut performances of “The Wizard of Oz.”

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, July 27 and July 28, and Aug. 3 and 4; and at 3 p.m. Sunday, July 29, and Aug. 5 in Odell Williamson Auditorium on the campus of Brunswick Community College.

The local production, based on L. Frank Baum’s classic story, is from a book adaptation of the renowned 1939 MGM motion picture screenplay, complete with music and lyrics.

Editor’s note: This is the next installment in a year-long series reflecting on the history of The Brunswick Beacon, which turns 50 years old this year. Twice each month, we will bring readers a glimpse into the past.

Top headlines from 1988

•Sentencing for 37 people indicted for cocaine trafficking in Brunswick County continued.

•In January the county was blanketed with heavy snowfall as the winter proved to be the coldest in years.