Letter to the Editor

Edgefield Civic League Needs Your Help

Surprising to many, the Edgefield Civic League (ECL) continues to be very active.  We are mainly working behind the scenes and there are some folks that don’t even suspect that we exist.

The Edgefield Welcome Center, The Old Edgefield District Genealogical Society, and the Cemetery Association make up the ECL.  All three (3) of these organizations work out of the Welcome Center building and is managed by an ECL Board of Directors.  These organizations are non-profit and staffed mainly by community volunteers.  Most of the budgets required to operate the three (3) organizations are from donations.  Each organization has a separate budget.  The donations pay for a variety of expenses and are earmark according to the organization receiving the donation.  Some of the expenses include mortgage on the building, utilities, renovations on the building, supplies, and an office director’s salary.  There is also constant cemetery maintenance and upkeep.  We are extremely busy!

Our most urgent need is for volunteers.  The Genealogical Society has the opportunity to bring in substantial monies on a monthly basis which would enable the society to be more solvent.  Unbeknown to most townspeople, the Genealogical Society receives requests weekly from individuals all over the world searching for Edgefield family history.  The Society would add $25.00 per request to its monthly income.  Unfortunately, we cannot provide the service because we don’t have the manpower to fulfill the requests.  A huge backlog existed for months until the service was suspended.

We are reaching out to anyone who has free time during the week and would enjoy research.  There are wonderful volunteers already at the Welcome Center waiting to help you get started.  The research provides enjoyment not only to the recipients but also to those doing the research.  Edgefield is full of history!

Please contact us today if you are interested – your time and your presence will be greatly appreciated – around the world!

Doug Timmerman
President ECL
803-637-4010 & 4011