Still waiting for the calls to close Gold’s Gym.
Via Charleston Post and Courier:
Boone Hall in Mount Pleasant will not host the Battle of Secessionville Civil War re-enactment planned for November because it would happen too soon after the shooting deaths of nine people at the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, a spokesman for the plantation said Tuesday.
“We gave this decision very serious consideration and after consulting with community leaders and discussing this with event Chairman Randy Burbage, we decided to show honor and respect to the victims of the recent tragedy and give the community time to heal,” Rick Benthall, Boone Hall marketing director, said in a statement emailed Tuesday.
“It was a difficult decision as Boone Hall’s association with this event has been long standing, but one we made and think is best on behalf of Boone Hall and the Charleston community at this time,” Benthall said.
This would have been the 25th anniversary of the three-day event that draws hundreds from around the country, Burbage said. The Confederate Heritage Trust Inc. sponsors the re-enactment.
Burbage said he got the news Monday in a meeting with Boone Hall management.
“We had a long heartfelt discussion. They (Boone Hall) decided it was best for the community not to have their event this year,” he said.
The decision hit him hard, Burbage said.
“I feel like a member of my family died. I was pretty down in the dumps yesterday. I’ve just got to move on with things. I’m not mad with Boone Hall. It’s certainly a difficult decision for them to make. I certainly have to respect their opinion on what to do because it’s their property,” he said.
Burbage said it’s not likely the re-enactment will happen somewhere else this year.
“At this point we don’t know what we are going to do. It’s only a few months out and the logistics of it with that many people involved would be a nightmare. We’re just going to plan for next year,” he said.[…]
The Battle of Secessionville took place on June 16, 1862, at Fort Lamar on James Island. The Confederates’ victory over Union forces in the largest battle fought in South Carolina kept the Union from establishing a point on James Island from which to bombard Charleston.