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U.S. Senator Jim DeMint
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Columbia’s 22nd Annual Greek Festival
Posted by Ian Headley 09/24/2008 - 10:35:51 AM
In between taking a few phone calls supporting the Senator’s drive to get more American-made energy and writing some thank you notes, I noticed quite a crowd gathering across from the office building that houses the Senator’s Columbia office.

2008 Greek Festival - View From the Office
A view of Columbia's 2008 Greek Festival from the DeMint office


I had heard a radio announcement on the commute into Columbia this morning so I knew it must be the annual Columbia Greek Festival. Every year the festival is held at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church on Sumter Street in Columbia. So for lunch I and a few fellow staffers headed over for some delicious gyros!

2008 Greek Festival - Volunteer
A Greek Festival volunteer hard at work...


Even if you aren’t a big fan of gyros, there is lots more great food to enjoy.

And if you go be sure to check out some of the great music and shopping!

2008 Greek Festival - Sculptures
Greek sculpture for sale at the annual festival


2008 Greek Festival - Music
A local band performs Greek music at the festival



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Intern Spotlight: Jennifer Lundy
Posted by Ian Headley 07/25/2008 - 11:15:56 AM
Throughout the year, but most especially in the summer, Sen. DeMint's Columbia office plays host to interns looking to experience life working for a U.S. senator. From time to time we like to shine the spotlight on these rising young stars who add so much to the combined efforts of Team DeMint.

Introducing Jennifer Lundy:


Hello, I am Jennifer Lundy from Lexington, South Carolina. I am interning in Sen. DeMint’s Columbia office for the summer. I interned with the senator in Washington, D.C. last summer, and I am super excited to be back in the office! This summer has allowed me to see the other side of a senator’s office, the side that helps constituents with needs and concerns. Having the opportunity to help the constituents of South Carolina has been a great pleasure.

I have always loved politics and having the opportunity to intern in senator's office is the experience of a lifetime. I am a rising Junior at Sweet Briar College, a small women’s college in Virginia, with a major in government, focusing on counterterrorism, and a double minor in dance and communications. My ultimate goal is to be elected president of the United States. I have a passion for helping others and speaking out for what I know is right, and I feel that through this position I can help the most people and truly make a difference in the world. Other than academics, I am the Sweet Briar College Student Government Association Secretary, a hostess for the Admissions Office, and I am involved in many other things around campus.

Besides interning for the senator, I am taking a summer class in microeconomics, hanging out with my amazing best friends, dancing, catching up on my reading, and just enjoying the lovely South Carolina summer!
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50th Annual Lexington County Peach Festival
Posted by Ian Headley 07/08/2008 - 11:06:50 AM
Gilbert Water Tower

Lexington County is known for its summer festivals. There’s the Pelion Peanut Party, the Gaston Collard Festival, the Chapin Labor Day Parade, the Irmo Okra Strut and on and on...

There are so many it’s hard to pick a favorite, but the Peach Festival is definitely in the running as far as I'm concerned!

The festival has been taking place in Gilbert since 1958. But even before World War II, there has been a community gathering in Gilbert around the 4th of July. As local lore has it, in the days before television, there was a big stump meeting for all the politicians every year at the Gilbert train depot.

Gilbert Train Depot

While there are still plenty of politicians that ride in the parade, the focus remains on “the queen of fruits.”

Sheriff Metts in the Lexington Peach Festival Parade

There are baskets and baskets of peaches for sale from the local peach orchards.

Peaches, Peaches and more Peaches

Even though there is nothing better than a juicy peach on a hot summer day, there are plenty of ways to get your peach fix if just one peach won’t do it. You can try peach cobbler, peach ice cream, peach tea, peach slushes, peach floats and peach sundaes. The “peach delight” is a peachy delicacy (and quite tasty), but my personal favorite is the “peach zip.”

The Famous Peach Zip

I don’t really know what is in it (and the nice ladies who served me weren’t about to give up the secret recipe), but if you are lucky enough to be near Gilbert next July 4th you’d better give it a try!
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Michelin Visit
Posted by Ian Headley 06/20/2008 - 12:28:22 PM
Jim DeMint visits Lexington Michelin facility

Recently Sen. DeMint visited the Midlands and toured one of two Michelin plants located in Lexington. The two plants employ around 1,600 people.

One plant makes performance tires for high end cars, but the plant the senator visited makes giant tires that fit on huge dump trucks used at mining operations.

Catepillar 797B

These aren’t the Tonka trucks you played with when you were little. These tires go on the Caterpillar 797B Ultra-Class Mining Truck.

In fact, Michelin is the only company in the world that makes the tires for these trucks.

Michelin is known for its high quality tires, and it is a quality partner for the community of Lexington by supporting the local schools and many worthy causes.
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Intern Spotlight: Randan Swindler
Posted by Ian Headley 06/17/2008 - 09:39:09 AM
Throughout the year, but most especially in the summer, Sen. DeMint's D.C. office plays host to several interns looking to experience life in our nation's capital. Most hale from South Carolina, while a few trickle in from other parts of the country. Over the next few days we plan to spotlight the interns who have joined our staff for the month of June.

Introducing Randan Swindler of Blythewood, S.C.:


As a native South Carolinian, it is my privilege to be working in our nation’s capital with my senator, Mr. Jim DeMint. I grew up outside of Columbia in a small town called Blythewood, filled with farmland and neighbors always willing to help. After graduating from Ridge View High School I began my journey into the real world by enrolling at The University of South Carolina. For the past three years I have been studying English literature and political science, both of which continue to captivate my interest.

As my admiration for politics began to bloom, I applied to work within state government as an intern for Gov. Mark Sanford. This experience proved to be truly beneficial in helping me apply the concepts from the classroom into the reality of South Carolina’s government. During my tenure with Gov. Sanford I decided I wanted to spend my last summer as an undergrad working in Washington, D.C. I was thrilled to be invited to work with Sen. DeMint and his staff and looked forward to experiencing a little bit of the south while I was away from home.

Thus far my experience in D.C. has provided me with a small insight into the workings of our national government. I am happy to report that Sen. DeMint is just as humble and kind as everyone back home described him, with a staff that continues to exemplify these characteristics through their own benevolence. Over the next eight weeks I look forward to fully grasping all that this office does to ensure the success of both South Carolina and the great people who call it home.
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Intern Spotlight: Virginia Roach
Posted by Ian Headley 06/16/2008 - 09:34:22 AM
Throughout the year, but most especially in the summer, Sen. DeMint's D.C. office plays host to several interns looking to experience life in our nation's capital. Most hale from South Carolina, while a few trickle in from other parts of the country. Over the next few days we plan to spotlight the interns who have joined our staff for the month of June.

Introducing Virginia Roach from Columbia, S.C.:


Hello. I am a rising junior at Sewanee, where I am majoring economics and minoring in business. I am excited about this upcoming month in D.C and anticipate an enlightening, enjoyable experience in Sen. DeMint’s office.

As an economics major, I am interested in issues concerning our economy and banking system as well as international trade. Not only am I eager to learn more about the politics of business in the United States, but I also hope to visit monuments, museums and memorials around the capital city. I plan to take full advantage of the educational opportunities that the city offers and am especially interested in visiting the Library of Congress and the Jefferson Memorial. An internship on Capitol Hill is such an amazing opportunity and I look forward to an enriching, exciting month ahead.


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Ooh-Rah! Team DeMint Attends ‘Marine Day’ at Quantico
Posted by Ian Headley 06/04/2008 - 11:36:45 AM
DeMint Staff, Marine Day 2008
Team DeMint (Ian Headley, Kelly Long, Chris Socha, Jennifer Rook and Ashley Holbrook)
poses with our fearless leader for the day, Sgt. LeMarche.

Last month, congressional staffers were invited to attend “Marine Day” in Quantico, Va. Several DeMint staffers joined up with a few Graham staffers to spend a day getting a better understanding of the role our U.S. Marines play in defending our country. To say we were impressed barely covers it. We heard stories from men and women who had deployed one, two, even three times. We saw the state-of-the-art equipment our Marines use to protect our freedom, and we even got hands-on experience with some of that equipment.

Some of us may have woken up that Friday morning with more working knowledge of the Marine Corps than others….but we all left that Friday night with a heightened understanding of what it means to be a Marine and renewed appreciation for those who give up so much to serve our country. We are proud of our Marines and we were honored to spend the day with them!

Marine Day Meal 2 Marine Day Meal
We feasted on “delicious” Meals Ready to Eat produced in Mullins, S.C.
(You haven’t lived until you’ve seen people fight over a strawberry milkshake that consists of powdered milk and lukewarm water.)


Marine Day Speaker
South Carolina native, Brig. Gen. Mike Regner, welcomes visitors to Quantico.

Marine Day

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Hollywood Comes to Town
Posted by Ian Headley 05/06/2008 - 11:50:20 AM
There has been a bit of buzz around Columbia lately about the movie “Nailed.” The movie stars Jake Gyllenhaal as a corrupt congressman.

The film is set in Washington, D.C. The problem for the producers of the film is that movies are no longer allowed to be filmed in the United States Capitol or in the House and Senate office buildings. It turns out that South Carolina’s Statehouse makes a great stand-in for our nation’s Capitol building. Problem solved.

By the way, I’ve gotten some flack for having blog posts that are too serious. Lucky for me, “Nailed” is filming at Ebenezer Lutheran Church one block from my office. Another problem solved.

I took a few minutes out of my lunch break to document a little bit of the activity Columbia is seeing. I was hunting for some of the stars that have been sighted around Columbia but couldn’t find any. I did find a lot of trucks, trailers and people working on the film though. Problem still unsolved.

View from the Bank of America Building
The view from my office of the makeshift movie lot


Shining lights through Ebenezer's stained glass window
Cranes shining movie lights through the windows of Ebenezer Lutheran Church

More trucks and trailers in the Greek Church parking lot
Makeshift movie lot... Jake Gyllenhal is nowhere to be seen.

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Aiken Leadership Visits Washington
Posted by Ian Headley 04/29/2008 - 02:47:27 PM
I had the opportunity to join a group of Aiken County community leaders on their annual trip to Washington last week.

Aiken County and its neighbors in Augusta, Ga. work closely together on issues facing the region and were both involved in this trip. This two-state region is often referred to as the Central Savannah River Area (or CSRA for short).

Because the Savannah River Site and Fort Gordon, both federal installations, are important to the CSRA, this annual trip is a good way to keep lines of communication open with the administrative agencies that run these sites. It’s also a good way for the Congressional delegation to hear first hand how the community is doing.

My boss, Sen. DeMint, addressed the group and spoke about the importance of the Savannah River Site to the nation, especially as we seek to become energy secure. Between the Savannah River National Lab and its partnership with Aiken County at the Center for Hydrogen Research, the community is at the forefront of the development of transformative technologies that hold the potential to unlocking hydrogen for use as a common power source.

The senator also spoke about legislation he is backing to make sure the federal government keeps its promise to open Yucca Mountain so that we can secure nuclear materials in one protected location rather than having them scattered around the nation.

The community also was proud of recent news that the unemployment rate in Aiken County had fallen to 4.3 percent, lower than both the state and national rates.
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Economic Opportunities Expanding in Midlands
Posted by Ian Headley 03/28/2008 - 03:15:30 PM
The Midlands received some good economic news this week.

Computer Sciences Corporation, based in Blythewood, announced a 300 employee expansion. The new employees are part of CSC’s new OnShore Delivery initiative. This new initiative will provide IT services to many of CSC’s software customers in the U.S. and around the globe. CSC has 91,000 employees worldwide and reported revenue of $16.1 Billion in 2007.

The recent announcement from Collexis Holding Inc. and now CSC demonstrate the growing information services sector in the Midlands. The Department of Commerce and the Central South Carolina Alliance deserve credit for demonstrating the ability of the Midlands to compete in the global economy for jobs that could be located anywhere in the world.
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Regional Director
Ian Headley
1901 Main St
Suite 1475
Columbia, SC 29201
Map It!

P: 803-771-6112
F: 803-771-6455
About the Regional Director
Ian Headley lives in Lexington with his wife and son. He grew up in Columbia and graduated from the University of South Carolina. When he’s not helping Sen. DeMint serve the people of South Carolina, Ian enjoys cheering on the Gamecocks.
Aiken Hampton
Allendale Jasper
Barnwell Lexington
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