Drive to raise funds for trail

The Palmetto Conservation Foundation — the driving force behind the Palmetto Trail — is kicking off an effort to build a $1 million endowment fund, which will help develop and maintain the eventual 425-mile trail that will run from Awendaw to Oconee.

"As we add new and exciting pieces of the trail, our maintenance responsibilities grow. If we are to keep the Palmetto Trail among the best in the nation, we have to keep on top of improvements or problems. The endowment fund will allow us to do this," says Ken Driggers, executive director of the foundation.

Toward that end, the foundation recently acknowledged major gifts from Time Warner Cable and BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina.

Time Warner Cable, the second-largest cable operator in the United States and the largest in South Carolina with more than 433,000 customers, developed a public service announcement that began airing in October in the Columbia, Florence, Myrtle Beach, Summerville and Hilton Head areas.

Through mid-December, more than 7,750 spots had been shown with an in-kind value of $775,000. The company will continue showing the promotion through September. The spot already has proven to be invaluable to the foundation, bringing many inquiries and new memberships to the organization.

With the trail offering the state an opportunity to fight the obesity epidemic, the foundation approached BlueCross about making a major contribution toward the endowment.

BlueCross responded with a $100,000 donation, considered to be the "cornerstone" of the endowment.

The foundation plans to promote the trail as a means of encouraging exercise and combating obesity in adults and children and is in the process of a three-tiered program called "Passport to Fitness," which eventually would offer a curriculum to include children, adults and seniors.

In addition to corporate donations, the foundation has developed a way in which South Carolinians can join the movement to endow the trail.

Individuals can contribute to the endowment by purchasing an "honorary share" of the trail. The trail is being sold in shares of 1/100th of a mile, with each share costing $25. Purchasers receive a "stock certificate" recognizing their ownership and listing the GPS coordinates of their purchase. In addition, purchasers may request that their share be in a specific passage of the trail.

To learn how to become part of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and/or to sign up for a share, go to palmettotrail.org or call the organization at 803-771-0870.

-- David Quick