Mission
Our mission is to promote the visibility of the LGBTQ+ community in the Lowcountry by educating society, honoring our heritage, advocating for our culture and celebrating our diverse community.
Purpose
Our purpose is to highlight the uniqueness and diversity of our community through distinct events throughout the year promoting our history and culture, including the annual Lowcountry Pride Parade and Celebration Festival (also referred to as the “Annual Pride Event”).
MELIS launched her accessory business in 2001. She has always been an artist since she was very young with a desire to work with her hands painting, sculpting and designing. MELIS has expanded the line over the years with new line additions from whatever creatively speaks to her. Originally from Dallas, Texas and now settled in Phoenix, after graduating with a degree in Merchandising and Fashion Promotion and a minor in Business from the University of Arizona. She creates accessories that encourage you to “bring out YOUR inner Rockstar ” because she feels everyone has an inner Rockstar and you only need one special accessory to bring it out!
MELIS recently went through her own personal journey which has lead her on a new path of positivity and happiness. She sees her life through new eyes with each day bringing so much growth and gratitude. As she followed her new path, her designing grew with her creating her line ENERGIE. The line is created with positive healing energies and messages. If you can begin each day with positivity and are kind to yourself and others, you begin a new path of happiness and healing that is contagious to those around you. She can now share this journey with you in hopes of creating new change and positive thinking with her accessories. Melis always says – Positive ENERGIE is Contagious!
Some of her jewelry has been gifted to celebrities including Sheryl Crow, Faith Hill, Nancy O’Dell, Jewel, Samantha Harris, Eric Clapton and ZZ Top.
Michael Smalls, a a 7th-generation basket weaver, inherited the art from his great grandmother during his childhood. For the last 15 years, he has dedicated himself to both practicing and educating others about the craft.
Originating within the Gullah culture, sweetgrass basket weaving traces its roots back to enslaved West Africans who brought the technique from Sierra Leone to the southeastern United States. Initially a utilitarian skill, it has transformed into an esteemed art form over time. Smalls is deeply committed to nurturing and safeguarding this tradition, investing considerable effort into its preservation and advancement.
Sallie Ann Robinson is an American cookbook author, celebrity chef and cultural historian. A native of Daufuskie Island, South Carolina, she is noted for her knowledge of Gullah traditions and history.
In her own words:
I am a sixth generation native of Daufuskie Island. I love my life on Daufuskie Island. It has always been my home, and it is where I grew up learning the tough love way of life. The Gullah people were and still are proud people that live life off the land from their gardens, the woods and the ocean which were skills they learned at a young age and did things they would never forget. Their way of life was simple and sometimes hard, working to meet their day-to-day needs, not their wants. They were taught manners and respect for all, something I am proud to still use to this day. My childhood gave me treasures of a lifetime, thanks to my ancestors and folks that are gone, but not forgotten. My experience about Daufuskie is a lifetime of knowledge as a native. I have given tours on Daufuskie for many years sharing the history of my family and what life was like then and now.
