Family & The South: Your New Family Is Right Next Door
August 30, 2021
Many of us are drawn to the South, for its great weather and yes we are going to mention the beaches. But oftentimes it’s more than that, there is a sense of community and family in this lifestyle choice. Family-friendly suburbs like Mount Pleasant, SC have much to offer new residents looking for a place where people will welcome you into their circle, if you only seek it out. As we say in our family, in Mount Pleasant, if you don’t want to meet new people, you wont! If you want to meet new people, and you put yourself out there, you will not just meet new people, you will meet new friends that will become your family away from family.
Our family knows this well. We moved to Mount Pleasant, SC from New Jersey and left our families behind so that we could provide a better life for our children as they began elementary school. We were seeking opportunities for them to make friends, experience what a class field trip was all about, bring in cupcakes on your birthday to school, and play outside until the sun was setting. All of those things, yes sounding cliche, were no longer allowed or practiced in New Jersey. In our previous neighborhood, even putting ourselves out there to meet our neighbors, we never interacted with any of them more than twice in almost 3 years. Little did we know what we would find when we moved into the master-planned community of Carolina Park.
When you hear “master-planned,” you would probably think “cookie cutter.” Well, some of that may be true with a finite amount of builders building homes throughout the neighborhood, but truly when you think “master-plan,” think more of the BIG MAN UPSTAIRS’ master-plan. The communities are developed to encourage you to get out in your front yard, on your front porch, and interact with your neighbors. Community engagements happen monthly, if not weekly. You can quickly meet new friends and neighbors, your kids each becoming quick friends, and even find yourself leaning on each other as if they are family – because they are!
We unfortunately found this out when I had to have spinal fusion surgery this past summer. Our family was going to be without Dad for a few weeks as I convalesced in bed. However, the neighbors/family rallied the troops! Our friends/family/neighbors started a food drive that ensured we had dinner provided nightly for 4 weeks to help ease the stress on my wife. There were even those that chose to provide monetary donations if they were not going to be in the area. It was an amazing outpouring of support, class & grace from individuals who all moved to the neighborhood in search of the same things – the ability to slow down & focus on family, forget about “keeping up with the Jones,'” and build a community.
Keep this account in mind if you’re asking, “can we do it?” “Is it possible to leave our family?” You will not only find that your family may in fact join you (be prepared for that), but you will find a new family, a new community, a new way of life here in the south that you had always dreamed of!
