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<\/p>\nEvery day, hundreds of people in our community, mostly without recognition, get out and do the work it takes to keep hundreds of non-profits and churches functioning and able to fulfill their missions. Murrells Inlet resident, Karen Sinkway, is one of those dedicated volunteers. Outgoing, friendly and quick to laugh, Karen has channeled her love for animals, art, music and people into an incredible variety of volunteer work \u2013 all with a lasting impact. \u201cBefore the quarantine, I had something to do almost every day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Widowed, Karen lives alone with her two dogs, a cavashon and a poodle. Her poodle is still a puppy and his antics have kept her busy and entertained over the past months of quarantine while much of her volunteer work was on hold. \u201cMy late husband, Jim, and I moved here in 2002 from Bucks County in Pennsylvania,\u201d Karen began. \u201cOur daughter, Rebecca, was 11 at the time. She is married now and lives in Myrtle Beach. I also have a stepson, James, who lives in Surfside Beach with his wife, Holly.\u201d Karen\u2019s two grandsons, James\u2019 sons, are currently attending the College of Charleston.<\/p>\n
Before Karen retired, she worked at Brookgreen Gardens, serving as an Interpreter for history tours, and eventually becoming former CEO, Bob Jewell\u2019s executive assistant for 4 \u00bd years before his retirement. \u201cAround the time Bob retired, Jim\u2019s health had declined and I couldn\u2019t work any longer,\u201d Karen remembered.<\/p>\n
\u201cI studied history, biology and art history in college, and was a French language major,\u201d Karen told me as she shared her love of Brookgreen. \u201cIt fits in perfectly with my interests.\u201d Karen and Jim had visited Brookgreen as tourists before they moved here permanently, and soon after their move, the family became members. \u201cI\u2019ve always done a lot of volunteer work for our church also, which kept me busy while I was working.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all want our community to be a better place to live and work,\u201d Karen said when I asked her why she decided to devote so much of her time to volunteering. \u201cYou meet wonderful people, have a lot of fun and give back \u2013 it\u2019s a win-win!\u201d After Jim passed, Karen joined the Friends of Brookgreen, a volunteer organization that holds special fundraisers for the non-profit twice a year. \u201cAfter I joined, they decided I should be the chair for our Brew at the Zoo fundraiser.\u201d Karen laughed at this, but told me it was a lot of fun and very successful. \u201cWe raised $27,000 last year!\u201d<\/p>\n
I was fascinated by Karen\u2019s work in Brookgreen\u2019s Frog Watch Group. This group helps scientists gauge the health of our environment through counting the calls of various species of frogs and toads. \u201cWe are citizen scientists,\u201d Karen said proudly. \u201cWe had to study and be certified to provide data to the AZA (Association of Zoos and Aquariums).\u201d Karen learned to identity frog and toad calls and would sit outside every night, recording what she heard. \u201cAmphibians are very susceptible to the health of the environment. I would record the temperature and the weather as well as the number of calls.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brookgreen\u2019s current exhibit of Bruce Munro\u2019s light installations, Southern Light, includes a frog exhibit, complete with lights and the sounds of frogs, and Karen helped with the installation. \u201cYou can hear the real frogs, too, when you\u2019re out there!\u201d<\/p>\n
Even when time doesn\u2019t allow her to volunteer, Karen\u2019s sense of community has an impact. When Karen and Jim decided to move to Murrells Inlet, Rebecca was, at first, not happy to leave her home and friends. \u201cWe promised her horseback riding lessons,\u201d Karen said. \u201cShe had always been fascinated with horses, and I taught horseback riding during the summers while I was in college, so we were both excited.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sophie, Rebecca\u2019s horse, had a serious leg injury a few years ago and while she can no longer show, she is perfect as a therapy horse. \u201cSophie now lives at Barnabas Horse Foundation where she\u2019s been a therapy horse for six years.\u201d Karen added that Sophie and a friend\u2019s horse, named Lady, volunteered at two of Brookgreen\u2019s Kentucky Derby fundraising events providing photo ops for the guests.<\/p>\n
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As Karen and I continued to chat, I was amazed by her list of talents, and how she so willingly shares them with all of us. \u201cI\u2019ve always sung in church choirs and sang with the Coastal Choral locally. When we lived in Tennessee, I sang with the Nashville Symphony Chorus and in Pennsylvania, the Pittsburg Oratorical Society.\u201d While Karen\u2019s church, St. Paul\u2019s Waccamaw United Methodist, is not having services at the time of this interview, she is still involved, recently recording a duet to be aired during a virtual service. And, there\u2019s more. Also through her church, Karen belongs to a group, Blankets for Babies, that knits blankets, sweaters and caps for an organization in Georgetown.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI dabble in a little bit of this and that,\u201d Karen laughed when I asked her what else she did. \u201cI took my first sculpture class last year and it turns out I have a knack for it. I think if you\u2019re interested in something, you should pursue it. We get complacent staying at home. It\u2019s easy to fall into depression or lethargy if you don\u2019t keep moving.\u201d<\/p>\n
Karen told me that her mother, age 93, has only stopped volunteering because of the quarantine. \u201cShe\u2019s always volunteered with the symphony and still supports them, even at her age. She keeps moving and is still driving and lives alone with her dog.\u201d Laughing, Karen said, \u201cShe has been complaining she can\u2019t get her bridge club together because of COVID-19.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first time I remember volunteering, I was vacationing in Florida with my parents. They were looking at a brochure, and I slipped away and volunteered myself to hold a five foot indigo snake around my neck.\u201d Karen chuckled and said that was not something her mother would have done! \u201cI really love all animals, but I think dogs and horses are my favorite.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe quarantine has helped me relax a little,\u201d Karen admitted. \u201cThese days, my social life is going to my neighborhood park in Wachesaw.\u201d Residents are allowed to bring their dogs every afternoon and Karen enjoys seeing dogs of every size and breed. \u201cWe all chat outside at a safe distance.\u201d<\/p>\n
As we finished our interview, Karen shared some of her personal philosophy that keeps her active and volunteering as much as possible. \u201cI believe some of the problems we have today are because people isolate themselves and don\u2019t get involved. It\u2019s easy to get suspicious of others \u2013 the more you are involved in your community, the more you understand it. People who are retired should volunteer. And have pets! Both will bring you joy.\u201d<\/p>\n
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