Always the Season to Give

by Melissa LaScaleia

Mickey Davis and her husband Norton have been spending their winters in Myrtle Beach for the past decade. 

“Because it’s winter and there are less tourists here, I notice the unemployment,” she says. “And because of the unemployment, I noticed the lack of food. My son is a food director for the Burlington, Vermont schools, and for years he’s heard about the kids who go home after their lunch on Friday and don’t eat again until Monday when they come to school. And the same thing happens in South Carolina.” 

As a career, Mickey was involved in social work, so she’s always tried to help others in one capacity or another. 

When she first started coming to Myrtle Beach, she decided to start a food collection box at Ocean’s One Resort, where she stays for the winter. She notified her friends in the resort so they could spread the word, and when the box was full, Mickey would deliver it to the Myrtle Beach chapter of the Lowcountry Food Bank. The box is still there, arriving the first week in December or so, when Mickey gets to town. 

“Across the country, 1 out of every 7 people needs a food bank to get the extra food that they’re missing,” she says. “That’s a lot of people.” 

Mickey decided to do more. She began a small craft show in the hotel, held every December. Instead of asking people to pay money to be in the show, the vendors bring food donations for the Food Bank, and attendees bring food donations as their admission ticket. 

“There had also been a small craft show at another hotel that I participated in as a vendor for a couple of years,” Mickey says. “When the hotel canceled it, I decided that I would start my own to benefit the Food Bank. I didn’t know anybody, but asked around and was referred to the Rec Center in the Market Common.” 

Because it was a non-profit event and Mickey was asking for the space for free, she contacted the town supervisor for assistance, asking the city to co-sponsor the event with her. She was approved almost immediately. She began advertising for vendors, and at the first show she secured sixty-five crafters. 

“After the first fair, the Rec Center gained the notice of people who had never known it was there,” she says. “People began booking the space to host their own private parties, weddings, and functions. Within two years, the rec center was open full time. I was so pleased that they benefited from the craft fair being there because they were so generous in supporting our cause, donating their space, printing all our flyers, and even donating free coffee.”