I've lived here all my life and what you've said is so far from the truth. Maybe 20 years ago that would have described Seneca, but not now.
For the last 15 or so years we've had an amazing sheriff whose war on drugs has cleaned this town up. Sure we still drugs, what city doesn't. But Sheriff Crenshaw has made this one of the safest counties in the state. Our graduation rate and college degree rates get higher every year. We have an amazing teaching hospital that recently attracted a rock star general surgeon that pretty much could have chosen any hospital in the country and he chose Seneca. We have one of the best colleges in the country right door. We are located right in the middle of several large lakes and the Blue Ridge Mountains. There are tons of things to do here outdoor activities, jazz on the alley, jeep runs, motorcycle runs, BBQ cook off, rally shows, restaurants, water sports, go carts, laser tag, mini golf, gyms, indoor pool and sports complex, church functions, fire works several times a year, the Blue Ridge Arts Center, white water rafting, hiking trails, water falls....the list goes on and on.
As for jobs, there are places begging for employees. And working in fast food is nothing to sneeze at in our small town since they pay between $13 and $15/hr to start. Add that to our low cost of living and it's not bad. As for factories? When were you here last? There aren't but a few factories left and the ones that are pay dang good money.
If so many women in this town don't work/never worked then why is it that I can't think of a single women I've known my entire 50 years who fits that description?
The entire country went through a period where job security was a thing of the past. But that ended quite a few years ago here. Sure we are an at will state, but with so many needing workers employers are afraid to fire anyone as long as they show up and work. You would have to do something bad to get fired.
You can aspire to be almost anything here. A doctor, nurse, EMT, lawyer, accountant, IT professional, business owner, banker, professor, teacher...the sky and your imagination are your only limitations.
I would say based on your attitude and frequent replies to people on here that you were the problem. Because no, we natives are nothing like you described. We may sometimes be shy or unsure of new people but that is because the huge influx of people moving here from Florida in the 90s and early 2000s were mean and arrogant. They took over lake keowee and didn't want the locals anywhere near it. They built houses that cost 500k and up, driving up property costs, they wanted to change every thing about Seneca to make it like the places they were in a hurry to get out of. They drove expensive cars, wore expensive clothes and jewelry and yet they pulled out their food stamps at the grocery stores. That was during a time when factories were leaving and the locals were hurting.
And we were treated like trash by many of them. I was in high school and remember a lady cussing me out in the drive thru because she ordered a hot dog and we put chili on it...which is how it's served in the south. You either order a hot dog, a chili dog (no wiener) or a hot dog no chili (what she wanted). And instead of just saying what she wanted so I could fix her a new one she came in and called me a retarded uneducated bleep.. I was 16 and she in her 50s or 60s. I was cussed out for serving a man sweet tea when he didn't specify unsweetened. It's common now to specify sweet or unsweetened but back then sweet tea was the norm. In fact the unsweetened tea was usually in a 1 gallon jug because it was that uncommon. You can blame that first influx of transplantees... the 1st halfbacks who hated FL so they moved halfway back and chose here for the way the locals act towards newcomers.
Many of us still have scars from that time period, so we are still skittish when it comes to new comers. All you have to do is make the first step and we will be glad to talk to you. And yes we may still be wary until we get to know you better. But it's not that we hate outsiders. It's that we're scared of getting burnt again.
One of my best friends moved here from NJ about 20 years ago when the scars were still fresh. She made the first move to make friends and yes at first I was wary. But it didn't take long to realize she was a good person and we've been friends ever since. When I finally told her why I wasn't sure of her in the beginning and why I was hard to get to know she understood, she even apologized for how others had treated me when she was nothing like them.
We are open to change as long as it doesn't destroy the small town feel which is what most people come to love about the upstate. The quiet, laid back, small town feeling.
Kimberly |
Seneca, SC |
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