Campbell, Newhall inducted into Hilton Head Hall of Fame

Emory S. Campbell and the late Caroline “Beany” Newhall were inducted into the Hilton Head Island Hall of Fame Thursday at a luncheon at the Sonesta Resort.

Campbell was cited for preserving the region’s Gullah culture and Newhall was cited for environmental activism that helped set a tone for the community beginning in the mid-1950s.

Campbell said he has found that the Gullah culture and environmental preservation go hand in hand.

“This award will always be a reminder to me, and I hope to others, that most people want to preserve the integrity of their community and the planet Earth,” he said.

Campbell, 75, of Spanish Wells Road, has worked with the Beaufort Jasper Comprehensive Health Services, the Penn Center, the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission, and his family’s Gullah Heritage Trail Tours to bring attention to the African-American culture threatened by heavy development of the sea islands.

“Little did I know that my work in providing clean water and a safe environment for Gullah people would lead to a passion for preserving the lifestyle of people in their natural surroundings to thrive in a ‘green’ way that many are striving to do today,” he said.

He also said that, in coming days and years, “I believe the Town of Hilton Head Island and good people like you will take an unprecedented leadership in Gullah Geechee culture and its supporting environment.”

A plaque to be placed on a pedestal with other Hall of Fame members at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn reads, “Emory’s quiet voice and deft leadership skills have built a cultural bridge to help the world appreciate the true history of his native Hilton Head Island.”

Newhall, who died in 1991, helped build the island’s conservation ethic and passion for environmental protection. The Newhall Audubon Preserve and the boardwalk at the Whooping Crane Pond Conservancy are named for her.

She was represented at the luncheon by her son, Ted Newhall, of Georgia.

He gave a “top 10” list of ways she touched the community and it touched her. She worked with developers to influence construction plans; she started the Audubon Christmas Bird Count here, the first in the state; she conceived, helped build and endowed the 50-acre Audubon Newhall Preserve off Palmetto Bay Road; she did the same for the Whooping Crane Pond Conservancy boardwalk; she was instrumental in the revival of the Republican Party in Beaufort County; she was a charter member of St. Luke’s Church; she was a leader in the fight to halt the BASF petrochemical plant proposed for Victoria Bluff near Bluffton; she worked with then-Gov. John C. West on the issues of mental health and environmental protection; she received the community’s Alice Glenn Doughtie Good Citizenship Award; and she was honored with Beany Newhall Day on the island.

The Hall of Fame was established in 2012 by the Rotary Club of Hilton Head.

Past inductees are Charles E. Fraser, Fred C. Hack, Charlie Simmons Sr., Charlotte Heinrichs, Thomas C. Barnwell Jr., Billie Hack, Ben Racusin, Dr. Jack McConnell and Dr. Peter LaMotte.

This story was originally published November 10, 2016 at 4:02 PM with the headline "Campbell, Newhall inducted into Hilton Head Hall of Fame."