Harbour Town vigil: Friends ‘hope for the best’ in Calvert case

This story originally was published in The Island Packet on March 12, 2008.

At times during a prayer vigil beneath the Liberty Oak in Harbour Town on Tuesday evening, friends could be heard laughing over stories of John and Liz Calvert or sharing boating tales about the well-liked couple.

At other times, the only sound was the raindrops bouncing off umbrellas as the crowd sat in silent prayer, hoping for the best outcome in the week-long disappearance that has shocked the community.

Dozens of friends, co-workers and well-wishers huddled under umbrellas around the oak tree during the vigil organized by Providence Presbyterian Church.

The crowd stood in view of the marina John Calvert operated and the slip where the Calverts’ moored their boat, the “Yellow Jacket.”

“It’s a testament to how many people love them,” said Carmen Fowler, associate pastor at the church. Fowler led several prayers that stressed the value of companionship during tough times, and asked for divine help in finding the couple, last seen March 3.

“Grant your grace to the men and women who are searching for our friends,” Fowler said during a prayer.

In happier times, the Liberty Oak is the site of family fun as children gather nightly to listen and sing along with island personality Greg Russell and his playful songs.

Russell was in the crowd Tuesday, but the mood was miles away and the steadily increasing rain mixed with tears for some attendees.

The vigil came only about an hour after authorities removed the body of Dennis Ray Gerwing, a business associate of John Calvert, from a villa barely a mile away after an apparent suicide.

He had been named a “person of interest” in the case by law enforcement authorities earlier in the day. News of his suicide filled the event with fresh emotion for some friends, who have spent all week hoping for a break in the case.

Rebecca Smith, who worked with John Calvert on the Yacht Hop fundraiser for Hospice Care of the Lowcountry, said she would only provide stories about the missing friend — not memories.

“No,” she said, “because he’s not dead.”

In her 30 years on the island, she’s never seen Harbour Town in better shape than now. She attributes that to John Calvert’s ownership.

“They wanted to embed themselves in this community,” she said. “He’s built something that’s great.”

The emotion of the disappearance expanded well beyond the circle of the Calverts’ friends.

“We’ve just been very touched by the story,” said Helen Landel, who is visiting her Sea Pines vacation home this week from Charlottesville, Va. She and her husband Bob came to lend their voices to the prayers.

“We’ve never met them, but it’s just such a sad story,” she said. “I know that prayer works.”

The event was organized by Jill Farrar, the youth and family director for the church. Farrar’s husband owns a rental business in Harbour Town. Sara Burns played and sang soothing songs on an acoustic guitar while Nick Evangelista played a bongo drum.

Zack Adams has worked on a boat in the yacht basin for about a year. He and other Harbour Town employees joined the crowd in the rain Tuesday.

“Obviously, I’m not alone and people care for them,” he said. “We hope for the best.”

This story was originally published January 29, 2020 at 10:45 AM.