The 2023 Bluffton Newcomers Guide
The Blueprint Bluffton project identified a need to educate newcomers on how to connect and learn about the State of Mind.
Getting to Know the State of Mind.
There are signatures all around us. The salt-scented air drifting off the bluff at mid-tide. The pink-dusted sunsets off the May. The crackle of fire at an oyster roast.
With all the growth that’s happened here, the unique charm and allure of this town persists. The guide’s publisher, Tim Wood, created a Facebook group, What’s Happening in Bluffton, to help build a united sense of community – an online home for long-timers to discuss issues and for newcomers to explore the town and feel welcome from the first minute they’re here. The group has grown to more than 22,000 opt-in members in just over a year who laud it as a vital source of information and a welcome sign that there is still a place online for civil discourse.
What Tim saw from newcomers was a lot of questions and not enough answers available to them. What he’s learned from talking to realtors is they have their own typed-out, quick-hit FAQ, but would love to have a thorough and easy-to-follow guide of the essentials of moving here, but also all the little things folks need to know about living in the Lowcountry.
Why This Guide Will Be Essential.
This guide will bring together local experts with essential newcomer information to answer the basic questions newcomers have struggled with. Folks who have lived here for generations might even learn a thing or two.
This guide will be useful for both full-time residents and for tourist visitors, giving them a full picture of all that is available to them in and around Bluffton.
We will give both basic information like how to get a drivers license and tackle some of the lifestyle questions like, “How do I maneuver these roundabouts?,” “Is the May actually a river?” and “How do I properly use y’all in conversation?”
Plus, the information flow will be ever-evolving. We will publish both a widely-distributed print edition and constantly be adding more answers to burning Bluffton questions on our website, WELCOMETOBLUFFTON.COM.
While we will be promoting the town, this guide is independently produced – not a product of town officials or Chambers of Commerce. It will have a homey, comfortable tone that matches the feeling we get every time we walk down Calhoun Street and soak in the beauty of Old Town – but with unfiltered takes on the FAQs all newcomers have.
About the Creators.
If you’re reading this, it’s clear that we have at least one thing in common … we all love Bluffton!
The folks putting together this guide have a combined 70-plus years in publication production and 50-plus years in writing and reporting about Bluffton.
Tim Wood moved to the region in 2004 to become the GM of the Savannah Sand Gnats baseball team. The Sand Gnats didn’t survive (long live the Bananas!), but in promoting the Gnats, he spent a lot of time in Bluffton and instantly fell in love. He planted roots as one of the founding editors of Bluffton’s first dedicated daily newspaper, Bluffton Today.
“This is our adult hometown. Both my sons have grown up here. I tell folks that this place saved our family twice. We have the unique perspective in leaving (to help with parental health issues up North) and coming back. We always knew we’d be back to Bluffton as soon as we could and now that we’re here, we know we’re never leaving again.
“I have a 30-year track record of producing high-quality publications, but this is easily the most excited and most personal project I have ever taken on.”
Barry Kaufman is a transplant from the midwest, but will be a Blufftonian until the end. As a former editor at Bluffton Today, Bluffton Monthly and South magazine, and as an avid freelance writer, he has been fortunate enough to cover the State of Mind and all of its charms for 20 years. He lives outside of Old Town with his wife, three children and a legion of pets.
A Wealth of Information.
The 2023 Bluffton Newcomers Guide print edition will include sections that include information on:
- Schools and Learning
- Non-Profit Groups to Join/Donate To
- Places of Worship
- Volunteering Opportunities
- Sports, Arts and Entertainment Options
- Dining Out
- Bluffton History
- Shopping
- Day and Weekend Trips From Bluffton
- What Makes Bluffton Unique – First-Hand Essays From Long-Time Residents
- Neighborhoods Information
- Where To Meet New People and Get Involved
- Living Basics (how to get your trash cans, cable options, etc.)
- Across the Bridge Island Primer
WELCOMETOBLUFFTON.COM will feature in-depth information on more singular topics like where to get the best french fries and where to watch your favorite NFL team.
How It Will Be Distributed
The book will be published in late March 2023 and will be distributed through mailing to residents that have moved to the area over the last year. The Guide will also be available at retailers across town, as well as the most trafficked publication racks on Hilton Head Island.
The Guide itself will be a high-quality gloss cover stock and inside paper stock reminiscent of higher-end publications in the area.
It will be an 8.5x11 publication, tailored to be able to fit inside realtors’ welcome packets. The book will be 128 pages maximum.
Helping to Build the Future of Good News in Bluffton
All proceeds from the 2023 Bluffton Newcomers Guide will go to support the Lowcountry Online Journalism Initiative.