DI Families: Meet the Colvin Family

This week, the Colvin family of Codner’s Ferry invited us to sit with them on the back porch of their new home on Fairfield Street. Meet Ginger, a 6th grade reading teacher at Daniel Island School, Andrew, Director of Legal Affairs at Gildan Activewear, and daughters Mary-Kate and Braelyn, in third grade and first grade respectively, at the Daniel Island School.

Where are you from originally?

Ginger Colvin (GC): We both grew up in Easley, SC and went to the same schools there but didn’t date until our sophomore year in college. I was attending Furman and Andrew was at College of Charleston. He called me to let me know he was coming to Greenville to visit family. I invited him to visit me at Furman which was nearby. We started dating. While Andrew completed his J.D. and MBA at the University of South Carolina, we married and I taught English at Richland Northeast High School in Columbia, SC. After Andrew completed his degrees, he accepted a position with a law firm in Hilton Head, SC. We lived there for about 5 years, had our children, and then moved to Greenville, SC, where Andrew continued to work for the law firm and I taught English at Tri-County Technical College.

Andrew Colvin (AC): In October 2013, I accepted the position with Gildan in Charleston. By this time, I was working as the sole In-House Counsel for a hotel company based in Greenville. Ginger and I both loved Charleston and ultimately could not pass up the opportunity to move back to a place which we both fell in love with during college.

GC: Andrew moved to Charleston for the job in the early fall and we followed about three months later, during Christmas break. Mary-Kate began kindergarten at Daniel Island School (DIS) half-way through the year. We considered several places in Mt. Pleasant as well as Daniel Island. The goal was not to have a long commute, as that had been part of our lives since we’d had children. We love Codner’s Ferry neighborhood. Our first house was a rental on Brady Street but we felt we needed more room. We wanted to stay on Daniel Island. We’ve made a lot of good friends in this area and particularly in Codner’s Ferry. We love all the mature trees, the proximity to the boat ramp and the nearby Scott Park Pool.

AC: We looked at a number of properties including a few newly built houses. We really liked this house on Fairchild Street. It just felt like home.

BC: I love that my room is now on the same floor as Mommy and Daddy’s!

GC: That’s right. Most of the living space of the house is on the ground floor. But we have a bonus room above the garage that we use primarily as a playroom.

What are some of your favorite places to hang out on Daniel Island - and off island as well?

Braelyn Colvin: (BC): The zip-line at Governors Park

Mary-Kate Colvin (MKC:): Taking trips on our boat.

GC: Going to the beach!

Do you ever take overnight trips nearby - or day trips off -island? Where do you go?

AC: We’ll usually go to visit family in Greenville, Charlotte, and Spartanburg.

GC: And we like to go camping. Camping was a hobby that Andrew and I took up when we were first married. Now the girls are old enough to join us on camping trips. Over Labor Day weekend we went somewhere close by - Buck Hall near Awendaw, but we have also enjoyed this past-time together in more distant places, like Yellowstone National Park. The girls love waking up outside. We also go camping and hiking in the mountains every year.

It sounds like camping is a family tradition? What other family traditions do you have?

GC: Having dinner together as often as possible. And Andrew and I take turns reading to the girls and saying prayers with them before bedtime every night.

What are some of your favorite restaurants on - and off - Daniel Island?

BC: Page’s Okra Grill (Mt. Pleasant)

MK: Tropical Smoothie Cafe! (Daniel Island) and Pearl’s Oyster Bar (downtown).

GC: We also like to meet friends and other families at Orlando’s. Andrew and I will occasionally have a date night where we’ll go to Poe’s on Sullivan’s Island followed by a walk on the beach. And we also enjoyed a recent visit to the new Mex 1 Cantina on Sullivan’s, where Salt Restaurant used to be.

Do you prefer to eat out - or cook at home?

GC: We like eating at home, especially when Andrew does some grilling in the back yard.

What are you reading now?

BC: The Music Fairy (The Rainbow Fairy book series)

MKC: Sage (The American Girl book series)

GC: A Monster Calls. I’m considering it as a book that my students and I will read together later this year.

AC: I’m not reading anything at the moment – I feel like I’m already reading enough at work.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

AC: My grandfather always said it’s important to work hard, but it’s equally important to play hard, too.

If you could describe your life on Daniel Island in just a couple of words, what would they be?

MKC: Fun.

GC: Family.

AC: Convenient.

BC: Friends.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

GC: It’s rare to have an opportunity to live in a place to raise a family in an area that can be described in those four words - and where it can feel like you’re on vacation on just an ordinary day. I feel very fortunate to live here.

Daniel Island Publishing

225 Seven Farms Drive
Unit 108
Daniel Island, SC 29492 

Office Number: 843-856-1999
Fax Number: 843-856-8555

 

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