More than 40 years ago, the late owner of Boone Hall Plantation, Willie McRae, and the late executive director of the Charleston Restaurant Association, Kathy Britzius, formed a partnership that established the Lowcountry Oyster Festival on the property’s grounds. On June 5, in honor of McRae and Britzius, Charleston Restaurant Foundation presented recycled oyster shells that were saved and collected from the festival and prepared by the Coastal Conservation Association of South Carolina and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources for the dedication of a reef.
Boone Hall General Manager Jim Westerhold said, “We are grateful to all the great partnering organizations who are coming together to help make this well-deserved tribute to Willie and Kathy come to life. It’s a natural fit with ongoing conservation efforts to preserve and protect important ecosystems that are integrated with the property and surrounding areas.”
Charleston Restaurant Foundation President Jonathan Kish added, “The creation of this oyster reef behind Boone Hall represents 40 years of dedication to sustainably celebrating one of our most beloved Lowcountry traditions. Thanks to the commitment of our partners and thousands of Lowcountry Oyster Festival participants over the years, we are able to continue the mission and legacy of protecting and replenishing our treasured oyster population that our founder Kathy Britzius and Willie McRae shared.”
Meg O’Halloran, chief advancement officer at Lowcountry Land Trust, the conservation partner of Boone Hall Plantation commented, “Lowcountry Land Trust was honored to place a conservation easement on Boone Hall’s nearly 600 acres in 2019. Today’s oyster reef build celebrates the connection between culture, community and conservation in the epicenter of one of South Carolina’s fastest growing cities.”
McRae’s sister Elizabeth also attended the event. She said that ongoing conservation is so important because the marsh is one of the most delicate aspects of the Lowcountry and continuing to nourish this corner of Mount Pleasant is key.
Britzius’ daughter Chrissy Denning, who got married in front of the house on the grounds 33 years ago, said that her mother would have been so happy with the dedication, as “she wanted everyone to have a good time. She loved her job and everything that went with it.”
Following the dedication on the back creekside lawn, Boone Hall employees and volunteers unloaded 350 biodegradable shell bags off the back of a truck, formed a line through the marsh that stretched down to the water and deposited the oysters into the low tide. Over time, the shells will create a natural biodiverse breakwater habitat that will attract possibly up to 130 species including invertebrates, crabs, fish, dolphins and birds. Additional benefits, according to Westerhold, will include clearer, cleaner water because of each oyster filtering 50 gallons of water a day as well as controlling erosion from the living shoreline. Westerhold added that the reef will be here forever, continuing to grow.
So next time you attend the Lowcountry Oyster Roast at Boone Hall, remember the words of Elizabeth: “oysters are as useful as they are delicious.”
By Sarah Rose
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