WALLACE, SC – It’s been nearly six months since the murders of Ella and Iyana Lowery. This young Bennettsville mother and her eight-year-old daughter were killed in early May, victims of domestic violence.
Community sponsors have rallied to bring the Lowery family together with supporters of Pee Dee Coalition’s New Beginnings Transitional Shelter (NBTS) at 3615 Hickson Road in Wallace for “An Evening Among the Oaks” starting at 6:00 pm on Thursday October 26th. This event includes a surf and turf dinner, live music, a celebration of the shelter where women and their children recovering from abusive relationships can live for up to 18 months as they rebuild their lives, and dedication of phase one of the playground being renovated and named in honor of Iyana and Ella Lowery.
“This is an opportunity for all who followed this tragic event, responded to the crime and contributed in the search for Iyana’s body to find healing and offer support to the family as they continue to grieve Ella and Iyana,” says New Beginnings Program Director Janice Hamlin, “and we can only do this with the assistance of community partners like the United Way and others participating throughout the years.”
Designed to assist in the costs of renovating the New Beginnings Shelter, An Evening Among the Oaks is open to all who wish to participate. Tickets are $25 per person ($30 at the door), include dinner, and can be purchased online in advance at eventbrite.com or by calling 843-921-3167.
“Community support makes all the difference for those who are rebuilding their lives,” says Hamlin. “We are only able to provide this safe, supportive place for healing because our donors recognize the enormity of the need.” New Beginnings already has ten children and their mothers in residence. “We are especially grateful to Lowe’s in Laurinburg for helping with this first phase of creating a playground that honors Iyana and gives the children in residence a place where they can enjoy the outdoors and just be children,” she says.
For more information, contact New Beginnings Transitional Shelter, (a program of the Pee Dee Coalition, supported in part by the United Way) at 843-921-3167.
