Author: Site Staff

South magazine and the Mansion on Forsyth Park welcomed guests to the monthly Martinis at the Mansion event on March 16 to raise money and awareness for the 24th Annual Savannah Kiss a Pig Campaign to benefit the American Diabetes Association of SE Georgia and South Carolina. Guests enjoyed St. Patrick's Day giveaways in addition to five dollar martini specials and raffle prizes that included donations from Grand Garages, Kendra Scott Savannah, Cool Savannah Tours and Gifts, Old Savannah Tours, Jalapenos' Mexican Restaurant and 700 Drayton Restaurant. Martinis at the Mansion is hosted on the third Wednesday of each month at Casimir's Lounge inside of 700 Drayton Restaurant with the next event scheduled for April 20th hosted by the 200 Club of the Coastal Empire. Photos by Tracy Scarpati with Cool Savannah Photography

The Savannah Art Walk returned to the Historic District on Saturday, March 12th, welcoming a variety of first time visitors and return guests to the popular self-guided tour. The Tiffani Taylor Gallery hosted the opening reception where attendees could meet a few of the artists and learn more about their individual galleries before taking off to visit the locations on the map by way of foot or on board the free Old Savannah Tours Trolley. At the end of the walk, participants reconvened at the Andaz Hotel for a finale reception and raffle prizes that included prizes donated by many of the SAW galleries and a tenth anniversary gift bag for South magazine. Presented by the Tiffani Taylor Gallery and Heej Chung Art and Designs, the Savannah Art Walk takes place on the second Saturday of the month with the next event taking place on April 9th. Photos by Krystal Oblinger

Hundreds turned out to Forsyth Park on Friday, March 11 to witness the annual Greening of the Fountain event hosted by the Savannah St. Patrick's Day Committee. Conducted for more than thirty years, this popular celebration signals the official kick-off to the Saint Patrick's Day Festivities in Savannah, attracting locals and visitors from around the world to watch the green dye being poured into the historic fountain. Third-grader, Evan Burns, was the winner of WTOC's St. Patrick's Day coloring contest and won the grand prize of helping the committee members and their families turn the fountain green. Photos by Tracy Scarpati with Cool Savannah Photography

Hundreds of chamber members and friends flocked to Tubby's Tankhouse in Thunderbolt on March 11th to shuck away the afternoon at the 17th Annual Oyster Roast Business Connection hosted by the Savannah Chamber of Commerce. Guests took advantage of the beautiful Spring weather and packed the outdoor porch and bar to enjoy cocktails, seafood and world-famous chicken fingers provided by the original Spanky's on River Street, who are celebrating their 40th Anniversary in 2016. Photos by Jason Smith with St. Julien Photography

Members of the Savannah community dressed up in their best Hollywood Glam to celebrate one hundred years of the historic Bull Street Library at the Hooray For Hollywood Gala. Presented by The Live Oak Libraries Foundation, this elegant affair to remember featured cocktails, a silent auction with exclusive prizes, entertainment from the era by Enchant my Party and heavy hors d'oeuvres by Creative Catering. The annual Library Gala helps the Foundation raise money to support programs and services throughout their nineteen libraries, spanning three counties. Photos by Tracy Scarpati with Cool Savannah Photography

A diverse audience of music lovers arrived to the Lucas Theatre on March 5th to enjoy the debut collaboration between "Gypsy Jazz" ensemble, Velvet Caravan, and the classical Savannah Philharmonic Orchestra. In one of the most-anticipated performances of 2016, Velvet Caravan acted as "soloists" backed by the Philharmonic, performing an eclectic mix of music including; Johnny Mercer tunes, Brahms, Django Reinhardt classics and original Velvet Caravan tunes. Photos by Jason Smith with St. Julien Photography

A distinguished group of six talented bartenders gathered together at Cotton & Rye on February 28th for an opportunity to show off their skills and create their signature Manhattan cocktail at the Woodford Reserve Annual Bartender Competition. Applicants were invited to submit two original recipes using Woodford Reserve bourbon and could also enter an optional written component to discuss the significance of the Manhattan in today's cocktail landscape. Savannah's winner, Cody Henson from The Grey, won an all-expense paid trip to the Woodford Reserve Distillery where he will find out if he advances to the finale event to receive a feature on Liquor.com and a trip to San Francisco for a photo and video shoot. Applicants will be asked to submit two original recipes using Woodford Reserve bourbon. Photos by Jason Smith with St. Julien Photography

Motorcycle lovers and friends gathered together at the Harley-Davidson dealership on on February 27th to heat the streets and gear up for the famous Daytona Bike week, coming up in March. Guests enjoyed free food, drinks and raffle prizes in addition to biker games and a custom tailer on site to sew patches onto all of those leather jackets or just take care of alteration needs. The first thirty one people to arrive at the celebration received a free Harley-Davidson Savannah pin to help commemorate the occasion.

Hundreds of Telfair Museums members and guests headed to the Telfair Academy on February 27th to attend the highlight event of the Savannah's social scene at the 36th Annual Telfair Ball. Open for members of the Telfair Director's Circle and their guests, the ball is considered to be the city's premier gala and also serves as the museum's largest fundraiser, with proceeds going to benefit the exceptional exhibitions, educational programs and acquisitions available at the Telfair. Guests enjoyed a luminous evening that began with a cocktail reception and silent auction in the Telfair Academy Sculpture Gallery followed by an exciting live auction hosted in the Rotunda before concluding with an elegant seated dinner at the Jepson Center in honor of its tenth anniversary. At the conclusion of the ball, the Telfair Bash takes over where guests were treated to cocktails, silent auction and dancing to the music of featured band, Yacht Rock Schooner. Photos by Jason Smith with St. Julien Photography

National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend kicked off at Savannah Coffee Roasters on February 26th at the official judging for the Culinary Cookie Competition hosted by the Historic Girl Scouts of Georgia. Twenty local area restaurants, cafes, and eateries were tasked with creating either a sweet or savory dish by using Girl Scout Cookies as an ingredient in the recipe. A panel of judges,including celebrity Top Chef Hugh Acheson, were hand-picked to taste the entries and select their favorites which will account for 60% of the vote, while the community will visit the participating restaurants over the weekend and try the dishes to determine 40% of the vote. The judges chose the winners based on presentation, taste and creativity giving Savannah Coffee Roasters first place for their beautiful Iced TiraMisu, followed by The Florence Restaurant in second place and the Pirate's House coming in third. Photos by Tracy Scarpati with Cool Savannah Photography

Hundreds of sports fans headed to Historic Grayson Stadium on February 25th to celebrate the highly-anticipated name revealing of the new Savannah minor league baseball team name. North Carolina based, Fans First Entertainment presented an exciting video highlighting their mission to "Entertain Always," followed by the announcement to the crowd that Savannah's new baseball team name will be "The Bananas," a name that was chosen over two finalists, "The Anchors" and "The Ports." Company President, Jared Orton, hopes to hit a home run with the name and believe tha it fits their brand of making baseball fun for fans off all ages. Opening night at Grayson is set for June 2nd where the Bananas will make their Hostess City debut. Photos by Tracy Scarpati with Cool Savannah Photography

More than sixty local business leaders packed the house at the Pirate's House Restaurant to attend the monthly Buy Local Savannah luncheon on February 26th, featuring special guest, Trey Cook, owner of Moore Industrial Supply. Mr. Cook spoke about his experiences as the former owner of Savannah Tire and what he learned in his tenure as head of the Savannah Chamber of Commerce, discussing some of the lessons he's learned along the way about growing a company brand and tips to competing as a local business in the Lowcountry. At the end of the meeting, members of the Buy Local board presented their Advocate of the Year award to South magazine publisher, Michael Brooks, and the Business of the Year award to Spectrum Printing and their local representative, Michelle Thompson. The Buy Local Savannah luncheon takes place on the fourth Thursday of each month with the next event scheduled for March 24th where the guest speaker will be Eddie DeLoach, who will speak about his first 90 days in office as Savannah's new mayor. Photos by Jason Smith with St. Julien Photography

The Rape Crisis Center of the Coastal Empire invited business and community members to attend their 2016 annual meeting on February 23rd, hosted at the Savannah Civic Center. This event is held to provide updates on the previous year's progress and success related to the programs and funding. In addition to the reports, leaders of the RCC use this time as an opportunity to honor volunteers, recognize staff and welcome new board members. A special presentation was held to award the prestigious Mary McAliser Service award to South magazine publisher, Michael Brooks, for his unwavering support and commitment to RCC fundraising events and promotion. Photos by Jason Smith with St. Julien Photography

More than four hundred members of the Savannah tourism community gathered at the International Trade and Convention Center on Hutchinson Island to attend the Tourism Awards Gala hosted by the Tourism and Leadership Council on February 18th. Now in its eighteenth year, this annual black tie affair pays tribute to the twenty-six thousand employees that make up the Hostess City's thriving hospitality industry and supports the students who are studying to join this exciting field. The Tourism and Leadership Council is the largest non-profit trade organization to represent tourism and to date, has awarded more than $65,000 in scholarship money to tourism and hospitality students over the years, with one hundred percent of its contributions going to the fund. Read more about the event an view a list of winners. Photos by Lindsey Clark with Lorien Studios

South Magazine and the Mansion on Forsyth Park hosted an evening of power networking, fundraising and five dollar martinis to benefit the Habersham Branch YMCA on February 17th. Attendees enjoyed learning about the YMCA's Annual Fundraising Campaign that raises money for programs and services that support children and families throughout the Coastal Empire including; after school childcare, Summer day camp, swimming lessons and YMCA memberships. Guests could participate in the evening's silent auction that included donations from 700 Drayton Restaurant and the Mansion, in addition to a 50/50 cash raffle where the prize was over one hundred dollars in cold hard cash. Martinis at the Mansion occurs on the third Wednesday of each month from 5:30 pm until 7:30 pm at with the next event taking place on March 16th featuring the American Diabetes Kiss a Pig Savannah Campaign. Photos by Lindsay Clark

Infinite Possibilities filled the air in the Landmark Historic District on Valentine's weekend as Savannah Art Walk participants hit the streets on February 13th to explore the more than thirty galleries and shops listed on the route. Sponsored by Tiffani Taylor Art Gallery and Heej Cung Arts, the second Saturday walk began at the Bohemian Hotel on the Savannah River for an opening reception with presentations by participating artists and following the reception, guests could take the self-guided tour on foot or by way of the free Old Savannah Tours Trolley that transported guests to various points on the map. A packed house arrived at the Andaz Hotel for the concluding reception to take their photos on the South magazine red carpet and register for the raffle drawing filled with amazing prizes. The next Savannah Art Walk will take place on March 12th and Tiffani Taylor will return from Paris to host the event on April 9th. Photos By Krystal Oblinger

Creative Approach Savannah and the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce hosted more than one hundred local business professionals and innovators on February 11th for a presentation about the Georgia delegation that will be attending the upcoming South By Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas in March. The guest speaker for the evening was Atlanta Chamber executive, Kate Atwood, who showed a special video that offered information to the crowd about various partnership opportunities that are available to businesses and the benefits of representing Savannah to the best in new innovative companies and established business leaders from the music and film industries. Photos by Tracy Scarpati

Students from the Visual Arts Department at the Savannah Arts Academy hosted three sold out runway shows, bringing audiences to their feet in applause as they presented the 8th Annual Junk 2 Funk Fashion Show. This year's Intergalactic theme inspired more than a dozen designers to create a variety of out-of-this-world wearable art looks made out of recycled trash ranging from funky and fun to intricate and elegant. Winning categories included, Best of Show, Best Use of Materials, Best Styling, Most Fashion Forward and Most Ready to Wear. Photos by Tracy Scarpati

The Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary returned to the Lucas and Trustees Theaters for the last weekend in January to host their ever-popular Ocean Film Festival, featuring more than a dozen ocean-focused movies throughout the two day event. In addition to the film screenings, competitions and talkbacks, the festival hosted a special military appreciation reception in Reynolds Square on Saturday to honor service members, first responders and their families. The team from veteran owned and operated, Service Brewing Company, was on hand in the square pouring out their patriotic spirit and delicious brews and guests had the opportunity to meet SCAD Professor and Filmmaker, Kevin McCarey, who held a special book signing of his book titled, "Ocean's Apart." Photos by Tracey Scarpati

Friends from around the Savannah business and tourism community arrived to the Starland District on January 26th to celebrate the grand opening of the city's newest, locally-owned phone company, Coastal Voice. Guests in attendance at the French-themed affair enjoyed live music performed by Reid Richmond while dining on the delicious food prepared on site by Lori Collins with Savannah Coffee Roasters in addition to craft beer provided by Moon River Brewing Company. Scott West with Savannahvipevents.com hosted the event along with Coastal Voice owner, Oliver Jouffrault, who said a few word about their services before thanking the crowd for bringing two cans of food to support America's Second Harvest Food Bank. Photos by Michael Scarpati

The Hilton DeSoto welcomed a large gathering of brides-to-be to their ballroom on January 24th to experience the I Do Wedding Expo...A Southern Experience, presented by D.Vine Events and Radius Media Group. This unique event offered couples an exclusive opportunity to receive one-on-one advice from a distinguished group of wedding industry leaders while browsing through high-end collections and discovering unique and trendy resources for their big day. A panel of experienced professional wedding planners were available during the expo's breakout session to take questions by brides that covered the entire spectrum of wedding preparations. Ticket Sales to the event were tax deductible and proceeds from sales went to benefit Brides Against Breast Cancer, a national charitable organization that contributes to programs for cancer patients and their families Photos by Tracy Scarpati

The Andaz Savannah hosted a full house of guests on January 21st as they welcomed Artists-in-Residence, Jor Smith Michel, Shanon Fidler and Parker Stewart to the hotel's Salon event on January 21st. Those in attendance engaged with the artists individually, while enjoying locally inspired cuisine prepared by Chef Lauren Teague and her culinary team at the 22 Square Restaurant. The January Salon was the first for Andaz's new General Manager, Sid Ramani, who took over the reigns at the beginning of the year. Photos by Tracy Scarpati

An exclusive list of clients, associates and friends made the journey to the penthouse office of the Manger Building on Johnson Square to attend a special open house for Bowen Law Group on January 21st. Guests at the event were seen admiring the commanding views from the tenth floor, while mingling and mixing with some of the city's most important and high profile people. Bowen Law Group's founding attorney, Charles Bowen, was recently named Business Advocate of the Year and is the 2016 Chairman for the Savannah Kiss A Pig competition to benefit the American Diabetes Association of Southeast Georgia. Photos by Tracy Scarpati

The 2016 Telluride Mountainfilm Festival on Tour in Savannah kicked off at the Trustees' Theater on January 20th with the local premier of the film Racing Extinction, by Academy Award-Winning director, Louie Psihoyos. Preceding the film, enlarged projections of endangered and indigenous wildlife was projected onto the Savannah College of Art and Design Library across from the Theater on Broughton Street and guests had the opportunity to meet race car driver and environmental activist, Leilani Munter. The Festival continues on January 22nd and 23rd with a weekend celebration full of special film screenings, coffee talks, presentations and special guests. The Telluride Mountainfilm on Tour in Savannah is a nonprofit film festival designed to educate and inspire audiences about critical issues that impact our society and everyday lives. Photos by Krystal Oblinger