Scenes of the South

The A-Town Get Down Festival took place on March 25, 2017! The festival featured interactive creative experiences for all ages, multiple stages for live music acts and much more. The festival was free until 5 p.m., then it turned into a ticketed event for the headline performers. This year's all-day festival featured over 25 local and regional live bands and visual artists each representing diverse music genres and a myriad of artistic styles. Artists & Musicians include Cracker, Bobby Rush, Col. Bruce Hampton, Snarky Puppy Horns, The Billy Jonas Band (Kid - Friendly!), Low Country Voices, Old Salt Union, Walter Parks, Savannah Children's Choir, Marques & The Marvelous Miracles, Waits & Co, Complicated Animals, Annalise Curtin, Billy Engel, The Live Art of Jose Ray, SCAD Ceramics, Digital Art, Loop It Up Savannah and more!

The Savannah community laced up their shoes and kicked off St. Patrick’s Day festivities in Savannah by joining the 24th annual March of Dimes Shamrock Run 5K! Everyone was wearing a costume and even brought out four-legged friends! 100% of the proceeds from the run benefited the mission of the March of Dimes to improve the health of babies through programs of research, community services, education and advocacy.

Hundreds turned out to Forsyth Park on Friday, March 10 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.

This past Saturday, February 25th, guests joined Telfair Museums for their 37th Annual Telfair Ball! The event highlighted Savannah’s social scene, the Telfair Ball was open to Director’s Circle members, and all proceeds benefited Telfair’s exceptional exhibitions, educational programs, and art acquisitions. Guests enjoyed lavish cocktails, live music, exciting auctions, and dazzling lightshows as this illustrious annual gala celebrated Telfair’s vibrant history and supported the future of art and creativity in Savannah.

One Hundred Miles is a nonprofit coastal advocacy organization focused on preserving, protecting and enhancing the 100-mile coast of Georgia. Founded in Brunswick, the group is now expanding to Savannah. This grand opening was free and open to the public, offering food, drinks and live music by Cory Chambers of City Hotel.

Savannah is a river town, so what better way to get an overview of her harbor and port than to cruise with Savannah Riverboat Cruises? Celebrating their 25th anniversary, the towering red, white and blue traditional riverboats; the Savannah River Queen and Georgia Queen, both dock near the place where General Oglethorpe himself is thought to have landed. With years of experience in the maritime and hospitality industry, owner Captain Jonathan Claughton and his team focus on providing guests with the most unique tours and dining experiences with first-class service!

There are Jalapeños Mexican Grills all over the Savannah and Pooler area, but now we have our very own right in our backyard! On Wednesday, February 22 Jalapeños celebrated the Grand Opening of their seventh location here in Downtown Savannah on Broughton Street. The staff rang in their new restaurant along with its crowd by cranking out $1 tacos and pouring $1 beers all night. Jalapeños is known for its authentic Mexican cuisine and has been voted Best Mexican Restaurant. Make sure to drop in at any one of their seven locations to enjoy the true taste of Mexico!

I hope you didn't miss out on on your chance to participate in the happiest 5k on the planet, but, if you did, check out the scenes gallery from this colorful event that is taking the country by color storm! Hundreds of happy souls came out to the Savannah International Trade & Convention Center early in the morning on February 18 to upgrade their normal 5k to this technicolor 5k. Throughout the race runners were blasted with vibrant pigments at every color station along the course. You could feel the aura in the air; there was no question as to why this 5k claimed the name "The Happiest 5k on the Planet". Color Vibe is already selling tickets for their next race, so go to Color Vibe 5k Run to register today!

For almost a decade Loop It Up Savannah has been seamlessly weaving its way through the often hardened exterior of community driven public works projects, evolving into something more akin to a necessity than just a volunteer after school program. The Soup It Up for Loop It Up event on Friday February 17th, 2017 marks the first year of their signature fundraising event, in which local chefs competed for the title of the Golden Soup Bowl while generously raising funds to support Loop It Up Savannah’s programming for local youth and services to local families. “We have so many wonderful partnerships throughout the city that allow us to work with thousands of amazing children and families every year,” affirms Loop It Up's Molly Liberman. “Savannah has really embraced and supported us to grow into the organization we are proud to be --- through partnerships, volunteers and an amazingly generous base of donors.” Still, she persists, there is a lot of growing planned for Loop It Up in 2017. Liberman plans to extend programs into the City Of Savannah Community Centers as well as the Public Library. Adds Liberman, “We are also moving into a new space which will allow us to eventually offer onsite programming. Our goal is to deepen and widen our presence throughout the city. We believe that art and opportunity for bold self expression should be everywhere! Savannah is fortunate to have so many community centers and organizations, and we are proud to bring art into as many of them as we possibly can!”

The Savannah Book Festival Inc. (SBF) is an independent, nonprofit corporation led by a volunteer board of directors. SBF hosts best-selling and emerging authors in special events throughout the year, including a four-day Presidents Day weekend event that features talks by dozens of authors. The Savannah Book Festival is celebrating their 10th Anniversary with a record number of 40 authors scheduled to attend this year's festival starting on Saturday, February 18, which is free and open to the public. Taking place in seven venues around Telfair, Chippewa and Wright Squares, over 10,000 people are estimated to come to hear these well-regarded authors and fascinating new writers talk about their books this year. The opening Authors Party on Friday night at Jenn Library was a private shindig with some of the prominent authors of this year's festival in attendance.

To continue its incredible mission and also celebrate its tenth anniversary, the Faith Equestrian Therapeutic Center hosted the Hearts for Healing Gala to raise money for its programming on Tuesday, February 14, at the Tybee Island Wedding Chapel on Tybee Island. A silent auction with an assortment of high-end items started off the Valentine’s Day evening and was followed by dinner and dancing to live music from the John Brackett Quartet. The Faith Equestrian Therapeutic Center, an incredible non-profit organization that was founded to improve the quality of children with special needs through the therapeutic nature of horses. Therapeutic riding courses and an equestrian program in partnership with local schools helps special needs children develop social and physical skills while having a great time too.

South magazine and 39 Rue De Jean present a new, monthly power networking event that will take place the third Wednesday of each month. Free to attend, guests will enjoy $7 glasses of select regional wine and delicious passed appetizer's while networking and raising funds to benefit the featured charity of the month. Each month, a different local charity will offer a silent auction, raffle or fun game to help raise awareness and money, in addition, $1 from each glass of select wine purchased during the event will go to benefit the non-profit. (Happy hour prices are also available at the full bar.) Proceeds from the February event will benefit Girls on the Run of Coastal Georgia - A positive youth development program for girls in 3rd-8th grade, who teach life skills through dynamic, interactive lessons and running games.

On Friday, February 10th, thousands of costumed local elementary school children marched behind student-made banners in commemoration of Georgia’s founding in 1733. This colorful parade of students, local dignitaries, costumed characters, musicians, and military color guard began at Forsyth Park and ended with a program in front of City Hall, where the mayor and other officials provided greetings and awards to be presented for the annual Banner Competition. This annual event is a tradition dating back to the earliest years of the colony’s founding, and is hosted by the Georgia Historical Society and is free and open to the public.

On Friday, February 10th, students, parents, and families came out for the May Howard Sweetheart Dance. The Sweetheart Dance provides an opportunity for all parents and children to make a special Valentine memory together. Click below to see more from the fun-filled event.

On Thursday, February 9th, guests came out to Sandlfy to celebrate with Tequila's Town CEO Temo Ortiz at the release of the company's first magazine cover feature in our very own South magazine! Temo was also featured in an exclusive interview in our latest February/March issue on stands now! The party started with 2$ Dos Equis drafts, BOGO margaritas and 2$ off Tequila's Town famous table side guacamole. The event took place at Tequila's Town Sandfly location at 7360 Skidaway Road, Savannah, GA. The South magazine crew was there to show our support and provide magazine to guests at the opening.

The 2017 Gray's Reef Film Festival had an exclusive kick-off event on Thursday, February 2nd with a VIP Founders' Party at 24e Design Co. with food by Thrive Catering Savannah, delicious drinks offered by Savannah Distributing Co., and an exclusive audience of viewers that were lucky enough to get a sneak peak of what the festival has in store this year! The event offered a 3D experience for participants called 'Beyond 3D: Dive Our Amazing Reef Without Getting Wet!' that allowed viewers to step inside the reef and explore everything it has to offer. Donations made during the event benefit the Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary and all the amazing work that they do for our coast! Don't forget to attend the rest of the film festival on Saturday, February 4th and Sunday, February 5th!

Perched on the corner of Bay and Jefferson Streets in the heart of Savannah's historic district lies the "Grand Lady of the Bay." This 19th century, sprawling architectural masterpiece once housed famed Georgia merchant Simon Guckenheimer. Today, it stands as Hotel Indigo Savannah Historic District, a charming boutique hotel that effortlessly combines modern luxury, contemporary design and respectful nods to its impressive past. Southern hospitality and charm greet you the moment you step into the beautiful Hotel Indigo, as guests of this year's client party experienced to the full extent. Outstanding amenities and picturesque views await Indigo's guests for the evening as they savor the creative and locally-sourced Southern fare of chef Chris Nelson and the Georgia brews at Hotel Indigo's own restaurant, the Five Oaks Taproom.

CrimeStoppers Savannah strives to help ‘putt’ away crime at the 2017 Mini Golf Tournament. The tournament was held at Island Miniature Golf and Games in Savannah on Saturday, January 28, 2017. CrimeStoppers is a fantastic organization that makes itself available to those who do not feel safe or comfortable with calling the police. CrimeStoppers is open 24/7 and allows the caller to safely and anonymously provide information to the police. CrimeStoppers Savannah will pay cash rewards if said information leads to an arrest.

Telluride Mountainfilm is an organization that puts on a festival of films, people, stories, and ideas that celebrates spirit, educates and inspires audiences, and motivates individuals and communities to advance solutions for a livable world. Mountainfilm uses the power of film, art and ideas to inspire audiences to create a better world; it is more than just inspiring films. From January 19 to January 21, the festival will feature events and film screenings of many moving films, ranging for 5 minute shorts to feature length. The events are all to be held here in downtown Savannah with prices ranging from free and open to the public to $15.

The Tourism Leadership Leadership Council's January luncheon took place at the Hotel Indigo on Thursday the 14th and featured food from the hotel's own restaurant, the Five Oaks Taproom with Chef Chris Nelson. The Tourism Leadership Council serves as the leading trade organization for tourism, an industry with more than 26,000 employees and a $2.5 billion economic impact in the Savannah area. Throughout the years, the Tourism Leadership Council has expanded to become a true advocate for hospitality training, leadership and networking in the Savannah area.

Local charity organization, Divine Rest, hosted the Hope For A Home Gala on January 14th and it was a beautiful evening supporting a great cause. Divine Rest works within the Savannah community to reduce the number of single homeless women in our beautiful city. Guests enjoyed some savory food, dancing, entertainment and shopping from the silent auction all within the walls of a beautiful setting in the Savannah Station!

This private screening for Mark McCullough's new film, Arsenal, took place at the Bluffton Cigar Bar on January 6th. Family, friends, colleagues and students of McCullough's attended in support of the local actor in his starring role next to Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, and Adrian Grenier. For those who couldn't attend the screening, ARSENAL can be found in select theaters, On Demand, on iTunes, Google Play and other streaming services. If you were able to come out and support McCullough at this private screening of the film, check out the event gallery below to see if you were captured by one of our Scenes Photographers!

This private screening for Mark McCullough's new film, Arsenal, took place at the Bluffton Cigar Bar on January 6th. Family, friends, colleagues and students of McCullough's attended in support of the local actor in his starring role next to Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, and Adrian Grenier. For those who couldn't attend the screening, ARSENAL can be found in select theaters, On Demand, on iTunes, Google Play and other streaming services. If you were able to come out and support McCullough at this private screening of the film, check out the event gallery below to see if you were captured by one of our Scenes Photographers!

Jazz'd Tapas Bar and friends rang in the New Year with a Woodstock themed extravaganza that included live entertainment by the MS3, amazing tapas food, champagne toasts and party favors. This night of friends and fun proved that 'love is all you need to ring in the new year' - with a little help from some tapas food! Check out the event gallery below to see if you were captured by one of our Scenes Photographers!