A committee of folks who lived on the Mill Village years ago, or still live there now, came together over a year ago with a desire to organize a Mill Village reunion. There have been so many Sunday afternoon meetings that lasted sometimes for hours, but their enthusiasm has remained in tact! The reunion is set for Saturday, April 21, from 2 p.m. - midnight at the Old Armory. Gail Floyd has served as the chairwoman for the group and has kept everything moving along on schedule.
There will be “State Fair” vendors present, along with Cromer’s from Columbia at the reunion, as well as many other vendors. There will be many interesting displays featuring earlier days on the Mill Village. Don Bonds will be on hand to receive personal stories from people who would like to share them with him; he plans to write a book on life on the Mill Village. The Fairfield County Museum will have a display hosted by some representatives who are looking for historical facts and stories also for a book. Miriam Stevenson Breckenridge, who was crowned Miss Universe back in the 1950s, plans to be there selling her pictures of the old Mt. Zion School. Our local Railroad Museum will have a display also. Many former residents of the Mill Village have donated lots of pictures to be on display at the reunion also. This adventure back in time promises to be a wonderful time for all!
A tentative schedule of events for the reunion include a time to “meet and greet,” which will take place from 2 - 4 p.m. that afternoon. An organized program will be from 4 - 5 p.m. and will include some recognitions of years past, such as the oldest person attending, the person who traveled the most miles for the reunion, etc. There will be a videographer/photographer there to capture memories of the day.
Karaoke will be offered from 3 - 6 p.m. for those who would like to try their singing skills! Music will be presented by a DJ from 6 - 7:45 p.m. and there will be a live band from 8 p.m. - midnight for the guests to enjoy dancing. A special skit is planned to introduce the band at 7:45 p.m.; this promises to be a great surprise!
To help with the crowd and parking, the Reunion Committee has arranged with Imperial Transportation Services from Columbia to provide a shuttle service from the Food Lion parking lot on the Bypass. Advance tickets will be $10 and this will allow you to go back and forth as many times as you would like. The price for tickets the day of the reunion will be $20. Imperial Transportation sent ticket information to all those who have registered to attend. If you have not received this information and you are interested in purchasing an advance ticket, please call Gail Floyd at 803-633-0849 for information.
Invitations were sent to those who lived on the Mill Village, worked at the Mill or had relatives who lived on the Mill Village during the 1930s through the 1970s. “The Committee has worked hard to make sure all those who attend have a great time reminiscing with their friends and neighbors from years ago and they have been a great team to work with,” said Floyd.







