A Wealth of Good

The Endless Generational Wealth of Callawassie Island

The concept of “sustainability” can be described in a number of ways: The most widely referenced is, “the ability to maintain or support a process continuously over time.” Merriam Webster’s definition is, “a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged.” AI’s interpretation is, “the idea that humans and nature can coexist in a way that supports current and future generations.”

At the core of those definitions, you’ll find the same spirit – and that spirit is the core of Callawassie Island: Whether you’re protecting a process of warmth over time, preserving the balance of treasured resource, or cultivating a place of connection between humans and nature for “current and future generations,” those who call the land beyond the causeway home are committed to creating a lasting legacy by loving the place and people and passing it on.

Even “passing it on” has a few different ways you can break that down:

• A literal estate invested in and inherited by future generations
• The infectious appeal that leads parents and children to buy adjoining lots on the island.
• The personal responsibility every resident seems to take on when you live here, to not keep the magic to themselves but to find a way to light a spark for those around them – teaching, helping, serving, running kids’ camps, joining clubs, and showing up for one another to keep this good thing going, and keep it discoverable again and again.

This is no happy accident. The longstanding leadership of the growing community is committed to intentionally “progressing and securing a plan for preserving both land and legacy through the coming generations.” Callawassie Island Through the Years laid out the heart and process of this plan explaining:

“Over recent years Callawassie marketing and management has maintained a vision to hear its residents, deliver on what creates the most rewarding and enduring community environment and has sought to stay ahead of the curve, establishing multi-generational connections that enhance the longevity and diversity of the community. Seeing a sharp rise in legacy estates – not just passing on to inheriting generations but buying multiple estates by extended family members – Callawassie continues to draw a caliber of clientele who share common standards and passions to serve as good stewards of their environment and one another.

This is easier to accomplish when multiple generations are equally, enthusiastically falling in love with the same place, sometimes at the same time. In Hunting for your Happy Place, residents Jamie and Lisa Pentz tell the story of soliciting Lisa’s parents’ help, who lived on St. Simon’s Island, GA at the time, since the couple was house hunting long-distance from Colorado. By the time they got the call with the update, it included her parents’ new address…on Callawassie Island. It was love at first sight and soon enough, both generations would become neighbors.

Whether it’s families moving to be nearer to one another or a by-design appeal to all ages, stages, and life interests, the face of Callawassie Island has been diversifying over the last decade, creating a balance of diversity and the warmth of richer multigenerational connections.

As much as this is carefully curated by the leadership, it’s also carefully cultivated by the residents themselves, who are responding by “family-fying” the community and its collection of clubs and activities. It started with expanding schedules to include after-work activities and events for younger families and those still managing work/life balance. Then efforts focused on branching out from adult groups to create kid-versions like kids’ tennis classes and clubs.

Excitement spread like fireflies when residents realized how mutually beneficial this was to all: Some realized their grandkids would have a whole batch of entertaining options when visiting – a draw to visit more! – and others who may not have families of their own, realized they’d have the opportunity to volunteer and make the most endearing friendships, spanning decades of ages and experiences. Like a drawstring pulling the whole bag together, the CI Family Club was introduced in Calling All Islanders as, “already turning into the number one club with all the feels.”

Tough competition, as there are plenty of “feels” to go around, like with one of the more anticipated kid-catering causes of the year, Camp Callawassie, started by member Henry Diercxsens as a way for kids who met each other at Christmas and other holidays to see their friends again in the summer. Summer camps have long been the place where kids make connections that last a lifetime. How sweet it is to make them there among the sweetgrass shores of Callawassie, surrounded by friends and family as members of the community volunteer as camp counselors. That means grownups are making connections too – with each other and their own kids and grandkids through all the summer activities – swimming, fishing, kayaking, golf, tennis and various nature study activities. Callawassie Island – a community for now and for generations to come.

Cliff Dykes, resident since 2008, says his grands start asking right after camp, “when is Camp Callawassie next year?” Dykes himself, when he speaks of his forever home, mentions his friends, neighbors, and grandkids in almost every sentence, and often in correlation with the common interests that pull them all together: “The natural beauty influenced our choice,” he says. “That, and the people. You almost feel like you’re living amongst 400 great friends.”

Living among friends, drawing all ages, creating places and stages for different generations to connect – healthy things grow and thrive, and here on the island of “calm waters” the “ecology” of a burgeoning and blessed community is being well stewarded by its population. It’s a very purposeful plan as Callawassie Island Through the Years says, where “people who understand the inherent value of the place and its inhabitants and have influenced a changing landscape from ‘an island apart’ to what has today become ‘an inclusive island sanctuary.’”

From generation to generation, Callawassie Island is an inherent wealth of good.