Saturday's Sweetheart Sprint 5K Run/Walk was a huge success and once again drew a large crowd of folks of all ages. During this Relay For Life fundraiser, 39-year-old Michelle LaFleur of Savannah, GA., was the overall winner with a time of 19.06, while the second place finisher and overall male winner was local speedster Samuel Creswell. Congratulations!

Check back for all the winners, as well as many photos of the event, and read the full story in The Guardian. Winners will also be posted at http://www.active.com/running/hampton-sc/sweetheart-sprint-5K-2012  

Candidates have filed for the April 3 municipal elections in the towns of Hampton and Varnville, and so far there are few surprises.
In the Town of Varnville, only Nat Shaffer, the currently-serving mayor, has filed for that office. Shaffer was appointed to the position late last year by Gov. Nikki Haley to complete the unexpired term of Henry Fields, who was suspended from his post after an indictment for misconduct in office.
For the three open council seats, incumbents Henry Tuten, Ronald Williams, and Ralph Smith have filed, as has newcomer Erica Grubbs.

BRUNSON - Eight people - including four children - were left homeless Friday after an early morning fire heavily damaged their duplex home.
Firefighters from several departments responded to the structure fire at 282 North Main St. in Brunson around 8:20 a.m. and upon arriving at the scene immediately reported visible flames and smoke. Firemen remained on scene for some time, but the roof of the building was heavily damaged.

A series of public forums seeking input on the proposed Capital Projects Sales Tax Referendum wrapped up this week, and now it's on to the next step for the CPST Commission.
After an initial public forum in Estill, forums were held in Yemassee last Thursday and Hampton on Monday. Among the many suggestions for capital projects to be funded by the penny sales tax if approved in the November General Election referendum, three major needs are standing out: recreation, a new health department, and bigger and better libraries.

A lawsuit has been filed over allegations of a sexual assault at Wade Hampton High School in 2007.
Attorneys for a Hampton-area woman, as the natural parent and Guardian ad Litem of the minor plaintiff, filed the suit Jan. 12 in Hampton County Court of Common Pleas against the South Carolina State Board of Education, Hampton County School District 1, and Wade Hampton High School.
The Guardian is not publishing the name of the adult plaintiff, as to do so would identify the minor, a possible victim of sexual assault.

A phoned-in bomb threat at a local high school - which proved to be a hoax by two students looking to skip class - still has many in the community concerned about the way school officials handled the situation.
A call came into Wade Hampton High School around 7:32 a.m. last Wednesday stating that there was a bomb in the school. Authorities reacted quickly and followed standard disaster protocol.

Who says anonymous tips don't do any good?
Acting on just such a tip, town and county police stormed an apartment, Apt. D-1 at 425 Wade Hampton Road, around 5:30 p.m. Thursday and two accused drug dealers were sent packing to the Hampton County Detention Center.

If you're looking to find authentic NFL merchandise in time for the Super Bowl, you might need to keep a close and careful eye out.
Following a consumer complaint, the S.C. Secretary of State's office and the Hampton Police Department raided Spinbad Records & Moore around 10:30 Monday morning and seized counterfeit compact discs and merchandise, which were then destroyed by state officials.
Police say the 204 Lee Avenue business yielded 1,480 pirated CDs and as many as 15 counterfeit NFL jerseys, hats, and jewelry.