For the second year in a row, Hartsville City Council has passed a resolution temporarily suspending part of the blue laws against Sunday morning shopping.

Palmettovores were on the prowl Thursday night at the Taste of the Farm, sponsored by the Greater Darlington County Chamber of Commerce. In the first of what will become an annual event, vendors paid tribute to South Carolina agriculture.

On Friday, the White House released estimates that $160 billion in stimulus spending created or preserved 650,000 direct jobs. The stimulus program awarded $3.8 billion to South Carolina, and $702 million have been received, according to recovery.gov. These funds have created or saved 8,147 jobs as of Oct. 30, and these jobs are quite welcome given the state of our state.

Workers laid off by DuPont Teijin Films of Florence and by Mohawk Industries of Dillon are eligible to apply for federal assistance, U.S. Rep. John Spratt, D-S.C., announced in a press release Tuesday.

Russell Stover’s candy outlet store closed its doors for good on Oct. 27.

Boeing’s decision to land a new aircraft assembly plant in South Carolina should mean thousands of jobs beyond the plant’s walls.

Close to fifty people showed up at a seminar for Disadvantaged Business Enterprises Thursday night.

Representatives from Crescent Bank today announced the bank will partner with North Myrtle Beach High School’s chapter of the International Thespian Society in an effort to collect food items to give to needy children in the North Myrtle Beach area as part of the national “Trick or Treat So Kids Can Eat” program.

South Carolina’s new jobless numbers came out Wednesday and they weren’t all that good. The employment security commission said that the state had an unemployment rate of 11.6%; that’s up slightly from August which was 11.4%.

The tour provides information on job training, employment assistance programs and also provides assistance to potential applicants on remaining positions with the Savannah River Site provided by the Recovery Act.

Some students with Coastal Carolina University said they hope a career in sports could help boost the Grand Strand’s sports tourism. They attended a career fair on how to do just that on Wednesday.

In a press conference held at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center Tuesday, members of the Myrtle Beach Area Hospitality Association said the area faired much better compared to other popular vacation destinations so far this year. The theme was “Good news in a Bad economy.“

State lawmakers will return to Columbia next week to vote on extending already extended unemployment benefits to thousands of out of work residents.

In spite of the national recession, Florence city and county leaders say their area has found a way to thrive. And in their State of the City and State of the County speeches on Thursday, they declared that they plans to build on that success.

Harvest Hope Food Bank’s Pee Dee branch has received a $10,000 grant from the Eastern Carolina Community Foundation.