Did you know they’re planning to bring 4,500 homes to Old Lake Road right in the heart of our small, tight-knit community? The proposed development would stretch from 3584 Old Lake Rd., beginning at the Fire Tower and reaching all the way to the little church near Pocosin Rd. (Feel free to plug it into your GPS, you’ll see just how much land is at stake.) But this isn’t just about new houses. It’s about a massive, irreversible change that threatens to permanently alter the very heart of who we are. The land in question includes precious wetlands and a unique, irreplaceable ecosystem that should never be built on. It deserves protection, not pavement. This community isn’t just where we live, it’s part of us. The land, the people, the history, and the way we care for one another make this place something truly special. Lake Waccamaw and Bolton are more than small towns on a map, they are sacred ground. Their roots run deep, dating back to the 1700s, when the land became home to the Waccamaw Siouan Tribe, who lived in harmony with the wetlands, forests, and freshwater ecosystems. This land has always provided food, shelter, medicine, and identity. By the 1800s, settlers built timber, turpentine, and farming operations. Lake Waccamaw became a peaceful natural retreat, while Bolton grew into a hardworking, close-knit community rooted in faith, farming, and family. In the 1900s, railroads passed through, but the towns resisted overdevelopment. Bolton became a proud community with strong Waccamaw Siouan and African American roots, many families still live on generational land today. I myself live on generational land in Bolton. Lake Waccamaw remained a nature preserve, home to rare species and still waters that have long drawn scientists and nature lovers from across the nation. Now in 2025, developers want to pave over what history has preserved for more than 300 years. Our roads are rural. Our infrastructure is limited. Our children don’t need traffic, they need trees. Our farmers don’t need concrete, they need clean, working soil. Our future doesn’t lie in overgrowth. It lies in preservation. This land is productive. It feeds us through family farms, supports wildlife, and sustains our rural economy. This land is sacred. It holds the story of the Waccamaw Siouan people, enslaved peoples, and generations of hardworking families. This land is fragile. The wetlands and ecosystems around Lake Waccamaw cannot be rebuilt once destroyed. This land is ours. We are not against growth, but this is not growth. It’s erasure. We call on our leaders, our neighbors, and anyone with a voice in this decision to listen to those who live here, love here, and have always protected this land. Let’s stand together as families, as neighbors, as a tribal community and protect what makes this place so deeply special. Let Bolton and Lake Waccamaw remain the places they were always meant to be: small, rooted, resilient, and real.