Arabia Alliance Joins The BOC At SEWE In Charleston
The second week of February was a busy one, as the Arabia Alliance, volunteers and other fellow partners joined the BIPOC Outdoor Collective (BOC) in Charleston, South Carolina for the Southeastern Wildlife Exposition (SEWE).
The BIPOC Outdoor Collective (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color), or BOC, founded by Renee Maisonet, is a nonprofit established in 2024 that works to curate outdoor experiences for traditionally underserved communities. Based in Metro Atlanta, the organization holds outdoor trips and adventures and works to improve access to resources like gear to allow more people to get outside. This year, the BOC partnered with the Southeastern Wildlife Exposition (SEWE), an annual, 3-day event held in Charleston, South Carolina, in order to encourage more diverse participation and to stimulate interest in outdoor recreation for all. In addition to a booth at the expo, the BOC held a garden service project at Orange Grove Elementary School in Charleston, as well as a fancy dinner fundraiser for the organization. The BOC also recruited fellow outdoors-based organizations, including the Arabia Alliance and our volunteers, to assist with the projects and the booth at SEWE. Enjoy the following photos from this special week-long visit to Charleston leading up to SEWE, February 15-18. BOC founder Maisonet wrote the following message to all those who helped this dream into a reality.
The BOC at SEWE: A Round of Applause for Volunteers
I want to give a special thank you to everyone who helped bring BOC at SEWE to life. This activation would not have been possible without the generous support of our partners, volunteers, friends, and families. Everyone came together, worked tirelessly, and stepped up to support the vision and the mission.
To the partners who believed in this effort and served as our leading sponsors, we are deeply grateful. Special thanks to Djuanna Brockington from the Gullah Geechee National Heritage Corridor, Revonda Cosby from the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area, and Shauntee Daniels from the Baltimore National Heritage Area. Their partnership and leadership deserve a well-earned round of applause.
And so many more people stepped in to make this initiative a reality, but we must give a special shoutout to our incredible Charleston crew—our real MVPs:
- Chef Marcus Shell
- Kourtney Jones of Explore Charleston
- Tia Clark of Casual Crabbing with Tia
- John Fuss of Holy City Fishing Charters
- David and Cheryl Bennett
- Angel Parson
- Melissa Brown
- Rafael (Angel) Parilla
- Kendra Fields
- Kaylin Moss
- and the entire Southeastern Wildlife Exposition team
Without everyone’s dedication and hard work, much of the groundwork that made this activation possible would not have happened.
Thank you all for giving your time, energy, and talents to help make this experience a success.
There are so many others who contributed along the way, and while we may not be able to name everyone here, please know that every effort was seen and deeply appreciated. Let’s do it again next year—bigger and better!
~By Renee Maisonet
Now enjoy the following photos from this special week-long visit to Charleston leading up to SEWE.
Preparations for SEWE
Arabia Alliance members, like Program Manager Jennifer Dickie (pictured), assisted with booth design setup, such as decorating frames to hold photos of BOC trips.
Photos were spread around turf boards to serve as the backdrop to the booth.
Melissa Brown, owner of the Charleston Flower Bar, a flower provider for local events, partnered with the BOC and graciously hosted volunteers at her site. In exchange, volunteers aided her in preparation for some of her endeavors, such as this painted set for display of flowers.
BOC volunteers participated in a garden project at Orange Grove Charter School in West Ashley, Charleston.
The Arabia Alliance set up our own table at SEWE. Jeff Dingler, Comm Manager, hands out flyers and goodies to visitors.
The BOC booth featured a compost demonstration station, where visitors were invited to take a jar home. After adding dirt and shredded paper, visitors were instructed to add biotic matter like orange or banana peels, add water, affix the paper to the top of the jar and make holes in it for airflow and leave the jar, and watch it decompose over time.
The rock painting station was a hit and attracted kids and parents alike!
The BOC’s stylish “We’ve Been Outside” hats were on display and on sale at the merch station.
The BOC has a table full of merch on sale, like shirts, hats, bags and stickers.
A camping station demonstration was on display adjacent to the booth.
Arabia Alliance Volunteer Yelena Marycheva prepared supplies for a river rock painting station at the booth.
SEWE was attended by outdoorspeople of all kinds, who came to see booths like those of Ducks Unlimited, Clemson University, the South Carolina Department of Agriculture and bird demonstrations.
SEWE was held at Marion Square in downtown Charleston, surrounded by historic churches, hotels, shops and palm trees.
The BOC hosted a fancy, 5 course dinner at “Field To Fire” prepared by Chef Marcus Shell, with fellow partners to raise funds for a new trailer for trips. The target funds were reached!
Arabia Alliance Executive Director Revonda Cosby gave remarks and thanked the cohort at the dinner.
On Saturday night, Renee Maisonet held a cookout and gathering at Melissa’s property.
Arabia Mountain
Dominated by two granite outcrops, the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area offers natural wonders, compelling history and heart-pumping activity. This nationally significant landscape includes vibrant history, breathtaking beauty and intriguing cultural changes from early settlers to immigrant rock cutters, Trappist monks and one of the oldest African-American communities in Georgia.
