SHOW NOTES:

In this episode of the Lowcountry Explorer Podcast, host Sasha Horne sits down with Reverend Johnny Simmons, the self-taught Gullah folk artist and Vietnam veteran whose wood burning art has traveled from Saint Helena Island to collectors around the world.

Rev. Simmons shares the unlikely story of how it all started: a long wait at Walmart, a wood burning kit, and a creative gift he never knew he had. What followed was a body of work rooted in ancestral memory, the Gullah language, and the land and people of the Sea Islands.

In this conversation, he reflects on growing up on Saint Helena before the bridges, farming corn and rice with no tractor, speaking Gullah before he even had a name for it, and what it meant to graduate from an integrated school in the early 1970s. He also opens up about his military service in Vietnam, his decades of work at Parris Island and the Naval Hospital, and how art found him later in life, starting to earn from his craft in his early 50s.

His pieces don't just hang on walls. They carry Gullah words, stories, and prayers, and Rev. Simmons says that's by design. He wants the next generation to see the language, read it, feel it, and carry it forward.

In this episode:

• How Rev. Simmons discovered his artistic gift later in life
• Growing up farming on Saint Helena with no car, no electricity, and no tractor
• What the island looked like before the bridge and before integration
• The tradition of "seeking" in the Gullah church
• Why Gullah was never called Gullah growing up
• His Vietnam service and the winding path back home
• Why he prays over every piece he creates
• His top spots to visit and eat on Saint Helena Island

Find Rev. Johnny Simmons: https://gullahwoodburning.yolasite.com/FOLK-ART-ORIGINALS.php

TAGS / KEYWORDS: Gullah folk art, St. Helena Island, Lowcountry culture, Gullah Geechee heritage, wood burning art, Penn Center, Sea Islands history, South Carolina Black history, Gullah language preservation, Reverend Johnny Simmons, Lowcountry Explorer Podcast, Sasha Horne Hirshout, The Beaufort Blog, Sasha Horne

Lowcountry Explorer is a podcast all about Beaufort and the surrounding Sea Islands of South Carolina — the people, places, and stories that make this region truly unique. Each episode goes deeper into the culture, creativity, and community that defines life on the Lowcountry coast.

For Episode 1 of Lowcountry Explorer, we're sitting inside the brand new Beaufort Digital Corridor community podcast studio — and our first guest couldn't be more fitting.

Caroline Pennington is a Beaufort-based digital marketing expert, entrepreneur, and top 3% podcast host featured in Entrepreneur and Inc. Magazine. A former corporate executive recruiter turned founder, Caroline launched The Feminine Founder Podcast in 2023, her digital marketing agency Feminine Founder Marketing in 2025.

In this episode we talk about:

• What it was like to be one of the first guests in the new Beaufort Digital Corridor podcast studio
• Caroline's journey from corporate recruiting to becoming a Lowcountry entrepreneur
• How she built a top-ranked podcast and what she wishes she knew when she started
• Her best tips for marketing your personal brand online
• Why Beaufort is the perfect place to build a creative business

Connect with Caroline:

• Instagram: @cpennington55
• Podcast: The Caroline Pennington Show / The Feminine Founder (Apple & Spotify)
• Website: femininefounder.com

Visit the Beaufort Digital Corridor: beaufortdigital.com | Located at 500 Carteret Street, Suite D, Beaufort SC

Lowcountry Explorer is recorded at the Beaufort Digital Corridor Community Podcast Studio.

South Carolina podcast, Lowcountry stories, Small business podcast, Beaufort SC podcast, Lowcountry podcast, Beaufort South Carolina, Sea Islands South Carolina, Beaufort entrepreneur, Lowcountry small business

We want to share your story. Visit guest.lowcountryexplorer.com to sign up. Lowcountry Explorer is a new podcast all about Beaufort and the surrounding Sea Islands of South Carolina. Learn about the people, places, and historical stories that make this region unique.