If you own a pool, chances are you know Greg Brown, or better known as The Pool Guy. He’s the guy to know when looking to purchase a pool, especially if you don’t want to break the bank.

A Passion to Help and Educate People in the Ever-Changing Medicare World by Melissa LaScaleia David Parker is an independent insurance broker serving the residents of the Grand Strand. He specializes in Medicare Supplement, Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug plans and also offers clients life, dental, vision and hospital plans. In an interview, the Insider asked David about his experience in his industry and how he came to work as an independent insurance broker. For most of his career, David worked for two of the largest health insurance carriers in the nation. Humana, when they expanded their Medicare program, hired him as one of their first agents in Virginia. After working for them for thirteen years, they offered David an early retirement option and assistance in branching out on his own as an independent insurance broker. The offer afforded him and his wife the opportunity to move to Myrtle Beach full time and for him to expand his business outside of his native Virginia. “We’ve had a house in Myrtle Beach for the past nine years,” he says. “My wife Sally and I always loved the Market Common area and decided to build here in 2019. We love the lifestyle; it’s so active here and we have met some incredible people.  “We joined a wonderful church, and overall, it is just a great, close-knit community. You have access to everything you need here. My wife can work remotely and I am continuing to grow my business in South Carolina.” “I can’t say enough good things about Humana,” David continues. “But it is nice for my clients to be able to pick from all carriers because there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution— everybody has different needs.  “This path is an opportunity to stay with my clients long-term; as their needs change throughout their lives, I can continue to refine the plans and options that would best serve them, and help them through every step of the process. “I’ve been in the insurance industry for almost 25 years, and I’ve focused on Medicare for the last twenty. I have a lot of expertise in this industry, and I make sure I stay on top of things in the ever-changing Medicare world with continuing education and certification courses.”  Today, David continues to present all available options to his clients. He acts as a mentor, educating them on the differences between plans, helping them to enroll, and assisting them with any questions or needs they have afterwards. “Medicare allows you to change your plan every year,” David says. “And when that time comes, you want to be working with someone you trust, that is knowledgeable and that can help you navigate through the changes and answer your questions. That’s my passion— educating and helping people. I love what I do. I pursued my own path because it offered an opportunity for me to continue to do what I really love, but on a broader basis.” David’s mission is to educate and assit the community in their health care needs. As an independent agent, he represents all carriers, and is able to help his clients select the plan that is the best fit for them. As part of his mission to educate and assist the community, David hosts presentations for people approaching Medicare or getting close to that time. “When I began, Medicare was much simpler,” he says. “But with the numerous Medicare options available, it can be very overwhelming and confusing for most people. I’m there to answer their questions, help them gain a better understanding and feel comfortable with the plan they choose.  “I also pride myself on always being available to my customers after the sale is made. It’s a long-term-relationship that I have with them. For most people, it’s a big decision, as it impacts their health as well as their finances, so I want to make sure they get enrolled in the right plan.” “My main goal is to make sure the people I deal with stay happy,” he adds. “I treat them the way I want to be treated, and the way I would want my parents to be treated.” Parker Insurance Envelope Phone

Your Friends, Your Favorites, Your Fox, Locally by Melissa LaScaleia WFXB is a Fox affiliate news station broadcasting locally from the Market Common. They host three shows daily: Carolina AM, a live morning talk show hosted by Greg Rowles and Audra Grant; live coverage of Fox midday news; and in the evening, Not the News— a lighthearted satire of the news, also hosted by Greg and Audra. “The morning show is something to engage the community,” says Audra, who co-produces the show with her colleague, Laura Pence. “It’s unique in this market— something where people can grab a cup of coffee and sit down to be informed and entertained.” For the first ten minutes of the show, Greg and Audra chat unscripted— and as it’s a live broadcast— anything spontaneous or quirky, or both, can occur. “It could be something funny that happened before the show began,” Audra says. “We let it go where it leads.” Carolina AM covers a variety of topics. There is always something health-related, like statistics on exercise, or a latest nutrition find. Sometimes a dating tip. They’ll always do a show biz highlight, in which they relay the top four news-worthy stories involving celebrities. And then there’s a cooking segment.  Often top chefs will appear as guest educators; at other times Greg and Audra will teach each other how to prepare a dish. “But it’s the things that people can relate to,” Audra says. “How to save $30 at the Dollar Tree, or create your own spa at home. I’ll bring something in from my home that I love, whether it’s an appliance or a favorite cleaning product, and do a segment about it.” It’s also highly interactive. “We’re always looking for ideas from our viewers,” Audra says. “The show is a real give-and-take. We want to engage with our audience. We get notifications from our audience in the moment, and we’ll relay that content and respond to it. “Our goal for the show and in general is connecting with the community. We share information in a different light, and a personal one. The world can get so heavy. We want people to be able to relax and watch the program with their kids or their best friend, engage with us in real time if they choose, and not worry about having a heavy heart afterwards.” Audra went to school for journalism at Winthrop University. Her first job out of college was as a weather anchor and a reporter. Audra Grant (right) on the set of Not the News, which airs weekdays at 10:30pm. Audra co-hosts the witty, lighthearted evening show with colleague Greg Rowles. “It’s so much fun”. she says. Audra Grant on the set of Not the News, which airs weekdays at 10:30pm. Audra co-hosts the witty, lighthearted evening show with colleague Greg Rowles. “It’s so much fun”. she says. Previous Next “I still had a few more months of school left when I was offered a full time job as a weatherwoman and reporter at a small local station in Rock Hill, SC,” she says. “I didn’t know anything about the weather, so I would watch all the other weather networks in the area, and take the average as my prediction.”   “What else was a college student going to do?” she says laughing. “It was a low budget cable station, and there was no cable affiliate. In between classes, I would draw the weather patterns with a magic marker, then run over to the station and give the map of my predictions to the graphic designer who would design it for the show. Then, after class I would record it.”   Later, Audra’s career took her to WPDE in Florence where she left the duties of the weather for Channel 15 to Ed Piowtroski.   “He was hands down the best meteorologist in this area,” she says. “And when I told him about what I did, he had a good laugh.”   Audra worked as a general assignment reporter, then as an investigative journalist, then moved into anchoring and producing. She is best known for an expose she wrote on the Florence County treasurer’s office many years ago.   “As a journalist, people send you info all the time,” she says. “And one day I got a tip that I felt I should pursue. Over the course of six months, I followed a trail and put the pieces together to discover that the treasurer for the county owed about 1 million in taxes that he hadn’t paid. He ended up being indicted.” A behind the scenes look at WFXB Fox 43 News Studio in Myrtle Beach. In camera, Audra Grant gets ready to film Carolina AM, the morning show she co-produces with Laura Pence. Previous Next Audra first worked at WFXB ten years ago, covering feature stories and co-hosting Not the News. While taking time to raise her family, she worked as a freelancer. Then, this August, WFXB called and asked her to fill in for Not the News once more, as well as their newly formatted Carolina AM with Greg; and she never stopped. Not the News follows the 10pm news at 10:30pm so that people can relax and unwind with something humorous before bed. “Not the News is so much fun it doesn’t feel like a job,” Audra says. “I’ve learned a lot from it. Initially it was very challenging for me to do because it’s a spoof, and I was trained as an anchor to be serious. But Greg has a great sense of humor and can come up with puns relating to a story. I’m not funny at all, but I know how to set him up, so we work together really well.” The general format of the show follows a protocol that is designed to be so ridiculous that you can’t believe the topics are being discussed. “We make fun of the news, of off-the-wall things, and bring an air of light-heartedness to our viewers … Read more