OCTOBER 15, 2025
TODAY’S PROGRAM WELCOME
Bill Miles
President & CEO
Hilton Head Island & Bluffton Chamber of Commerce
PRESENTATION OF COLORS & PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
NATIONAL ANTHEM
Finley Watterson
INVOCATION
Todd Cullen
Lead Pastor, Hilton Head Island Community Church
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster
LOCAL LEADER ROUNDTABLE
Alice Howard
Beaufort County Council Chair
Mayor Alan Perry
Town of Hilton Head Island
Mayor Larry Toomer
Town of Bluffton
Mayor Harry Williams
Town of Hardeeville
HENRY MCMASTER
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Governor Henry McMaster is a native of South Carolina, a graduate of the South Carolina School of Law, and served in the U.S. Army Reserves. Gov. McMaster served as a legislative assistant to U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond, and practiced law for over 40 years. His “Operation Jackpot” investigation into international drug smuggling resulted in more than 100 convictions.
Gov. McMaster was elected attorney general of South Carolina in 2002, and then as lieutenant governor in 2014. He was sworn in as governor in January 2017 and then elected to a full term as governor in 2018 and re-elected in November 2022.
Gov. McMaster served on the Palmetto Health Foundation Board and is the recipient of the Order of the Palmetto, the state’s highest civilian honor. He was previously named Public Servant of the Year by the Sierra Club and National Law Enforcement Officer of the Year by the Humane Society of the United States.
CHAIR ALICE HOWARD
BEAUFORT COUNTY COUNCIL
Alice G. Howard and her husband moved to Beaufort County in 1991. She earned a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Georgia, a bachelor of science in community planning and development from Columbus College, and an associate arts degree from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.
She has more than 30 years of experience as a community liaison working with environmental, natural resources, public administration, and regional planning issues. She retired from Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, where she served as the Natural Resources and Environmental Director, and later the Community Plans and Liaison Officer.
MAYOR ALAN PERRY
TOWN OF HILTON HEAD ISLAND
Mayor Alan Perry moved to Hilton Head Island with his family in 1972, and graduated from high school from Hilton Head Preparatory School, where he was voted “Most Likely to Be Mayor” by his senior class. He then graduated from the College of Charleston, and after returned to Hilton Head Island to begin his career.
Mayor Perry is a member of Providence Presbyterian Church, Hilton Head Area Association of Realtors, Greater Hilton Head Island Mortgage Lenders Association, and Hilton Head Home Builders Association. He has also served on the Planning Commission for Town of Hilton Head Island, People for Parks, RBC Heritage Classic Presented by Boeing Announcers, Hilton Head Island Recreation Association, Hilton Head Prep Alumni Board, United Way, the Hilton Head Island & Bluffton Chamber of Commerce Junior Leadership Class, and others.
MAYOR LARRY TOOMER TOWN
OF BLUFFTON
Larry Toomer was first elected to Bluffton Town Council in 2012 and then Mayor in 2023. He is a fourth-generation commercial fisherman who owns the Bluffton Oyster Company (the last oyster shucking factory in South Carolina) and Toomer’s Seafood Restaurant. His great-grandfather came to Hilton Head in 1913 to oyster and shrimp. Mayor Toomer was born two years after the J. Byrnes Bridge, a drawbridge, was built and by 12 years old, Toomer was helping with his family business and pulling 100 crab pots a day. He graduated from McCracken High School in 1976. In 1986, he met his wife, Tina, on the beaches of Hilton Head Island and has grown his family, his career, and his life in Bluffton ever since. They have five children, one “bonus daughter,” and many beautiful grandchildren.
MAYOR HARRY WILLIAMS
CITY OF HARDEEVILLE
Born in Philadelphia, Mayor Harry Williams earned his bachelor’s degrees in economics from Rutgers University. He is a 42-year veteran of the footwear industry, including as vice president of sales for Oshkosh, Body Glove, U.S. Polo Association, and others.
Mayor Williams has over 30 years of experience working in municipal government including serving as a city councilman in Mahwah, N.J. for five years and three years on the planning board there. He was elected to the Hardeeville City Council in 2015 and mayor in 2016. He’s also currently chair of the Southern Lowcountry Advisory Board and a member of the Jasper County Chamber of Commerce board of directors.
