Mount Pleasant Magazine March/April 2018

north mount pleasant www.NorthMountPleasant.com | www.ParkWestNeighborhoods.com | www.BrickyardHomes.com 12 - NMP 35-degree weather, we still have people who come out to the show. Some of them are people who come every week.” White, a full-time dentist, first dreamed up the idea of an outdoor music space in 2008 when a friend of his, Dan Henderson, got involved in hosting house shows. “I was really intrigued by this listening room atmosphere and the intimacy of it,” he said. “And I wanted my son to experience the music scene and the personalities involved.” At the time, his son, Clay, was playing in the band at Cario Middle School, and, though White has never been a musician himself, he enjoyed bonding with his son through these shows. Soon after, White and two friends decided to purchase a piece of land in Awendaw with the intention of hosting small shows outside rather than in someone’s home. As more people began to attend, the event outgrew its space. Spur-of-the-moment gatherings turned into an organized Wednesday night series until it was brought to their attention that they couldn’t host public events if they weren’t a commercial property. After three or four years of these unofficial concerts in this makeshift space, White and his team forged an agreement with the Geer family, the owners of the Sewee Outpost, who allow them to use the land as a music venue. Now the venue has become something of a mecca for the Charleston music scene. Though the Barn Jams attract many musicians and creatives, Awendaw Green’s biggest focus is on providing a gathering place for the entire Charleston area. “It’s really great how the community has embraced it,” said White. “I think they sense how rare this is and how important it is to have a public performance space. In some ways, we may have helped brand Awendaw as a cool place to be and to show people that what we do is about inclusion and