Mount Pleasant Magazine May/June 2019

41 www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.BestOfMP.com | www.ReadMPM.com feature R ecall the days of being a young girl or boy, say 5 or 6 years old, playing “house” in your yard with an imaginary family. It came so easily. Or when . you were at school playing “family” or “doctor” or “vet” or whatever you fancied for the day with your group of friends. You didn’t question the roles or where those missing elements were. You felt it all. That baby was yours. You were the mother, that was your sister, that was your dog and cat — and that was your family! Unfortunately, as we grow older, we lose this magic of imaginary play — or moreover, the magic of accepting circumstances, people and concepts that aren’t seen as traditional in our society. Instead, we are often stuck in a rut of the way things are “supposed” to go for us and pursue it doggedly. Despite the way the wheels turn in the world, I like to believe several East Cooper families have a bit of magic among them and possess that type of inherent good that is able to spark change in others — that type of good you want to surround yourself with and share with others because, well, it’s just that good. Meet the Greer family: Kelly and Jason, their twins, Madison and Mason, and the beloved family dogs — Smokey and Bandit. In my interview with Kelly, we talked big life concepts, and I was blown away: from health challenges to her subsequent book launch to Bandit’s terminal condition to their family’s journey with adoption — this Mount Pleasant family is rolling with the punches, making the best of each situation. … And the results are bigger and better than any contrived scenario. The Greer family relocated from Reston, Virginia, to Mount Pleasant about three years ago. Kelly moved here to teach at Porter Gaud, and Jason, an engineer, works at RMF on Daniel Island. Soon after arriving in Mount Pleasant, Kelly was diagnosed with neurocardiogenic syncope (NCS), a condition caused by a drop in blood pressure, quickly followed by faster, then slower, heart rate resulting in poor blood and oxygen flow to the brain — and then a near loss of consciousness. For Kelly, this happens about every day around 8 a.m. “Essentially you just pass out,” she said. “I’m on a great medication, and my condition is maintained, but it changes your whole perspective. … I moved my beautiful little family to this slow-paced area where they could be near the beach and I could teach, and then my world was kind of flipped upside down when my doctor told Photo courtesy of Kelly Greer. Mason and Madi.