Jonathan Haupt & Pat Conroy, photo by Anne McQuary

The nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center and the recently opened special event space Village Social at Habersham will launch a new six-part monthly series of Pat Conroy-themed lectures and panel discussions, beginning on Monday, August 25, at 6:00 p.m. with Pat Conroy: An Introduction to a Lowcountry Legend, presented by Conroy Center executive director Jonathan Haupt.

Internationally acclaimed writer Pat Conroy (1945-2016) is best remembered as the author of The Water Is Wide, The Great Santini, The Lords of Discipline, and The Prince of Tides, each also adapted for film. Conroy has become as synonymous with his adopted lowcountry as pluff mud or Spanish Moss. Join the Conroy Center executive director—and one of Pat’s many protégés—for an engaging hour of stories, photos, and videos introducing Conroy’s origin story, the beginnings of his writing and teaching life and exploring some of the major themes of his work, and how the nonprofit literary center established in his memory continues his legacy today.

The $25 registration fee includes the presentation, refreshments, and a donation in support of the year-round educational mission of the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center. You can register in advance for this event and others in this new series at
https://www.villagesocialhabersham.net/upcoming-events

The monthly series will alternate between engaging thematic lectures on Conroy presented by Haupt and lively panel discussions among a rotating cast of contributing local writers to the multi-award-winning anthology Our Prince of Scribes: Writers Remember Pat Conroy. Future event panelists include Cassandra King, Tim Conroy, Stephanie Austin Edwards, Brenda McClain, John Warley, and Margaret Evans.

About the Presenter: Jonathan Haupt is the executive director of the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center, the

Jonathan Haupt

past director of the University of South Carolina Press, and co-editor of the anthology Our Prince of Scribes: Writers Remember Pat Conroy, winner of 17 book awards. Haupt has been featured on CSPAN’s Book TV and SC ETV/PBS’s By the River. He is also a frequent guest book reviewer for the Pulitzer Prize-winning Charleston Post and Courier. He has been honored with the Doug Marlette Literacy Leadership Award and the South Carolina Association of School Librarians President’s Award. Under Haupt’s leadership, the Conroy Center has been recognized as an American Library Association Literary Landmark, an affiliate of the American Writers Museum, winner of the Civitas Award for Tourism Leadership, and winner of multiple Tripadivsor Travelers Choice Awards. With Claire Bennett, he also serves as co-mentor to the student leaders of DAYLO: Diversity Awareness Youth Literacy Organization, who in turn have been recognized with a national commendation from the American Association of School Librarians, the South Carolina Education Association’s Richard W. Riley Award for Human and Civil Rights, and an honorable mention for the South Carolina Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Award.

About Village Social at Habersham: Founded by longtime Habersham resident and creative powerhouse Stephanie Smalley, Village Social was designed with connection in mind, to offer an intimate, thoughtfully curated space that turns gatherings into unforgettable experiences. Village Social offers a full-service experience, including event planning, decorating, catering coordination, and design support. Their signature House Events bring guest creatives, instructors, and professionals to Village Social for public workshops, hands-on classes, and fun activities—honoring the belief that when we gather with intention, we build something bigger than a single event; we build community. Learn more at https://www.villagesocialhabersham.net.

And learn more about the Pat Conroy Literary Center at www.patconroyliterarycenter.org.