IslandVibesIOP.com 20 FEATURE “Watching her in action is something to behold. She is a force to be reckoned with,” declared Ricky Myatt of his daughter, Grace. Ricky continued, “Grace has always been a ‘daddy’s girl,’ and ever since my wife Maggie, Grace’s mother, passed away seven years ago, she has become even more so. We laugh together and have an easy banter. She brings me a joy I cannot adequately describe. She even has me painting her nails purple! Grace has a way about her to be able to soften even the hardest of hearts. Everybody loves Grace!” Grace added, “He’s the best man I know.” The love between this dynamic father-daughter duo shines through with every look, every word, every gesture and every intonation. Born with Down syndrome, Grace has not let that diagnosis hold her back – she knows what she wants and she goes after it with determination and enthusiasm. Grace has an extensive and impressive resumé to her credit, including being a proud Clemson alumna. Grace attended Bishop England High School on Daniel Island through the school’s Options Program. Ricky beamed with pride as he explained, “This program accepts only four students per year. After Bishop England, Grace went on to attend Clemson University through their ClemsonLIFE (Learning Is For Everyone) Program, which accepts only 12 students throughout the entire country per year. She is an absolute force and I could not be any more proud of her.” Grace was the manager of the girls’ varsity soccer team at Bishop England for all four years of high school, a continuation of her and her father’s lifelong love of sports. Today, Grace remains an avid Clemson football fan and is almost always dressed in tiger orange and purple during football season. A bagger for the Isle of Palms Harris Teeter for going on five years now, Grace is a standout employee. She received a letter of recognition from Harris Teeter president Tammy DeBoer for her exceptional customer service. Not only is Grace a stellar employee, she is also an exceptionally savvy economist according to her dad and has managed to save most of her earnings. It should come as no surprise that the athletic Myatt family is deeply involved with the Special Olympics, and it is likely also no shock that Grace follows in her father’s likeness of being somewhat of an overachiever himself. Self-described as “not Citadel material,” Ricky attended The Citadel on a football scholarship and was a member of the Citadel surf team. “It was a great way to get out of uniform, wear flip-flops and a tank top that said ‘Citadel Surf Team,’” Ricky laughed. Ricky earned a degree in biology with a minor in chemistry and worked in hematology before moving from Folly Beach to the Isle of Palms to become a mail carrier, a job he kept for 25 years. Ricky owned a “dive” bar, Malibu East, on the island until its destruction during Hurricane Hugo. “I had a yellow lab at that time named Deputy Dog. Deputy Dog had a two-beer tab at every bar on the island at that time,” chuckled Ricky. He continued, “After Hugo, my business partner Paul Schwartz and I started Half Rubber. Some of my earliest memories were playing half rubber with my father, Dick Myatt. I essentially got involved in the Half Rubber business as a memorial to him.” Ricky went on, “Paul and I were working on getting the patent for Half Rubber before he died. He passed away before I could tell him, ‘We own it!’ I never got to tell him about it. Now I leave flowers and a Half Rubber ball on Paul’s and Maggie’s graves when I visit them.” After receiving 11 orders for Half Rubber balls and equipment in the last week from Delaware, California, Maryland, Missouri, China and Japan, Ricky described his largest order to date. “A company in California asked if there was a discount for ‘a lot.’ I asked him, ‘What’s a lot?’ And he told me a couple thousand! This particular place uses the balls for Pilates and yoga as points of contact on the floor.” Now packaged by South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department, Half Rubber was able to deliver on their promise to fill that 2,100 ball order from California, with time to spare. Another promise this devoted father delivered on recently was to escort Grace to a friend’s wedding. “The wedding was on a Saturday night and on Saturday morning, Grace asked me what black tie meant! I hadn’t seen the invitation; we went straight to Men’s Wearhouse to get a tux,” laughed Ricky. Grace does her share of compromising for her dad too. While Grace is not one to dress up or wear “fancy” clothes voluntarily, for Ricky’s 50th Citadel reunion, the duo dressed in matching Citadel blue. In just one of the many examples of the fatherly pride Ricky has for his only daughter, he ordered 1,500 bumper stickers sporting the phrase, “I got bagged by Grace @ H.T. on I.O.P.!” after Grace’s Harris Teeter presidential recognition. Ricky affectionately expressed, “We are father and daughter, roommates and best friends. She is the absolute love of my life. As long as I have Grace, I have it made.” It looks to us like the feeling is most certainly mutual. FEATURE Dynamic Duo: Grace and Ricky Myatt Beloved father-daughter combo, island icons By Laura Fogarty Ricky Myatt Bumper sticker created by Ricky Myatt Grace Myatt, Clemson graduate Photo by Rachel Basye Beaucephus Myatt Photo from Land Shark Productions
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