Mother Nature Island native nourishes the beach she calls home By Maurice J. Frazier aula McGuire is a person who loves life and lives it to the fullest. She also takes pride in giving back to the island that has given so much to her. A Sullivan’s Island native, McGuire prefers to spend more of her free time on Isle of Palms. As a member of the IOP Cleanup Crew, the Lowcountry’s health and beauty is her top priority and she is a firm believer that cleanliness is next to godliness. Her involvement with the IOP Cleanup Crew evolved from her early morning beach walks during which she picked up items such as the plastic straw wrappers from juice boxes and other plastics to discarded toys, abandoned towels and blankets. Since April, McGuire has collected, washed and distributed nearly 300 towels and 30 blankets to various charities serving people and animals, which has further enhanced her connection within the community. McGuire found herself regularly checking in on Wednesday mornings and the IOP Cleanup Crew eventually became part of her life. Now, they are part of her family. It’s important to McGuire to belong to a group dedicated to keeping the beaches pristine for residents, visitors and most importantly, marine life. “You only have to meet Paula once to know she is a beautiful soul committed to helping others and helping our planet,” shared Susan Hill Smith, co-founder of the IOP Cleanup Crew. She graduated from Moultrie High School before it became a middle school. McGuire moved away for a while, but returned to the area about six years ago to be closer to her family and to experience a quieter way of life than the Bay Area of California. She spent 20 years doing structural analysis and 19 IslandVibesIOP.com P LIFESTYLE actuarial work. She’s a healing arts practitioner, a licensed psychotherapist in South Carolina and California and an energy psychology practitioner and instructor. McGuire loves that she gets to help folks on their healing journey and provide tools for them to feel better about themselves and their lives. “Many of the people I worked with felt stifled and unfulfilled or cannot fully express themselves. Some have had childhood trauma or unhealthy relationships and want to explore how life could be better,” McGuire shared. Even though McGuire enjoys her career she also loves to relax and let her hair down. Her favorite hobby is walking on the beach every morning to watch the sunrise. She also enjoys yoga, reading and Qigong, a traditional Chinese practice that involves a combination of movement, breathing and meditation to improve health and well-being. One of McGuire’s most recent reads was “James” by Percival Everett, a powerful and moving novel. It is a re-imagining of Mark Twain’s “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” which prompted her to reread the original novel. McGuire loves to be surrounded by her family and friends. McGuire has no children or grandchildren, but has several nephews and a niece and has a few grandnephews and grandnieces as well. She can often be found at Acme Lowcountry Kitchen. “I love the Mount Pleasant Eggs Benedict: fried green tomatoes and poached eggs on an English muffin with Hollandaise sauce and, of course, a side of grits.” What makes living on the island so special is the full and rich life McGuire has experienced which includes family, community, work and beach walks. She is a person who wants herself and others to enjoy life and cherish being on this earth. Photos Provided. You only have to meet Paula once to know she is a beautiful soul committed to helping others and helping our planet."
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