Caring hand, committed heart: County administrator is T&D Person of the Year

Humility. Integrity. Sincerity. Those are among the traits that the administrator of a county spanning more than 1,000 square miles and having nearly 800 employees tries to emulate as he navigates a course to keep Orangeburg an attractive place to live, work and play.

Orangeburg County Administrator Harold Young came from modest means and has never forgotten his roots. It was a close, loving family that nurtured him, and a God that he believes continues to guide him as he fulfills the duties of his role.

He values his servant leadership style and cites the support of the county employees and his family as key in helping him succeed. Young said the county’s bolstered fund balance and a slew of community development projects to include libraries, a conference center and a variety of parks are among the things of which he is most proud.

For his commitment to the county’s development and the character he displays in working to make growth across The T&D Region a reality, Young has been named The Times and Democrat Person of the Year for 2021.

It is an honor Young appreciates, but he said it is more about the team which surrounds him every day, along with the support of a strong Orangeburg County Council and his family.

“A lot of those people are people who’ve been born and raised in Orangeburg County. To see them be able to put those skills back to work for their community is a great thing. It’s all about the team and county council,” Young said.

“I think we’ve been blessed. We had a good long run with the council that we had. There were very few changes on council over the years. We’re starting to see a little bit more movement now, but it’s just the vision that county council has put together that allows me to do what I do and flow,” he said. “I think a lot of that is just being from Orangeburg and knowing the different ones of the community that we deal with.”

He and his wife, Cassandra Pyatt-Young, are the parents of two children, Alexander and Lauren. The administrator also credits her, along with staying humble, for keeping him sane in a sometimes high-pressure job.

“A lot of the inspiration basically comes from my wife and how she always supports me and makes sure that I do the best I can and be good at it. Also, just staying humble. A lot of people are like, ‘Man, if I had your position, I’d be doing this, or I’d be doing that.’ It ain’t that serious,” Young said.

“I try to remember that we just got to stay in the game, and then it’s all about supporting each other because there are a lot of people like myself that have these high-pressure jobs. We have to work together,” he said.

Young has a long history of work in county government. He began in the tourism department at Lower Savannah Council of Governments in Aiken before becoming a program manager for Aiken County.

When he began work in Orangeburg County in 1996, he served as a grants administrator before going on to serve as planning director and then deputy administrator. He became county administrator in 2012.

“From a citizen standpoint, I’m definitely here to serve. I never take for granted county council and the citizens allowing me to be their administrator. It’s not a job that I take for granted. I answer phone calls all times of day and all times of night,” Young said.

He continued, “They tease me about my truck. They call it the Air Force One of the county because I’m always from one end of this county to the next. I’ll show up. Employees know I don’t just sit behind this desk. I get out in the community, and I go different places.”

T&D Publisher Cathy Hughes said Young is deserving of the honor as T&D Person of the Year.

“We’ve all heard the term ‘unsung hero,’ and I think Harold Young represents what that means. He manages a large staff of county employees, but he works long and hard himself for the citizens of Orangeburg County,” Hughes said.

“She continued, “You can observe Harold Young in action at many events and activities throughout this large county, but you don’t see him in the spotlight. His satisfaction comes from knowing he has done a job well. To have such a demanding job, Harold finds the time to respond quickly to the public. He’s engaged and relatable.”

Orangeburg County Council Chairman Johnnie Wright said he is “thrilled” Young was chosen.

“I think that that’s very deserving of Harold. Harold is really committed to Orangeburg County, and I know that, but he also has a good team that supports him. It’s a reflection of him hiring good people that do a good job,” Wright said.

“Harold has done a good job of growing the county, and he’s good at articulating and keeping you informed about what’s going on. Some people want to toot their own horn about things. When you do a good job, somebody else will see it and toot your horn for you. That’s what’s happening now,” the chairman said.

Humble beginnings

Young was born one of three children to Harold Young Sr. and Ruth Young in Cordova. He lived on Daniely Drive off of Cannon Bridge Road, a close-knit community that helped raise him.

“The neighborhood I grew up in meant a lot because we had some neighbors, specifically the Simpsons, who were like a second set of families. Mr. Jack Simpson taught me a lot about farming, and he used to quiz us all the time. He wanted to make sure that I turned out to be something,” he said.

The administrator continued, “Every time I went other there, he would just sit me down and quiz the devil out of me about life issues and all kind of stuff. He said, ‘You have no excuse not to be nothing because I’m going to make sure you be something. He meant a lot to me. And his wife, Ms. Mary, is probably the most humble person walking the face of this earth.”

Young said his own family helped mold him into the man he’s become.

“My family is a big part of that because my dad had eight brothers and sisters, and my mom has got eight brothers and sisters. … Having a whole bunch of aunts and uncles and cousins, family life meant a lot. We all come together. We just come together and kind of support each other,” he said.

Young continued, “One of the things I’ve learned is to try to help as many people as I can, try to solve more problems than I cause and really try to take advantage of making this community better than what it is.”

He said he is thankful that his parents are still alive, noting that it was his father’s work ethic and his mother’s compassion that helped mold him.

“They’re a big part of my life and a big part of the community. My dad, I’ll never forget he came home one day. He was working for a plant, and he says, ‘I’m going to start my own business and go from there.’ We’re looking around the house like, ‘Man, we’re going to starve,’ but with the work ethic that he put in place, he got out there.

“He made a living, got three of us through college. We all went our separate paths but just to see him make something out of nothing and do that,” Young said, made a difference in his life.

The administrator graduated from Edisto High School and later earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of South Carolina-Aiken and a master’s degree in business administration from Southern Wesleyan University. He’s also a graduate of the National Association of Counties’ High Performance Leadership Academy.

He said his mom’s compassion for people was exemplary, along with his dad’s giving.

“He’s probably helped so many people over the course of the years by giving. So that was instilled in me. My mom just had a passion for helping people, and that’s kind of where I get it,” Young said.

He credits several veteran political leaders, including Congressman Jim Clyburn and retired state Sen. John Matthews, for helping him throughout his career.

“My career grew up by having them show me how they would get things done, especially under Sen. Matthews’ leadership. His training and tutelage did a lot for me, as well as other individuals in the community,” Young said, including former Orangeburg County Council Chairman John Rickenbacker.

“He had a vision of a lot of the stuff that really allowed us to move forward with it. Those individuals really instilled in me that we could be just as good and bigger as anybody else,” he said, noting that it makes him proud when officials from larger counties such as Richland, Beaufort and Berkeley counties “come and want to see our stuff that they don’t have.”

“That lets you know that we can do anything. The fact that I sit in this seat pays homage to the education I received from the Orangeburg County School District. That’s why I’m a big proponent of public education. … I went right there to Edisto High School. It was the foundation of my education,” Young said.

“I don’t take that for granted because we have a lot of good men and women in this community that are teachers, that made a way for a lot of us to be where we are today in this community,” the administrator said.

Young said he wants to look back on his time as administrator with pride.

“I want to look back and say I made a difference around this community. One of the biggest things that has changed with Orangeburg County is the team of individuals that work for this county. We have some really dedicated and dynamic individuals, especially on the directors’ level, who really care about this community,” Young said.

He continued, “A lot of times when people congratulate me for getting this and that accomplished through the county, I’m the first to tell them it would not happen without the individuals working with us because you are no better than the team of individuals you work with. I live by that philosophy because we got some good people that are supporting me.”

The administrator considers himself blessed and said he loves his team and what they do.

“Anytime I see the good employees doing what they’re supposed to do, it just makes my heart proud because individuals don’t know the sacrifices that a lot of us have to make trying to make things right for this community,’ he said.

Young said he will never forget where he came from.

He touts the influence of the church in his life, including Refuge Temple in Holly Hill and United Church of Christ on Bayne Street in Orangeburg, along with the support of his maternal grandmother, Francis Calloway, who would always cut out articles about him and put them on her refrigerator. It was a welcome site when he’d visit her.

“She was just that proud,” he said, along with his parents and his late sister, who died unexpectedly.

“Having a lot of weight on my shoulders from family, community, church, those things, I definitely do all I can to make them proud. I try not to do anything stupid, and I definitely will never forget where I’ve come from,” Young said.

“Cannon Bridge Road, the CBR Crew as we call ourselves. That’s the staple of my life. When I see that sign that says Cannon Bridge Road, I can’t help but smile. I think about all the times that whole neighborhood got out there and played ball. … Our community took care of each other, and we did it with a passion. So I can never forget what that community meant to me, or even how it’s helped me … to this day,” he said.

He said his fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha, has also helped shaped his penchant for service.

“The foundation of that fraternity is service. So we definitely do that. And with all the pressure and the stress, the thing that keeps me sane is my love for the Cowboys. I pour a lot of my heart and soul into rooting for my Cowboys,” he said, smiling.

Community development

A new modernized $29 million Orangeburg-Calhoun Detention Center and the opening of Orangeburg County’s new $9.2 million, 50,000-square-foot library and conference center are among the projects Young is most proud of.

“There’s just too many to name. We’ve got library projects going on in Bowman and North. We got a big park project going on Lake Edisto Road. We’re going in all directions. We’ve been trying to focus on stuff that engages the community and also helps give the community something else to have that they can use,” Young said.

The Lake Edisto park project is a 32-acre, $1.9 million penny-tax-funded project, which is located on Lake Edisto Road across from Camp Anderson. It will include boardwalks to the river, walking trails, a dog park, Department of Natural Resources offices, fitness stations and a community building.

“We’re excited about it because it’s a piece of property that we had that we were able to use without having to find another piece of property. I think the citizens will be able to take advantage of it,” Young said.

He said the library and conference center offers a multitude of programs.

“We have children’s reading programs, we have BINGO (and) we have art classes. People who home school actually use the art program for certification for their curriculum for homeschooling. We have people that come as far as Charleston to participate in that for those certifications,” Young said.

He continued, “The conference center allows us to have a location that individuals can also have different events. … The conference center manager, Tammy McCottry, has been a Godsend. She has done a phenomenal job of booking and getting programming coming through the conference center, and we’re proud to have her.”

Young noted older projects that have also made a difference in the community.

“Another signature project I feel like was transformative to this community was the YMCA and the water park. You would go in there, and you would see the CEO of a bank right next to somebody who just moved to this community. When you have all diverse types of men, women and children coming together, that was one of those projects that really brought a lot of things together,” he said.

He credits Orangeburg County Council for helping to change the face of the community, including with improvements made in front of the courthouse. A new parking lot and a plaza with a fountain, bench seating areas and green spaces were among them.

“It really transformed the way people looked at our government services, as well as this whole Amelia Street Corridor. I think it’s something to be proud of because if you go back and look at how it used to look with dilapidated buildings right across the street from your courthouse and your administrative square, I think that was something that we just didn’t need,” Young said.

A memorial in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. was also erected as part of the plaza.

“We were one of the few counties that did not have a road named after Martin Luther King when they had that push. But for us to now have the Martin Luther King Plaza over there as a justice monument, we think that was one of the great functions of what this county council has really pulled together,” the administrator said.

Upcoming projects that Young said he is highly anticipating include a U.S. 21/178 Bypass Corridor Enhancement Project planned for Chestnut Street near South Carolina State University.

“That’s going to beautify the back of the South Carolina State campus with underground utilities, with different lighting, walking trails and stuff that will tie into the park. Harmon Park will be upgraded, which is one of the most used parks in the county. I think that will make a visual statement as to the improvements that we’re bringing to this community, as well as the support for (Interim) President (Alexander) Conyers and what they have going on at South Carolina State,” he said.

He continued, “I definitely appreciate (Interim) President Conyers’ vision and what he has brought to the table. We support him 100% and look forward to working with him over the years to grow the campus and grow the HBCUs that mean such a big part of our community.

“There will be an announcement pretty soon on that bypass project because there’s a match component that the county is putting in on behalf of the university. That’s going to go a long way as far as getting that project done.”

Young said the opening of the libraries in North and Bowman is anticipated in the first quarter of 2022.

“That’s going to be transformative for Bowman, as well as North. We’re looking forward to those because anytime we can grow those areas, it makes a difference,” he said, noting that the county also has a project in partnership with the Regional Medical Center.

“We have a big project with the hospital that’s going to put an urgent care component, along with the upgrading of the EMS substation, in Santee,” Young said.

He said the county will also be transferring buildings to both S.C. State and Claflin University for their own growth and development.

“It’s a lot going on,” Young said.

COVID-19 response, other achievements

Young said he is not only proud of his team but of the way the county’s fund balance has increased.

“When I first became administrator, the fund balance was $700,000. Financially, we had a lot of stuff to clean up. Now we have almost $4 million worth of fund balance. That has to do with the team that we pull together, the vision that we put together financially, how we’ve cut costs (and) how we’ve made sure that we understand that it’s the people’s money,” he said.

“One of the things that I’m probably most proud of simply is my decision-making throughout this pandemic. No other administrator in the history of Orangeburg County has dealt with a pandemic like this. To make those decisions to pivot from the normal functions of county government to doing things (differently),” Young said, was a task.

Putting payment boxes outside was among the safety changes made, but the safety of county employees and the community at large had to come first, Young said.

“COVID has killed some people within our community, a lot of people, and one thing I’ve never took for granted is the fact that these men and women that work for Orangeburg County have families, too. I never wanted to put them in a position where making them more at risk for COVID than they have to be. So we’re trying to make the right decisions and do the right things to make sure that they’re safe as much as possible, and the community as well,” the administrator said.

He continued, “From day one, I really took the whole component of emergency services and law enforcement and medical services important. Those were priorities. There’s a lot of upgrades that we’ve done to all aspects of first responding in this community, where we have prioritized funding for them, prioritized equipment and other things to make it better.

“We’ve made changes under my administration with leadership in those areas, and I think it’s panned out because you’ve see significantly better scenarios than we were seeing in the past.”

He said he’s been blessed to have been working in the area of county government his entire career, noting that he chose that line of work for a reason.

“Years ago, I took a first-responder class in high school, ironically at the court house. It showed me in disaster how much the people and the citizens need county government. For some reason, I was just blessed. It just dropped in my lap, and that’s the direction I went. It’s been that way. I’ve been here with Orangeburg County for 25 years, and I worked with Aiken County a year and a half prior. So that’s been basically my career, working in county government,” Young said.

He said the devastation from floods, tornadoes, ice storms and hurricanes has been among the disasters the county has had to come together to tackle.

“We’ve seen it all and been hands-on in putting it all back. … We did it with the manpower on the ground from our public works and our public services folks, as well as our emergency services folk and our EMS personnel,” Young said.

The future: ‘It’s our time’

Young is optimistic about the county’s future.

“Our future is bright, and when I say that, I’m not just saying that from a person sitting in this chair. What I’m saying is it’s our time. … Our location. Because of the housing shortages and things that you have, South Carolina itself is seeing an unprecedented amount of people that are coming to South Carolina,” Young said, with many poised to come to Orangeburg County.

“There are basically jamming into three basic areas. They’re going in the Upstate, they’re going … in the Charleston area, and the Lexington area and somewhat in the Horry County area. The thing about us is we’re sandwiched between Lexington and Charleston. Lexington has put a moratorium on subdivisions because they can’t keep up with the amount of schools. Charleston, it takes you five to six months just to get a set of plans even looked at, and the amount of land the cost of land in Charleston has skyrocketed … and they’re landlocked by the coast,” the administrator said.

He continued, “One of the significant advantages we have is we have a lot of land, and we have a lot of area that can still be developed. We have a lot of individuals that are starting to realize that, and now we’re starting to see developments that are happening that are basically 100- and 200-house subdivisions that are being … looked at for our county.”

Young said that level of growth will produce an uptick in business development.

“You can look at the (U.S. Highway) 301 Corridor. You see massive buildings being built for warehouses and companies that are basically going to be tied into the new revelation for what’s to come with Boeing and Volvo and the automotive industry that is coming to us,” he said.

“We also took a huge leap as far as it relates to solar. We became one of the predominant counties as far as solar is concerned because of the massive amount of land that we have,” the administrator said.

As far as the colleges and universities, Young said, “The universities are a big key to our future. As they grow and they really dive into this next frontier of electrical vehicles, nuclear engineering and those type things, you will only see more professors, students and a spinoff from the colleges, which are a big source in our community in improving our way of life.”

He said the community’s concerns about crime will obviously come attached with more growth, but he has his own concerns about that.

“Orangeburg County, we tend to get a bad rap for stuff like that. Crime is up across the country and across the state. So it’s not just Orangeburg County. … I think the problem is our crime gets more magnified than other places … and I don’t think it’s fair for our county,” Young said.

He said he remains committed to doing what’s best for the county despite the challenges.

“I always feel like you’ve got to be positive about what you do. And … at the end of the day, I believe in a free press. The citizens have a right to know, and I believe in that,” Young said, noting that he sometimes has to pinch himself when he thinks of the responsibilities a small-town country boy has as administrator.

“I’ve got a lot of responsibility, but I basically came from nothing. We weren’t rich people, we weren’t anything. We lived in Cordova, we had a good life. Our parents made a way for us, and being humble is a part of the game because our (county council) chairman, Mr. Johnnie Wright, is probably one of the most humble men you can come across,” Young said.

“I really do appreciate his humbleness and what he brings to the table as far as how he supports me as an administrator and us as employees. And then it still boils down to family because (I) had a family that would help each other. We had a family that loved each other. That’s the component of what we all do together,” Young said.