By Mike McCombs and Dave Lucas
The Island News
After 22 years, Larry Holman is out as CEO of the Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce (BCBCC).
The organization’s board, with Holman present, voted Tuesday, June 20, to terminate Holman’s contract, as well as those of his son, Director of Programs and Events Kevin Holman, and his wife, Dominique Tuttle.
Board member Leroy Gilliard confirmed the changes this week but wasn’t willing to discuss any details yet.
“We’re still working through some things,” Gilliard said, indicating he was following his attorney’s advice in not answering questions. “You know how sensitive these things can be.”
The organization has been embroiled since November of 2020 in a legal struggle for control of the organization, including a lawsuit brought by three of its board members, including Gilliard, against Holman that alleged financial and organizational mismanagement.
In February 2022, local news outlets, including The Island News, received a news release with information regarding the membership of the BCBCC Board of Directors.
The day before the news release was sent out, Holman and the individuals bringing the lawsuit appeared before Judge Marvin Dukes (Master in Equity for Beaufort County) in the dispute over management of the organization. Former BCBCC board members Bernard McIntyre, John McCoy and Gilliard filed the lawsuit in November of 2020. Judge Dukes ordered the men reinstated to the board in December 2021.
According to the February 15, 2022 news release, an entirely new slate of board members was chosen during a “recent Annual General Membership meeting” held by the group. The release did not provide the time, date, location or other information about the meeting, such as membership rolls or voting procedures, but it did include several statements attributed to Holman.
“The organization also had to withstand unexpected legal challenges during the past year though operations were not impacted,” said Holman in the release, in an apparent reference to the lawsuit. “Our membership voted to remove the existing board members and moved forward with new board members who better understand the organization’s mission. We will continue to add to our history of stellar service to chamber members and small businesses in the Low Country and surrounding areas.”
The release, again quoting Holman, went on to name a slate of new board members: “The addition of Michael Hill, Ronic West, Lenwood Long, Delores Dacosta, Lumus Vick, Markee Tate, Shane Black, Miguel Camacho, and Wilma Holman to our board of directors positions us to move forward with expanded programs.”
Reached for comment on Feb. 22, 2022 by The Island News, Holman explained that the membership meeting took place on January 22 and was attended by approximately half of the BCBCC’s current dues-paying members, which consisted mainly of local businesses and nonprofits. Holman estimated the current membership at the time at 75. No annual meetings were held in 2020 or 2021, said Holman, due to the COVID-19 situation, which was one reason that the previous board membership had dwindled to just four. Up to 11 board members are allowed.
Those attending the meeting held up-or-down votes on the slate of nine potential board members chosen by two committees — the Nominating and Membership committees — said Holman. All nine were approved. Nominations from the floor are also allowed as part of this process, but none were put forward at the meeting, said Holman. “There were no nominations from the floor — that could have happened, but it did not.”
No details about either of the committees was disclosed.
Holman added then that the selection of a new board was driven by the concerns of the membership at large, and was not the result of any court proceedings or orders related to the lawsuit.
“That [the new board elections] had nothing to do with the lawsuit,” said Holman.
The fact that elections were held and a new board selected in January was discussed during the Feb. 2022 hearing on the lawsuit, Holman confirmed, but he declined to comment further at the time about what impact — if any — that fact might have on the resolution of the lawsuit itself.
Dukes dismissed the lawsuit when he ruled Holman had provided the required financial documentation and satisfied the court he would recognize and obey the decisions of the organization’s board, which still included Gilliard.
The BCBCC is a nonprofit organization that was founded in 1999 to support and foster minority-owned businesses in the region and has, by many measures, been successful in pursuing that mission. The BCBCC receives both private and public funding and has grown in recent years with the construction of a three-story “multi-plex” facility at 711 Bladen Street in the city of Beaufort’s Northwest Quadrant neighborhood and the addition of a federal U.S. Treasury Department-backed loan program designed to assist start-up businesses in traditionally underserved communities. [More information at https://www.cdfifund.gov].
While the conflict between McIntyre, McCoy and Gilliard, and Holman, as well as investigations by the city of Beaufort and SLED into violations of the city’s business license regulations and state-issued liquor license have garnered quite a bit of scrutiny over the several years, it’s unclear if the same issues are factors in Holman’s dismissal, or if there are new factors.
When contacted by The Island News, Larry Holman said he was not prepared to speak at this time.
Meanwhile, Gilliard is working on tying up loose ends left with Holman’s dismissal, saying he planned on meeting with all the membership and bringing them up to date.
“We will be looking at hiring somebody very soon,” Gilliard said. “We can’t run it as a board. We need someone there on a day-to-day basis. But we’re not going to let it fall apart. We can’t do that.”
Dave O. Lucas retired after 30 years in state government, most recently the S.C. Department of Natural Resources, where he was the Public Information Coordinator for the coastal region. He can be reached at DaveOLucas.beaufort@gmail.com.
Mike McCombs is the Editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.
