Lowcountry Profiles

Lynn Bryant

Biographical Sketch on Lynn Markovich Bryant Written by Wendy Nilsen Pollitzer If memories are the architecture of our identity, then our family is the foundation. We build our legacies upon how experiences made us feel and what we know is right; and by creating our own identity, we find purpose. Lynn Markovich Bryant never had to search for who she was. She designed the person she aspired to be…a loving wife, an attentive mother, a devoted educator, an unconditional friend and a staunch advocate for racial justice. 

Lynn Markovich was born in Petoskey, Michigan, a coastal ski resort town on Lake Michigan. Her family were members of the Bahá’í Faith. Her father had hopes of traveling South with his family to Baha’i Summer School. The only facility that allowed integrated groups was located at Penn Center on Saint Helena Island, SC. Her dad passed away when she was 8, but her mother, Laura Markovich, faithfully honored her husband’s wishes and took her family down South that summer for Baha’i study classes and fellowship. 

There, her mother met a widower, a Gullah man, Mr. Elting Smalls. He had six children. She had four. In 1968, they married and eventually had four more children together. Lynn moved to Saint Helena when she was nine years old and arrived to bit of culture shock when she attended school. Schools were still for the most part, segregated with a small sprinkling of black students due to a policy called Freedom of Choice. A realtor informed Lynn’s mother that the children would be bused to Beaufort Elementary. Lynn was very unhappy there due to racial division she had never experienced. After given a choice to integrate a black school, Lynn chose to attend Saint Helena due to the proximity to her home and her comfort level at the school. She, a couple siblings, and Baha’i friends were the only white children at Saint Helena School. 

But after forced integration, she was required by law to attend Beaufort High. There were two sessions of school because there was not enough room for all the high school children in northern Beaufort County to attend. Seniors and half the juniors attended in the morning while the other half of juniors and sophomores attended in the afternoon. Freshmen remained at their junior highs. There was a separate staff and principal for each session until Battery Creek High School was built. 

Lynn graduated Salutatorian at Beaufort High despite being told by teachers and students she could never be on the honor roll given her tenure at Saint Helena. The only reason she wasn’t Valedictorian was because the young woman named this title had earned high school credits in eighth grade, a privilege she was not afforded. She went on to Clemson University on a full academic scholarship and earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Education in only four years. At twenty-two, she applied to Beaufort County Schools and was not offered a contract because the recruiters told her, “We know your family!”

She went directly to Mrs. Wiley, the principal at Saint Helena Elementary and she was there to let her know of her disappointment. Mrs. Wiley hadn’t even seen her application yet needed teachers. Mrs. Wiley hired Lynn after complaining to the district, and Lynn went on to teach at the school for 30 years.

Lynn taught several grades and remedial reading, and for 10 years taught a pilot program she designed that taught 4th and 5th graders composition writing. The program utilized skills in Microsoft Word and Power Point. Her students read historical novels and wrote research papers on the themes. They wrote essays on reflection. They wrote business letters. Lyn incorporated state standards into the successful program, and it lasted for a decade. It was her baby.

Dr. Laverne Davis, Principal at Saint Helena Elementary for 14 years, asked Lynn to be Assistant Principal due to her dedication to the community and her love for children. She couldn’t say no, because she admired Dr. Davis and her appreciation for the students, staff and faculty. She’d do anything for the school and Dr. Davis. She received her second Master’s from the University of South Carolina and served in the role for three years. She was really good at the job, but the job was not for her. She missed teaching, so returned to her passion. 

Years prior, Lynn met the love of her life, Wilbert Bryant at a house party on Laurel Bay. Bryant, an active duty Marine at the time, saw Lynn dancing with one of his friends. And Lynn could dance! Bryant thought the two were dating, so he shied away from asking her on a date. Upon learning they were not dating, only friends, Bryant asked Lynn out. Their first date was at the movie theater, watching Blazing Saddles in 1979. In 1981, they were married as one of very few interracial couples in Beaufort County.

In 2002, Lynn penned her autobiography, “I’m Black and I’m Proud,” wished the white girl,” which shares the joy and challenges of growing up in a multi-cultural family and Gullah community during segregation. Tied to her autobiography focused on racial unity, she’s done book presentations across the nation and many locally such as Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI), Penn Center, Books Sandwiched In, the Pat Conroy Literary Conference, Building Bridges Program at the College of Charleston, Savannah’s Parent University, schools, universities, and countless Book Clubs. She’s also enjoyed sharing her writing experience with Beaufort and Jasper County students for Career Days. Lynn’s most recent contribution in responding to the call to achieve racial justice in Beaufort is planning and implementing #TakingAction4Justice. This Racial Justice initiative is sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Beaufort County and involves planners and participants from diverse backgrounds of race and religious beliefs. 

One of Lynn’s greatest service to her community has been through dance. She quickly answers the call to assist in teaching, performing, or fundraising through her love of line dance. Family Slide’s mission is to bring people of all ages and backgrounds together to enjoy the unifying power of dance and was founded in 2010 with a small group of teachers at St. Helena Elementary. It has since expanded to about 100 dancers at several facilities: the Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce, the Beaufort YMCA, and Sun City.

Lynn is a loving, genuine person. She is an adventurist. She is a trailblazer. Her son, Jack, describes her as “always being there. She’s been my mentor my whole life.” Lynn has made an impact on many. Her devotion to family, her students and her community has shaped her identity. Her zest for life is contagious, and for those who have the pleasure of knowing her, they are blessed. For Lynn’s 60th birthday, she danced for 12 straight hours as a testament to her youthful heart and soul.

Lynn and Bryant have three children, Dee, Jack and Greg, eight grandchildren and a great granddaughter. When Lynn is not dancing, hosting family gatherings or serving the Bahá’í Faith, you can finder her walking with her husband, cycling with her son or relaxing by the oceanfront. She is truly an inspiration to all.

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